Minnesota: Human error in a Tri-County Lab affects 111 DUI cases.

Human error caused the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office tri-county crime lab to report inflated blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels in 111 driving while impaired (DWI) cases.

The error was mathematical. According to Sommer, lab scientists are supposed to multiply the end result by 0.67 to determine the grams of alcohol per 67 milliliters of urine. The multiplication was not done, so the end result reported the grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of urine.

“The science was not bad. Nothing was tainted. It was a human error,” Sommer said.

According to defense attorney Michael Brandt, who is based out of Anoka, this error meant his client was originally reported to have a 0.21 BAC, but the real BAC was 0.14.

Brandt said the error was revealed during the evidence discovery process after his client was charged with the 0.21 BAC, which carries a higher degree level charge than 0.14.

Brandt is concerned that “the ship has sailed” for people who have already served time in jail, paid fines or had to pay to get their driver’s license reinstated because of these human errors.


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