Donahue v. Cline

437 S.E.2d 262, 190 W. Va. 98, 1993 W. Va. LEXIS 180
CourtWest Virginia Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 28, 1993
DocketNo. 21490
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 437 S.E.2d 262 (Donahue v. Cline) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering West Virginia Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Donahue v. Cline, 437 S.E.2d 262, 190 W. Va. 98, 1993 W. Va. LEXIS 180 (W. Va. 1993).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

This is an appeal by Jane L. Cline, Commissioner of the West Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, from an order entered by the Circuit Court of Nicholas County on March 31, 1992. That order reversed a decision of the Commissioner revoking Marjorie M. Donahue’s license to drive a motor vehicle in West Virginia for a period of six months, based on the fact that Ms. Donahue had been found to have been driving a vehicle under the influence of alcohol in Nicholas County, West Virginia, on May 11, 1991. On appeal, the Commissioner claims that there was no proper basis for the circuit court to reverse the decision revoking Ms. Donahue’s license and that, under the circumstances, the circuit court erred in reversing the revocation. After reviewing the questions presented and the record, this Court agrees. Accordingly, the judgment of the Circuit Court of Nicholas County is reversed.

On May 11, 1991, West Virginia State Trooper Mike Ensminger was called to the scene of an automobile accident in Craigs-ville, Nicholas County. Upon arriving at the scene, Trooper Ensminger observed a Nissan pick-up truck which had crashed through a fence.

Marjorie M. Donahue was seated in the driver’s seat of the pick-up truck. After approaching her, Trooper Ensminger asked her if she had been driving the vehicle at the time of the accident. According to evidence later introduced in the case, Ms. Donahue indicated that she had, in fact, been the driver of the vehicle.

Trooper Ensminger noticed the odor of an alcohol beverage on Ms. Donahue’s breath and requested that she perform the walk- and-turn and the one-legged field sobriety tests. According to Trooper Ensminger’s testimony at a later hearing, Ms. Donahue could not perform the tests adequately, and he later had to assist her into his State Police cruiser.

According to Trooper Ensminger, he advised Ms. Donahue that she was under arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol and gave her the Miranda warnings. This occurred at 9:20 p.m. He asked her whether she had consumed any alcohol prior to the accident, and she indicated that she had drunk three or four beers. She also agreed to submit to a breathalyzer test. She was then transported to the Nicholas County Jail in Summersville, West Virginia, and at 10:08 p.m. she was administered a breathalyzer test. The test produced a .22% blood alcohol reading.

Following the incident, the West Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, on May 30, 1991, notified Ms. Donahue that her West Virginia driver’s license was revoked due to her arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol. The notification specified that she could request an administrative hearing.

On June 3, 1991, Ms. Donahue, through her attorney, notified the Department of Motor Vehicles that she wanted an administrative hearing and that she wished to challenge the results of the breathalyzer test.

An administrative hearing was held on September 10,1991. At that hearing, Trooper Ensminger basically described the incident as outlined above. Evidence was also introduced showing that Ms. Donahue had worked at her job at a bar until 8:00 p.m., and that after that time she was observed to drink one beer and part of another. One witness testified that Ms. Donahue left the bar at around 8:30 p.m.

Ms. Donahue, on the other hand, testified that she was asked to perform only one field sobriety test, whereas Trooper Ensminger indicated that she had been asked to perform two tests. She also testified that she could not perform the field sobriety test because she had a broken ankle. She pointed out that Trooper Ensminger’s notes indicated that she could perform a number of portions of the field sobriety test given. She testified [101]*101that she was not advised that she was under arrest when she was arrested and that, contrary to the testimony of Trooper Ensminger, she was placed in the back seat of Trooper Ensminger’s cruiser rather than in the front seat when she was being transported to the Nicholas County Jail. She also indicated that she drank a cup of coffee and smoked a cigarette before she took the breathalyzer test, even though Trooper Ensminger had suggested that she have nothing to eat or drink prior to taking the test. Her evidence indicated that she had consumed one beer and a small portion of a second beer, rather than several beers as indicated by Trooper Ensminger. She also testified that Trooper Ensminger did not constantly observe her for twenty minutes prior to the administration of the breathalyzer test.

At the hearing, Ms. Donahue essentially took the position that the breathalyzer test was not administered within two hours after the time she last drove her motor vehicle.

At the conclusion of the hearing, the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles upheld the revocation of Ms. Donahue’s license to operate a motor vehicle for a period of six months.

Ms. Donahue appealed to the Circuit Court of Nicholas County. The circuit court, after reviewing the record made during the administrative hearing, reversed the order revoking Ms. Donahue’s license to operate a motor vehicle. In so doing, the court stated:

[T]he Court does find that the Petitioner’s position with regard to the introduction of the intoxilyzer examination be sustained on the basis that there is insufficient evidence that the intoxilyzer examination was conducted within two (2) hours; that there was insufficient evidence of a valid and lawful arrest; that there was insufficient evidence of a constant twenty (20) minutes observation period of the Petitioner prior to the administration of the intoxilyzer examination. And the Court further finds that the other positions of the Petitioner are correct.
The Court does find, based on the arguments of the parties and record herein, that there was insufficient probable cause to question and therefore arrest the Petitioner for the offense of driving under the influence of alcohol.

In the present proceeding, the appellant, who is the Commissioner of the West Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, claims that the circuit court ignored the evidence and made findings inconsistent with the evidence presented at the administrative hearing. The Commissioner also claims that there was sufficient probable cause for the arrest of Ms. Donahue and that the revocation of Ms. Donahue’s license' was proper. She argues that, under the circumstances, the circuit court erred in reversing her decision to revoke the license.

Appeals from revocation issued by the Commissioner of the West Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles are governed by the West Virginia Administrative Procedure Act. See W.Va.Code § 29A-1-1, et seq., and W.Va.Code § 17C-5A-2. In Gino’s Pizza of West Hamlin v. West Virginia Human Rights Commission, 187 W.Va. 312, 418 S.E.2d 758 (1992), this Court discussed when a circuit court may reverse an agency decision governed by the Administrative Procedure Act. In syllabus point 3, the Court concluded:

“Upon judicial review of a contested case under the West Virginia Administrative Procedure Act, Chapter 29A, article 5, section 4(g), the circuit court may affirm the order or decision of the agency or remand the case for further proceedings.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
437 S.E.2d 262, 190 W. Va. 98, 1993 W. Va. LEXIS 180, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/donahue-v-cline-wva-1993.