A Calgary woman was unable to complete a breathalyzer test. Now, she can't drive

A Calgary woman says she had her driver's licence suspended after being unable to complete a breathalyzer test — and some experts say the situation is more common than you might think.

Pam Lacusta, 58, was driving on Stoney Trail in April when she was pulled over by Calgary police, who administered a breathalyzer test.

Lacusta attempted the test 30 times and couldn't complete it. The officer handed her an administrative penalty for failing to provide a proper breath sample — a penalty that carries the same consequences as driving while impaired. 

Now, Lacusta must complete a driver's education course and install an interlock device in her car before she can drive again. Her prior insurance now refuses to cover her.

"I feel like I'm being punished for something that I never did," said Lacusta, who said she doesn't drink for religious reasons. 

Later on the day she was ticketed, Lacusta took a urine test at a private clinic at her own expense to prove she wasn't drinking. She sent CBC News a copy of the negative results. 

Edmonton-based paralegal Sandra Weber said she hears of situations like Lacusta's fairly regularly. Weber said people may struggle to complete a roadside test due to medical conditions like lung cancer or asthma, compounded by the stress of completing a test in front of an officer. 

Once someone has received a penalty for failing to complete a breathalyzer, she said, it can be difficult to fight. 

"It's up to the recipient … to prove that there was something wrong with the machine or something that the police had done wrong," said Weber, who works with Moreau Law. "It's a very challenging situation and without any medical evidence it's very difficult to overcome these types of tickets."

Lacusta did appeal her penalty with a provincial adjudicator, who turned her down. 

Lacusta said her difficulty with the test may have been due to a recent Botox injection that kept her from making a proper seal with her mouth. She also later learned that she had two suspected rib fractures, but not in time to include that information in her appeal.

'Not enough puff'

Recent research out of the University of Sheffield in the U.K. suggests there may be people without severe lung or breathing problems who nevertheless struggle to complete breathalyzer tests. 

"There is a small, but significant, subset of people who just don't have enough puff to be able to operate the machine successfully," said lead researcher Galen Ives, who noted that older people, short people and women are more likely to struggle. 

Ives said police should be more willing to offer blood or urine tests as an alternative to people who try and fail to complete breathalyzer tests, though he acknowledged there would be practical hurdles to testing at a second location. 

A spokesperson for the Calgary Police Service said she couldn't comment on Lacusta's situation, but said anyone who believes they are medically unable to complete a breathalyzer test should tell the officer at the scene.

A spokesperson for the provincial minister of justice said if people can't provide breath samples they may be asked to provide blood or urine samples "where certain legal requirements are met."

Lacusta said blood and urine tests were not offered in her situation, and she believes they should be more widely available to people who can't provide a breath sample. 

For now, she's relying on her friends and her bicycle to get around the city, but still hopes to fight her penalty and have her clean driving record restored.