STEPHEN SCHNEIDER REMEMBERS THE BEERS — BUT THE LAB PRODUCED A VERY DIFFERENT NUMBER

Stephen Schneider reportedly remembers exactly what he drank that evening. But investigators ultimately had something far more precise than memory: a laboratory blood-alcohol result.

Schneider told police he had consumed two Guinnesses and one Miller Lite before taking the boat out.

That was his recollection of the evening.

But investigators later obtained a blood sample that reportedly showed a BAC of approximately 0.16% — about twice New Jersey’s legal limit for operating a vessel.

MEMORY VS. THE LAB RESULT

That difference has become an important part of the case.

Schneider’s account describes three beers consumed before the boat trip.

The laboratory result provides a measurement of the alcohol in his blood.

Prosecutors have pointed to the approximately 0.16% BAC when arguing that Schneider was significantly impaired while operating the vessel.

NOW INVESTIGATORS HAVE TO RECONSTRUCT THE TIMELINE

The key question is not simply what Schneider remembers drinking.

It is also when he drank it, when he left the restaurant, when he boarded the boat and when the blood sample was taken.

Those details can help investigators understand how the reported alcohol consumption relates to the laboratory result.

Schneider faces charges connected to the July 19 boat crash that resulted in the deaths of his two grandchildren. He has pleaded not guilty, and the investigation remains ongoing.

Three beers according to his recollection. Approximately 0.16% according to the laboratory.

Now, the timeline between those two pieces of evidence is under intense scrutiny.