TheDenverChannel.com









Denver News
E-Mail News Alerts
Get breaking news and daily headlines.
Browse all e-mail newsletters

Prosecutors: Flawed DUI Tests In Springs Double

Impact On DUI Prosecutions Unknown

POSTED: 9:46 am MST February 1, 2010
UPDATED: 10:09 am MST February 1, 2010

The number of flawed Colorado Springs police DUI tests has doubled to 167 since a crime lab audit last year discovered that some blood-alcohol results were inflated, the Colorado Springs Gazette reported.

The Police Department launched internal and external investigations after reporting Dec. 11 that a routine audit revealed errors in 82 initial cases.

El Paso County prosecutor Frederick Stein confirmed the doubling of flawed cases to The Gazette, but he could not say yet what the impact of the erroneous tests might be on prosecution of those criminal cases. He said the district attorney's office hopes to have a report compiling those outcomes within the next two weeks.

At the time, the department started re-testing about 1,000 blood alcohol test results taken since January 2009, The Gazette reported. Meanwhile, prosecutors contacted individuals in the cases that were based upon the incorrect test results.

The Colorado Bureau of Investigations is conducting the external investigation and the Police Department is conducting its own internal review.

While the department review isn't completed, police spokesman Lt. David Whitlock told The Gazette: "We've narrowed it down to the point where we believe it is likely a human error. We believe very strongly that it’s not an equipment failure or something inherent in the lab itself."
The following are comments from our users. Opinions expressed are neither created nor endorsed by TheDenverChannel.com. By posting your comments you agree to accept our Terms of Use. To report an offensive or otherwise inappropriate comment, click the "Flag" link that appears beneath that comment. Flagging a comment will send it to our editorial staff for review.

Links We Like
Sponsored Content
Feeling bloated or uncomfortable after eating? Try these five recipes and find out why they are so good for digestion. More

Find out what a sputtering economy and an increasingly difficult to crack job market means to you. More

Embellish an empty abode with these easy, inexpensive projects and make your home feel more like home. More

Check out some of the most notorious police car chase scenes ever caught on tape. Don’t try this at home. More

MyReport Network

E - News Registration focus group
  My Report Network: Tell your story on 7NEWS. Sign up to be a member of our My Report Network
Sponsored Links

MyReport Network

E - News Registration focus group
  My Report Network: Tell your story on 7NEWS. Sign up to be a member of our My Report Network