Results of breath test on Scottsdale chief's daughter questioned
Apr. 10, 2007 California DUI news / California Drunk Driving www.Google.com

SCOTTSDALE - Cody Nicole Rodbell, daughter of the Scottsdale police chief, was headed home from downtown Scottsdale's Next Nightclub at about 2:30a.m. March 28 when one of her father's officers stopped her and accused her of speeding.

The officer's radar gun clocked her red 2006 Toyota Solara at 57 mph in a 40 mph speed zone on Scottsdale Road near Oak Street.

That stop for speeding spun into what Police Chief Alan Rodbell called "challenging days," when it was revealed that his 21-year-old daughter had been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving.

But three Phoenix defense attorneys, who each have handled hundreds of drunken-driving cases, say there may not be strong enough evidence to convict her.

None of the attorneys represents Cody Rodbell, but they were asked to give their opinions in light of test results released last week that showed Cody Rodbell's blood alcohol was 0.072 percent, slightly below Arizona's 0.080 percent level of presumed intoxication. That test was from blood drawn following her arrest at Scottsdale Healthcare Osborn.

It was processed by the Arizona Department of Public Safety laboratory.

Those results differ from the potable blood-alcohol breath test given Cody Rodbell when she was stopped by police, which showed a level of 0.081 percent, just above the state's level of presumed intoxication. But those results aren't admissible in court because of the questionable accuracy of portable testing units.

The officer tested her breath after he noticed that her eyes were bloodshot and watery, her speech was slurred and she smelled of alcohol, according to a police report.

Cody Rodbell's case is in the hands of the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, which will decide whether she will be prosecuted.

The defense lawyers say the case may be weakened by the lack of a field sobriety test, and the second test that showed her blood-alcohol level below the presumed limit.

Defense attorney Woody Thompson said, "If the blood-alcohol content is 0.080 percent, there is no reason to look any further." "Everyone processes alcohol differently," Thompson said. "Some do it very quickly, others very slowly. The amount of food she had in her stomach and when she ate it could also be a factor."

Defense attorney Brian Russo argued that the 105-pound Rodbell could reach the 0.072 reading with a single glass of wine, making it unlikely to convince a jury she was drunk.

Cody Rodbell said she drank two beers between 12:30 and 1:30 a.m. on March 28, according to the police report.

Lawyer Jeffrey Mehrens said her speed likely would not be a factor if her case were prosecuted because she was driving less than 20 miles over the speed limit.

"Nobody would care about that," he said.

Her slurred speech, watery eyes and smell of alcohol observed by the officer also don't prove that she was drunk, only that alcohol was ingested, the attorneys said.

The three attorneys agree that field sobriety tests, which measure suspects' ability to control their movements, could bolster the case for the defense or the prosecution. But in the end, they may prove nothing, they said.

"Some people," Russo said, "can't walk a straight line, or stand on one leg, when they are sober."

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