State v. Burnside, Unpublished Decision (7-9-2002)
State v. Burnside, Unpublished Decision (7-9-2002)
Opinion of the Court
{¶ 3} Thereafter, appellant, on August 1, 2001, entered a plea of not guilty to all of the charges. On August 15, 2001, appellant filed a Motion to Suppress arguing, in part, that the State did not comply with the Ohio Department of Health Regulations regarding blood alcohol testing. A hearing on appellant's motion was held on October 12, 2001. After the trial court overruled his Motion to Suppress in part, holding that the State substantially complied with the Ohio Department of Health Regulations regarding blood alcohol testing, appellant, on December 4, 2001, entered a plea of no contest to operating a motor vehicle with a prohibited level of alcohol in violation of R.C.
{¶ 4} Appellant now raises the following assignment of error on appeal:
{¶ 5} "THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN OVERRULING DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO SUPPRESS REGARDING SUBSTANTIAL COMPLIANCE WITH THE OHIO DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH REGULATIONS REGARDING BLOOD ALCOHOL TESTING."
{¶ 7} There are three methods of challenging on appeal a trial court's ruling on a motion to suppress. First, an appellant may challenge the trial court's findings of fact. In reviewing a challenge of this nature, an appellate court must determine whether said findings of fact are again the manifest weight of the evidence. State v. Fanning
(1982),
{¶ 8} The State has the burden of proof to show that the test was administered in substantial compliance with the methods prescribed by the Director of Health of the State of Ohio. State v. Plummer (1986),
{¶ 9} As is stated above, appellant maintains that the State failed to establish substantial compliance with Ohio Department of Health Regulations since the State failed to establish (1) that a non-volatile antiseptic was used on appellant's skin prior to collecting the blood sample and (2) that a solid anticoagulant was used after appellant's blood sample was drawn. O.A.C.
{¶ 10} (B) When collecting a blood sample, an aqueous solution of a non-volatile antiseptic shall be used on the skin. No alcohols shall be used as a skin antiseptic.
{¶ 11} (C) Blood shall be drawn with a sterile dry needle into a vacuum container with a solid anticoagulant, or according to the laboratory protocol as written in the laboratory procedure manual based on the type of specimen being tested.
{¶ 12} At the suppression hearing on October 12, 2001, Marilyn Booze, the blood and alcohol technician and certified phlebotomist at Fairfield Medical Center who drew appellant's blood on July 28, 2001, testified as follows when asked whether she cleaned appellant's skin prior to drawing blood:
{¶ 13} A. Yes.
{¶ 14} Q. What kind of solution did you use to clean that surface?
{¶ 15} A. Benadine.
{¶ 16} Q. Benadine?
{¶ 17} A. Um, hum.
{¶ 18} Q. Is that a non-alcoholic antiseptic solution?
{¶ 19} A. Yes, it is.
{¶ 20} Q. Okay. And is that the type of solution that you're trained when doing a test for drug or alcohol?
{¶ 21} A. Yes.
{¶ 22} Transcript at 55-56. However, when questioned during cross-examination, Booze testified that she did not know what "a volatile antiseptic is as opposed to a non-volatile antiseptic." Transcript at 58. While Booze testified that a non-alcoholic solution was used to clean appellant's skin prior to the blood draw, as noted by appellant in his brief, "[s]ince the [Ohio Department of Health] regulations requireboth a non-volatile antiseptic and a non-alcoholic antiseptic, it must be assumed that non-volatile does not equate to non-alcoholic." In a similar case, this Court previously held that the State had failed to establish that it had substantially complied with O.A.C.
{¶ 23} Based on the foregoing, we find that the State did not establish that a non-volatile antiseptic was used in obtaining appellant's blood specimen as required by O.A.C.
{¶ 24} As is stated above, appellant, in his sole assignment, also argues that the State did not substantially comply with O.A.C.
{¶ 25} Based on the foregoing, we find that the State failed to establish substantial compliance with the Ohio Department of Health regulations concerning blood alcohol testing, namely, O.A.C.
{¶ 26} Appellant's sole assignment of error is, therefore, sustained.
{¶ 27} Accordingly, the judgment of the Fairfield Municipal Court is reversed and this matter is remanded for further proceedings.
By EDWARDS, J. HOFFMAN, P.J. and WISE, J. concur
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.