By passing Senate Bill 1112, Va. Code Ann. §8.01-44.5 was amended and reenacted by the Virginia General Assembly, effective July 1, 2013. The revision eases the burden of proving intoxication in some vehicle accident cases.
Where the vehicle accident Defendant has a blood alcohol concentration of 0.15 percent or more, “it shall be rebuttably presumed that the blood alcohol concentration at the time of the incident causing injury or death was at least as high as the test results as shown in a certificate issued pursuant to §18.2-268.9 or in a certificate of analysis for a blood test administered pursuant to §18.2-268.7, provided that the test was administered within three [3] hours of the incident causing injury or death.” Moreover, “[į]n addition to any other forms of proof, a party may submit a copy of a certificate issued pursuant to §18.2-268.9 or a certificate of analysis for a blood test administered pursuant to §18.2-268.7, which shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein.”
