5 Requirements for the Admission of a Breath-Analysis Result

In People v. Orth, 124 Ill. 2d 326, 340, 530 N.E.2d 210, 216-17, 125 Ill. Dec. 182 (1988), our supreme court stated that the foundational requirements for the admission of a breath-analysis result include: (1) evidence that the tests were performed according to the uniform standard adopted by the Illinois Department of Public Health; (2) evidence that the operator administering the tests was certified by the Department of Public Health; (3) evidence that the machine used was a model approved by the Department of Health, was tested regularly for accuracy, and was working properly; (4) evidence that the motorist was observed for the requisite 20 minutes prior to the test and, during this period, the motorist did not smoke, regurgitate, or drink; (5) evidence that the results appearing on the 'printout' sheet can be identified as the tests given to the motorist." Section 510.100 (a) of the Illinois Administrative Code additionally provides: "An instrument must be accurate within plus or minus 0.01 W/V to be certified. To determine accuracy of instruments, an inspector shall perform two analyses on a certified controlled reference sample at least once a month at intervals not to exceed 45 days. The inspector shall record test results of his certification in the instrument logbook (See Appendix a of this Part). The original certification test results will be retained by the inspector." 77 Ill. Adm. Code 510.100(a) (1995).