Davy v. State

67 S.W.3d 382, 2001 Tex. App. LEXIS 8566, 2001 WL 1664520
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 28, 2001
Docket10-00-020-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by56 cases

This text of 67 S.W.3d 382 (Davy v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Davy v. State, 67 S.W.3d 382, 2001 Tex. App. LEXIS 8566, 2001 WL 1664520 (Tex. Ct. App. 2001).

Opinions

OPINION

DAVIS, Chief Justice.

A jury convicted Kevin Wayne Davy of driving while intoxicated. The court assessed Davy’s punishment at ninety days in jail and a $300 fine, suspended imposition of sentence, and placed him on community supervision for twenty-four months. Davy contends in five issues that: (1) the evidence does not support the jury’s implied finding that the arresting officer had reasonable suspicion to stop his ear; (2) the court’s definition of the phrase “normal use of mental or physical faculties” in the charge is erroneous; (3) the court committed fundamental error by instructing the jury that the State needed to prove only reasonable suspicion to justify the officer’s stop of Davy; and (4) the evidence is legally and factually insufficient to prove that he was intoxicated (two issues).

BACKGROUND

Officer Terry Barber testified that Davy came to his attention in the early morning hours of February 5,1998 when Davy’s car pulled into the parking lot of a city park which had closed at midnight. According to Barber, Davy was “just driving around in circles in the parking lot.” He testified that Davy did so four or five times. He decided to contact the driver “to see if there was a problem.” As he approached, Davy exited the parking lot. Barber noted that Davy was driving at about twenty miles per hour on a street with a posted speed limit of thirty-five miles per hour. He observed that Davy’s ear “was extremely close to the curb.” He stopped Davy to investigate.

Barber thought Davy appeared “confused” when he asked him for his license and proof of insurance. Davy fumbled through his wallet to locate the requested items. He stumbled and nearly fell when he got out of his car at Barber’s request. He used his car to maintain his balance. Davy had no odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath, but he was “definitely impaired.” Barber asked Davy to perform a number of field sobriety tests which he was unable to successfully complete. Davy informed the officer that he had taken several prescription medications pursuant to his doctor’s orders. Barber arrested him for DWI.

[386]*386On cross-examination, Barber agreed that Davy remained in the proper lane of traffic and never hit the curb. He suggested that Davy was “weaving toward the curb” when he stopped him. Barber followed Davy for 100 to 150 feet from the park entrance before stopping him. He testified that there were no other cars in the area at the time. Though Barber had testified on direct examination that Davy had not reported any physical limitations which would affect his ability to perform the sobriety tests, he conceded on cross-examination that he had stated on the video made at the jail that Davy had told him of a leg problem while at the roadside. Barber did not receive his certification for field sobriety testing until after Davy’s arrest.

At the jail, Davy repeated his poor performance on the sobriety tests while on video. He submitted to an intoxilyzer test which revealed that he had no alcohol in his system. Barber then contacted his supervisor to obtain permission to have a drug recognition evaluation (“DRE”) conducted by an officer trained for this task. He obtained the requested approval, and an off-duty officer later joined him to conduct the DRE.

The DRE officer Thomas Bromley described the DRE process at length to the jury. In general terms, this evaluation involves: a discussion with the subject about his medical history; various physiological evaluations;1 standard sobriety testing (Romberg test, walk-and-turn test, one-leg-stand test, and finger-nose touch test); an examination for any physical evidence of substance ingestion (e.g., powder in the nostrils or needle marks on the arms); an evaluation of the subject’s mus-ele tone to determine whether he is relaxed or tense; and the taking of a blood or urine specimen to confirm the presence of a drug or controlled substance.

Davy informed Bromley that he had taken several prescription medications pursuant to his doctor’s instructions. Bromley categorized all of these medications as depressants. He testified that Davy’s performance in the DRE was consistent with that of a person under the influence of such medications. However, he conceded that many of Davy’s “symptoms” could also be consistent with those of a person suffering from sleep deprivation. Some of his observations were inconsistent with what he would expect to find in a person under the influence of depressants.

An analysis of Davy’s urine specimen confirmed the presence of the prescription medications which he told the officers he had taken. The laboratory analyst who tested Davy’s specimen testified that Davy’s medications “may not cause” intoxication in an individual who took them as prescribed and had been taking them “for some period of time.” However, the analyst also agreed that these medications could cause the symptoms observed by the officers in Davy’s case and could cause intoxication when taken “at therapeutic levels.”

Davy testified in his own behalf. He denied that he drove in circles in the parking lot. According to Davy, he pulled into the parking lot, did a three-point turn, then drove the other way. He agreed that Barber promptly stopped him after he left the parking lot.

Davy has experienced severe migraine headaches since he was twelve. Despite [387]*387various prescribed pain medications during these years, he has not experienced appreciable relief until December 1998 when a physician prescribed sunglasses to protect his eyes, which are oversensitive to light. Davy has also suffered from insomnia for about fifteen years. He had slept only six hours in the five days preceding his arrest.

In Davy’s opinion, his prescription medications did not affect his performance on the sobriety tests. He testified that he has a “bad leg” which caused him to perform poorly on the physical sobriety tests. He attributes the remainder of the intoxication-like symptoms which the officers observed to sleep deprivation.

ARTICLE 38.23 INSTRUCTION

Davy contends in his first issue that the evidence does not support the jury’s implied finding that Barber had reasonable suspicion to stop him. He alleges in his third issue that the court committed fundamental error by instructing the jury that the State needed to prove only reasonable suspicion to justify the stop.2

THE INSTRUCTION

The court sua sponte submitted the following instruction to the jury under article 38.23.

You are instructed that no evidence obtained by an officer or other person in violation of any provisions of the Constitution or laws of the State of Texas, or of the Constitution or laws of the United States of America, shall be admitted in evidence against the accused on the trial of any criminal case.
You are further instructed that an officer is permitted to make a temporary investigative detention of a defendant if the officer has a reasonable suspicion that some activity out of the ordinary is or has occurred, that the person detained is connected with such activity, and that there is some indication that the activity is related to crime or a criminal offense.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Williams, Cristan Drayce
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015
Cathy Brockhaus Paradoski v. State
477 S.W.3d 342 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015)
Delafuente v. State
414 S.W.3d 173 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2013)
Delafuente, Joseph
Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2013
Joseph Delafuente v. State
389 S.W.3d 616 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2012)
Pamela Dawn Baggett v. State
367 S.W.3d 525 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2012)
James Henry Gelinas v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2011
State v. Kevin Rothrock
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2010
Randal C. Halford v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2010
Foster v. State
297 S.W.3d 386 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2009)
Francis Mark Hafner v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2009
Ryan Cameron Foster v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2009
Texas Department of Public Safety v. Gonzales
276 S.W.3d 88 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2008)
State v. Hannah
259 S.W.3d 716 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 2008)
Victor Thomas v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2007
Melton McMorris v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2007
United States v. Coronado
480 F. Supp. 2d 923 (W.D. Texas, 2007)
in Re Cedric A. Jones
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2006

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
67 S.W.3d 382, 2001 Tex. App. LEXIS 8566, 2001 WL 1664520, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/davy-v-state-texapp-2001.