Ebach v. N.D. Dep't of Transportation

Citations

• 2019 ND 80
• 924 N.W.2d 105

Syllabus

At a hearing under N.D.C.C. 39-20-05, the regularly kept records of the director and state crime laboratory may be introduced once introduced, those records establish prima facie their contents without further foundation. Once a chemical breath test record is admitted into evidence, establishing prima facie its contents, a party may rebut the presumption of fair administration by establishing a deviation from approved procedures or a lack of fair administration despite compliance with approved procedures. Unless the defendant produces enough evidence to rebut the foundation of fair administration, evidence discrediting chemical breath test results will affect the weight given the test results not their admissibility. Steps not expressly included in the approved method published by the State Toxicologist are not foundational requirements for the admission of chemical breath test records.