State v. Bergman, 2013 Ohio 3073

Bergman was stopped for a headlight violation on State Route 59 and charged with OVI and the headlight violation.
A breath test with the Intoxilyzer 8000 showed a BAC of 0.097.
Bergman moved to suppress the breath test on grounds of the machine's reliability.
The state did not present reliability evidence; the trial court granted suppression based on Vega and Johnson precedents.
The state appealed, arguing the trial court cannot require threshold reliability proof before admitting results.
The appellate court holds that trial courts may require reliability proof and that the Director of Health approves devices but does not compel admission without reliability evidence.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Must the State prove Intoxilyzer 8000 reliability as a threshold admissibility requirement?	Bergman argues reliability need not be proven upfront; general acceptance suffices.	Bergman contends the machine's reliability should be presumed upon Director of Health approval, not require pre-admission proof.	Trial court may require reliability proof before admitting results.

State v. Vega, 365 N.E.2d 1084 (1984) (limits blanket attacks on general reliability of intoxilyzers)
State v. Westerville v. Cunningham, 157 Ohio St.2d 199 (1968) (breath analysis generally reliable when proper and competent)
State v. Yoder, 66 Ohio St.3d 515 (1993) (presumption of reliability granted to Director of Health; rebuttal required)
State v. Sage, 31 Ohio St.3d 173 (1987) (evidential admissibility lies in the trial court's discretion)
State v. Collazo, 2013-Ohio-439 (11th Dist. 2013) (trial court may require reliability evidence before admitting breath test results)