Nearly 30,000 Drunk Driving Cases Marred by Police Misconduct

Almost 30,000 defendants convicted of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol will have an easier time requesting a new trial after the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court declared they were impacted by “egregious government misconduct.”

The state police Office of Alcohol Testing failed to properly calibrate its Draeger Alcotest 9510 breathalyzer in many instances and withheld evidence demonstrating that some test results weren’t reliable, violating the right to due process for 27,000 defendants, the court said in an opinion Wednesday.

Those actions “had a devastating impact on public trust and confidence in the ...