Court: No need to follow specific order for DUI tests

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s Supreme Court says police officers don’t have to follow a specific order when asking suspected drunken drivers to submit to breath or blood testing to determine their blood-alcohol concentration.

The decision Thursday stems from a 2007 Webster County case. Defendant Christopher Duncan claims his DUI charge should be dismissed because the officer first asked if he would submit to a blood test and then denied him a breath test.

The high court ruled the officer didn’t run astray of state law in how he tried to check Duncan’s blood-alcohol concentration.

Justice Bill Cunningham, in writing for the court, says an officer is under no obligation to administer a breath test prior to a blood test.

He says state law does not set out a specific testing order to follow.