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People v. Coffin6/3/1999
nt while he was in the emergency room, which involved having his blood drawn, his consent was not a prerequisite to the admissibility of the BAC test result at his trial. We, therefore, do not believe that the separate and distinct positions that have been taken by the State are inconsistent.
Prior to 1982, section 11-501(c)(3) of the Code provided that " vidence based upon a chemical analysis of blood, urine, breath or other bodily substance shall not be admitted unless such substance was procured and such analysis made with the consent of the person * [Citation]." People v. Byrd, 215 Ill. App. 3d 468, 470, 574 N.E.2d 1269, 1270 (1991). However, in 1982, the Illinois General Assembly abolished the consent requirement that was previously contained in section 11-501 of the Code (Pub. Act 82-311, eff. January 1, 1982 (amending Ill. Rev. Stat. 1981, ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-501); 1981 Ill. Laws 1734, 1744). Byrd, 215 Ill. App. 3d at 470-71, 574 N.E.2d at 1270. Since that time, Illinois courts have repeatedly held that a defendant's consent to have his blood drawn is not a factor to be considered by the court when determining whether BAC test results are admissible into evidence. See People v. Ayres, 228 Ill. App. 3d 277, 279, 591 N.E.2d 931, 932 (1992) (voluntary consent is not a prerequisite to the admissibility of BAC test results in a DUI prosecution); People v. Yant, 210 Ill. App. 3d 961, 963-65, 570 N.E.2d 3, 4-5 (1991) (there is no statutory requirement of consent before BAC test results may be admitted in a DUI prosecution); People v. Giere, 192 Ill. App. 3d 520, 524-25, 548 N.E.2d 1104, 1107 (1989) (nothing in either section 11-501 or section 11-501.1 requires consent before a BAC test may be admitted into evidence in a DUI prosecution). Furthermore, although " he current codification of section 11-501.1 articulates the civil consequences of a refusal to submit to testing, * in no way suggests that consent is a requirement for the admissibility of test results in a DUI prosecution. Byrd, 215 Ill. App. 3d at 471, 574 N.E.2d at 1271. Rather, the admissibility of a BAC test result obtained from blood drawn while a defendant is receiving medical treatment is governed by section 11-501.4 of the Code. 625 ILCS 5/11-501.4 (West 1996).
Under section 11-501.4(a), the result from a blood test performed for the purpose of determining an individual's BAC level and conducted upon persons receiving medical treatment in a hospital emergency room is admissible in evidence as a business record exception to the hearsay rule, if the following criteria are established:
"(1) the chemical tests performed upon an individual's blood were ordered in the regular course of providing emergency medical treatment and not at the request of law enforcement authorities; (2) the chemical tests performed upon an individual's blood were performed by the laboratory routinely used by the hospital; and (3) results of chemical tests performed upon an individual's blood are admissible into evidence regardless of the time that the records were prepared." 625 ILCS 5/11-501.4(a) (West 1996).
In this case, it is undisputed that the blood was drawn from the defendant while he was receiving emergency medical treatment. It is also undisputed that the blood was drawn at the request of the treating physician, and not Officer Sowinski. The laboratory report indicates that the defendant's blood was tested in the hospital's laboratory and that the test was performed by the director of the laboratory, who was also a medical doctor. The report further indicates that the record was prepared on the same day that the blood was drawn from the defendant. Assuming there is no other reason to exclude the BAC test result fr
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