| Notice Decision filed 07/02/02. The text of this decision may be changed or corrected prior to the filing of a Petition for Rehearing or the disposition of the same. |
| THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, | ) | Appeal from the |
| ) | Circuit Court of | |
| Plaintiff-Appellant, | ) | Williamson County. |
| ) | ||
| v. | ) | Nos. 00-DT-10, 99-DT-125, |
| ) | 99-DT-28, & 99-DT-29 | |
| CRAIG A. HANNA, KATHRYN R. PRICE, | ) | |
| KEITH RYAN O'LOUGHLIN, and | ) | |
| GORDON R. PRUETT, | ) | Honorable |
| ) | Ronald Eckiss, | |
| Defendants-Appellees. | ) | Judge, presiding. |
JUSTICE WELCH delivered the opinion of the court:
Four cases were consolidated in the circuit court of Williamson County for thepurpose of hearing, and deciding, the defendants' motions to suppress the results ofbreathalyzer machine testing in their prosecutions for driving under the influence of alcohol. The circuit court of Williamson County granted the defendants' motions to suppress, and theState filed certificates of impairments and notices of appeal. Those cases remainconsolidated for this appeal.
Each of the four defendants in this appeal were stopped and tested on a breathalyzermachine. The machines involved are known as the Intoxilyzer 3000 and the Intoxilyzer5000. In each case, the reading from the machine indicated that the defendant's bloodalcohol content was far above the legal limit. Each defendant filed a motion to suppress thebreath-analysis result, claiming that the machine had not been properly tested by the IllinoisDepartment of Public Health (Department), as required by an Illinois regulation, prior tobeing approved for use in the field. The regulation in question required each breathalyzermachine to meet the following requirement prior to its use in the field:
"[Breathalyzer machines] *** will be tested and approved by the Department inaccordance with but not limited to the Standards for Devices to Measure BreathAlcohol promulgated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, U.S.Department of Transportation ***." 77 Ill. Adm. Code