SARASOTA COUNTY -- Court fines have climbed to more than $500,000 against the company that makes Florida's breath-test machines, part of a legal fight that is stalling more than 100 local drunken-driving cases.
Kentucky-based CMI Inc. faces the fines and the possibility of losing future sales as defense attorneys demand to see computer software that runs the Intoxilyzer 8000.
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Minnesota officials filed a federal lawsuit against CMI to divulge the code, which the company says is a protected trade secret. Lawyers in Ohio say similar machines there would bring a glut of challenges...CMI says the source code is a trade secret that can be exploited by competitors. Divulging it would do nothing to prove the accuracy of the machines, CMI says. In October, the company said it would allow "controlled viewing" of the source code with a protection order and nondisclosure agreements.
