State v. Cascade District Court

The principal issue raised by this appeal is whether the State has the right to obtain by writ of certiorari superior court review of a district court's pretrial order dismissing the State's case for failure to preserve evidence. We hold that it does.

On December 9, 1977, the district judge for the Cascade District Court orally granted Steven Dorsey's pretrial motion to dismiss the charge of driving while intoxicated that had been brought against him. The dismissal was based upon the State's failure to preserve the ampule used in the Breathalyzer test administered to the defendant. On December…