People v. Mills

to obtain his breath sample. He was advised pursuant to Vehicle Code section 13353 that he had a choice of tests and chose the breath test. He was not told the intoxilyzer did not preserve a sample for retesting. The intoxilyzer on which he was tested and all other breath testing equipment in the county did not provide samples of breath for retesting. It was shown by the evidence that blood and urine samples are retained and available for retesting (if samples thereof are provided) when an arrestee has chosen either of those tests. The parties further agreed, subject to all appropriate appellate review, to be bound by the court’s pretrial ruling at trial.

As noted above, the court suppressed the evidence of the breath test results ruling the failure to advise respondent that taking a breath test, unlike a blood or urine test, would result in the absence of a sample subject to retesting. The court’s reliance on People v. Hitch (1974) 12 Cal.3d 641 [ 117 Cal.Rptr. 9 , 527 P.2d 361 ], is misplaced. That case did not deal with the question of when and whether the police have an obligation to advise an arrestee of rights or consequences. Hitch imposed a due process obligation upon police officers to preserve evidence in their possession under certain circumstances.

It is now settled that the federal due process clause does not require the collection and retention of breath samples for independent testing when the intoxilyzer is used for blood alcohol analysis of breath. (California v. Trombetta (1984) 467 U.S. 479 [ 81 L.Ed.2d 413 , 104 S.Ct. 2528 ] revg. People v. Trombetta (1983) 142 Cal.App.3d 138 , 143 [ 190 Cal.Rptr. 319 ].) Neither Hitch nor Trombetta decided whether the police have a duty to advise arrestees choosing a breath test that no sample will be collected and retained for independent testing.

We note that effective September 15, 1983, as an urgency measure, Vehicle Code section 13353.5, subdivision (a) requires “. . . a person who chooses to submit to a breath test shall be advised before or after the test that the breath-testing equipment does not retain any sample of the breath and that no breath sample will be available after the test which could be analyzed later by the person or any other person.” Subdivision (b) requires the person also be advised he or she has the opportunity to select an additional test of his or her blood or urine which will be retained and available for independent testing. Since these advisements clearly must be given contemporaneously with the test or tests, it has no applicability to tests, like the one here, occurring prior to its effective date. (Also see Veh. Code, §6.) Therefore the section has no effect on the case before us.

Our determination that the officer had no duty to advise respondent who chose a breath test that no sample would be retained as a condition precedent

to admitting the results into evidence is based on several well-settled principles. The state may constitutionally compel a blood test over objection of one lawfully arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and use the results as evidence against him at trial. (Schmerber v. California (1966) 384 U.S. 757 [ 16 L.Ed.2d 908 , 86 S.Ct. 1826 ].) Such compulsion does not violate the arrestee’s Fourth Amendment rights to be free of unlawful searches and seizures nor compel him to be a witness against himself in violation of the Fifth Amendment. (Ibid.) Advisement by a law enforcement officer that one has the right to refuse a consent to search is unnecessary to a valid consent (Schneckloth v. Bustamonte (1973) 412 U.S. 218 , 231-233 [ 36 L.Ed.2d 854 , 865-866, 93 S.Ct. 2041 ]; accord People v. Duren (1973) 9 Cal.3d 218 , 241 [ 107 Cal.Rptr. 157 , 507 P.2d 1365 ]) even when the person consenting is in custody when the consent is given. (United States v. Watson (1976) 423 U.S. 411 , 424-425 [ 46 L.Ed.2d 598 , 609-610, 96 S.Ct. 820 ].)

It has also been held law enforcement officers do not have to advise a suspect that blood alcohol test results or a refusal to take a blood alcohol test will be admissible against him or her at trial in order for the results to be admissible, i.e., it is not fundamentally unfair to use the test results or refusal as evidence of guilt even though no specific warning of this consequence was given to the accused. (South Dakota v. Neville (1983) 459 U.S. 553 , 565-566 [ 74 L.Ed.2d 748 , 759-760, 103 S.Ct. 916 ].)

The advisement the court here required as a condition precedent to the admissibility of the breath test results is without constitutional necessity. The court apparently concluded such advisement would be necessary in order for the choice of a breath test to be a knowing and intelligent waiver of the right to preserved evidence. As noted above, the United States Supreme Court has subsequently determined that the state does not violate due process when it fails to preserve a sample of breath for independent testing. The results of a breath test are admissible even if the breath sample is destroyed. (California v. Trombetta, supra, 467 U.S. 479 .) Therefore, respondent had no constitutional right to a preserved sample which was waived by choosing a breath sample.

“Almost without exception, the requirement of a knowing and intelligent waiver has been applied only to those rights which the Constitution guarantees to a criminal defendant in order to preserve a fair trial. [Fn. omitted.]” (Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, supra, 412 U.S. 218 , 237 [ 36 L.Ed.2d 854 , 868].) If preservation of a sample for possible impeachment of results is not necessary to a fair trial as determined in California v. Trombetta, supra, a knowing waiver of a preserved sample is likewise unnecessary.

The test chosen by appellant on a machine with which he is familiar has not been shown to be less reliable than the optional tests he did not choose. As pointed out by the Supreme Court, he remains free to impeach the results of the test by other reasonably available means. (See California v. Trombetta, supra, 467 U.S. 479 , — [ 81 L.Ed.2d 413 , 422-423].) Therefore the court erred in suppressing the evidence of the results of respondent’s breath test.

The judgment is reversed.

Stone, P. J., and Gilbert, J., concurred.

A petition for a rehearing was denied February 4, 1985, and appellant’s petition for a hearing by the Supreme Court was denied March 21, 1985.