A resident of the South Shore who repeatedly emits repetitive burps has been relieved of a drink-driving charge because of his chronic digestive problem.
This singular story may seem hard to digest, but it is recounted in detail by Judge Serge Champoux in a decision rendered in favor of the 56-year-old accused, at the Cowansville Court House in Estrie, on June 22.
The motorist in Saint-Lambert thus avoided a criminal record on the grounds that his medical condition was causing "frequent and uncontrolled eructations" which could have skewed the results of the breathalyzer test that the police had done to him as a result of a road exit.
Reports to the police
On January 24, 2016, the defendant's vehicle was found in a ditch in Bromont, not far from the ski resort.
When called upon to intervene, a municipal police officer at first did not "notice anything particular about the behavior of the accused" until he invited the accused to sit in the autopatrouille while waiting for a towing vehicle. he smells of alcohol.
After admitting to having "a few drinks", the driver was taken to the police station to take the breathalyzer test.
After a first breath, "he burped and decided to suspend the test to allow the alcohol possibly in the mouth of the accused time to evaporate," said the judge.
Ten minutes later, the suspect "fart balloon", but not without having produced another eructation between his successive breaths.
Every three minutes
The tests gave different results, namely alcohol levels of 156, 133 and 142 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of blood, while the limit is 80 mg. The officer who was passing the breathalyzer admitted that the second result was possibly "flawed".
At trial, the accused testified that he had been burping "every three to five minutes for many years", and even more often in times of stress.
A doctor whom the accused consulted for his belching problem concluded that "there was nothing to do".
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : https://z22news.com/saved-from-a-criminal-record-by-his-burps/