(a) In any criminal prosecution for a violation of section vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant” class=”unlinked-ref” datatype=”S” sessionyear=”2022″ statecd=”HI”>291E-61 or 291E-61.5 or in any proceeding under part III:

criminal case

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Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-3

  • Alcohol: means ethanol or any substance containing ethanol. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Alcohol concentration: means either grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters or cubic centimeters of blood or grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of breath. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Drug: means any controlled substance, as defined and enumerated in schedules I through IV of chapter 329, or its metabolites, or any substance that, when taken into the human body, can impair the ability of a person to operate a vehicle safely. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Highly intoxicated driver: means a person whose measurable amount of alcohol is:

    (1) . See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Impair: means to weaken, to lessen in power, to diminish, to damage, or to make worse by diminishing in some material respect or otherwise affecting in an injurious manner. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Intoxicant: means alcohol or any drug, as defined in this section. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Operate: means to drive or assume actual physical control of a vehicle upon a public way, street, road, or highway or to navigate or otherwise use or assume physical control of a vessel underway on or in the waters of the State. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Under the influence: means that a person:

    (1) Is under the influence of alcohol in an amount sufficient to impair the person's normal mental faculties or ability to care for the person and guard against casualty;
    (2) Is under the influence of any drug that impairs the person's ability to operate the vehicle in a careful and prudent manner;
    (3) Has . See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
  • Vehicle: includes a:

    (1) Motor vehicle;
    (2) Moped; and
    (3) Vessel. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 291E-1
(1) .08 or more grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters or cubic centimeters of the person’s blood;
(2) .08 or more grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of the person’s breath; or
(3) The presence of one or more drugs in an amount sufficient to impair the person’s ability to operate a vehicle in a careful and prudent manner, within three hours after the time of the alleged violation as shown by chemical analysis or other approved analytical techniques of the person’s blood, breath, or urine shall be competent evidence that the person was under the influence of an intoxicant at the time of the alleged violation.
(b) In any criminal prosecution for a violation of section 291E-61 or 291E-61.5, the amount of alcohol found in the defendant‘s blood or breath within three hours after the time of the alleged violation as shown by chemical analysis or other approved analytical techniques of the defendant’s blood or breath shall be competent evidence concerning whether the defendant was under the influence of an intoxicant at the time of the alleged violation and shall give rise to the following presumptions:

(1) If there were .05 or less grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters or cubic centimeters of defendant’s blood or .05 or less grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of defendant’s breath, it shall be presumed that the defendant was not under the influence of alcohol at the time of the alleged violation; and
(2) If there were in excess of .05 grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters or cubic centimeters of defendant’s blood or .05 grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of defendant’s breath, but less than .08 grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters or cubic centimeters of defendant’s blood or .08 grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of defendant’s breath, that fact may be considered with other competent evidence in determining whether the defendant was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the alleged violation, but shall not of itself give rise to any presumption.
(c) In any criminal prosecution for a violation of section 291E-61 or in any proceeding under part III:

(1) .15 or more grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters or cubic centimeters of the person’s blood; or
(2) .15 or more grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of the person’s breath, within three hours after the time of the alleged violation as shown by chemical analysis or other approved analytical techniques of the person’s blood or breath shall be competent evidence that the person was a highly intoxicated driver at the time of the alleged violation.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the introduction, in any criminal proceeding for a violation under section 291E-61 or 291E-61.5 or in any proceeding under part III, of relevant evidence of a person’s alcohol concentration or drug content obtained more than three hours after an alleged violation; provided that the evidence is offered in compliance with the Hawaii rules of evidence.

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