Facts
The respondent A. drove his vehicle on November 10, 2007, in a strongly intoxicated state. The Road Traffic and Shipping Office of the Canton of Glarus subsequently withdrew his driver's license for an indefinite period and made the re-issuance dependent on compliance with a one-year controlled alcohol abstinence. On July 20, 2012, the Administrative Measures Division granted A. the driver's license again under the condition of observing a medically controlled total alcohol abstinence and proving its compliance every three months by means of certain blood laboratory values and every six months by hair analyses for Ethylglucuronide (EtG).
The hair analysis performed by the Institute of Legal Medicine Zurich (IRMZ) on May 29, 2013, as part of the scheduled control, resulted in an EtG value of 8 pg/mg. The IRMZ expert opinion stated that, given this finding and in view of A.'s previous alcohol problems, his fitness to drive could no longer be confirmed. The Administrative Measures Division therefore ordered the withdrawal of the driver's license again on June 10, 2013, for an indefinite period.
Considerations
The Federal Court had to decide whether the respondent had disregarded the total abstinence from alcohol imposed on him and whether his driver's license could therefore be withdrawn again. The lower court had lifted the withdrawal and instructed the Administrative Measures Division to reissue the driver's license to the respondent immediately.
The Federal Court found that the hair analysis is a suitable means of proving total abstinence from alcohol and that the measurement uncertainty in hair analysis is comparable to that in blood alcohol determination. It established that the determined EtG value of 8 pg/mg is affected by a measurement uncertainty of 25%, but can still serve as a reason for the withdrawal.
The court stated that compliance with abstinence…