When I was a younger DUI attorney, whenever I wanted to request a document, a training manual, police videos, whatever you use to send a subpoena to a judge to sign, I would give a copy of that subpoena to the judge. prosecutor and I would serve the subpoena on whichever agency it was. This was time consuming, usually a pain in the ass, and almost always informed the District Attorney of the direction of my case.
Lately, however, I have been using a new method to request these documents. It’s called a Public Disclosure Request. In the state of Washington, where I am licensed to practice law, this is codified in Washington Revised Code 42.56. Although these basic principles of what to request and how to do it may apply in any jurisdiction that allows the public to request such things.
In your basic DUI case, whether it is a breath test or a blood test, there are certain things that must be kept in order to conduct a thorough investigation of the case. Many times, a DUI charge is not filed immediately, so unless certain items are preserved, they will be destroyed by the time the DUI charge is filed by the District Attorney. Depending on the jurisdiction, there are 3 typical items that I will request through the Public Disclosure Act.
First would be any audio/video recordings involving my client. This may include, but is not limited to, in-car videos, BAC room videos, lobby videos, etc. In DUI cases, it usually comes down to the word of your clients in front of the police. If you can get any discovery that records the incident, you can really see what happened. However, the recycling times on this discovery are quite fast. Therefore, this request must be made after the client signs the fee agreement.
Second, would be the arrest reports or police accounts of the officers or soldiers involved in the arrest. Often times, when an officer is dealing with a high volume of DUI arrests, it is natural for them to cut corners to save time. This may include cutting and copying from previous reports. When a request is made for any prior DUI arrest report, it will show whether or not the officer does so.
Lastly, I would like to request any and all maintenance records for the breath testing machine, or any blood work samples for later analysis. If the machine was not working properly or there have been problems with it in the past, I want to know. Likewise, if a blood test was performed, it is important to preserve everything that was involved in taking the sample.
Please note that these are just a few items that I typically request in a DUI case. Obviously, depending on the facts and/or witnesses involved, extensive requests can be made. However, in your typical DUI case, this will get you started.
