Kostrzewski v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles

727 A.2d 233, 52 Conn. App. 326, 1999 Conn. App. LEXIS 94
CourtConnecticut Appellate Court
DecidedMarch 23, 1999
DocketAC 17359
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 727 A.2d 233 (Kostrzewski v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Connecticut Appellate Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kostrzewski v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles, 727 A.2d 233, 52 Conn. App. 326, 1999 Conn. App. LEXIS 94 (Colo. Ct. App. 1999).

Opinion

Opinion

HENNESSY, J.

The plaintiff, Barbara Kostrzewski, appeals from the judgment of the trial court dismissing her appeal from the decision of the defendant, the Connecticut commissioner of motor vehicles. The commissioner suspended the plaintiffs Connecticut license to operate a motor vehicle pursuant to General Statutes § 14-111c,1 the driver license compact (compact), following her conviction in Florida for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.

[328]*328The plaintiff claims that the trial court improperly (1) upheld the hearing officer’s admission of the Florida traffic citation and report of conviction into evidence and allowed the plaintiffs conviction, which was based on a plea of nolo contendere, to be considered as a basis for suspending her license under the compact, (2) held that the compact was constitutional, (3) held that the enforcement of the compact did not violate the equal protection clause of the Connecticut constitution, (4) held that the Connecticut and Florida statutes are substantially similar for purposes of the compact, (5) held that the report of conviction from Florida complied with the requirements of the compact and (6) held that the suspension of the plaintiffs license did not violate the double jeopardy clause of the United States constitution and the Connecticut constitution. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The following facts and procedural history are relevant to this appeal. The plaintiff, a holder of a Connecticut motor vehicle operator’s license, was arrested in [329]*329Florida for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcoholic beverages in violation of Florida Statutes § 316.193. The plaintiff pleaded nolo conten-dere to the charge and, as a result, the Florida trial court found her guilty of operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcoholic beverages.

Pursuant to the compact, of which both Florida and Connecticut are member states, the Florida authorities sent notification of the plaintiffs Florida conviction to the commissioner. Upon receipt of the notification from Florida, the commissioner issued the plaintiff a notice of hearing to determine whether her Connecticut license should be suspended as a result of her Florida conviction. On November 1, 1996, the commissioner conducted a hearing on the license suspension before a hearing officer. The plaintiff was present at the hearing and was represented by an attorney.

Subsequent to the hearing, the hearing officer found that the plaintiff was arrested and convicted in Florida for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and that this conviction remains on the plaintiffs driver history. The hearing officer concluded that, under the compact, “any conviction in Florida for driving under the influence shall result in Connecticut treating the conviction as if it had occurred [in Connecticut].” The hearing officer further concluded that a conviction in Connecticut for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol would result in the suspension of a motor vehicle operator’s license for one year. Accordingly, the hearing officer ordered that the plaintiffs Connecticut license be suspended for one year.

The plaintiff appealed to the Superior Court pursuant to the Uniform Administrative Procedure Act (UAPA), [330]*330General Statutes § 4-183. The Superior Court rendered judgment dismissing the plaintiffs appeal. This appeal followed. Other facts will be discussed where relevant to the issues on appeal.

I

The plaintiff first claims that the trial court improperly upheld the hearing officer’s admission of a report of conviction and traffic citation, marked as state’s exhibit B, into evidence and allowed the plaintiffs conviction, which was based on a plea of nolo contendere, to be considered as a basis for suspending her license under the compact.

“Judicial review of an administrative agency’s action is governed by the Uniform Administrative Procedure Act (UAPA), General Statutes § 4-166 et seq., and the scope of that review is limited. . . . When reviewing the trial court’s decision, we seek to determine whether it comports with the [UAPA]. . . . We look to see if the [trial] court reviewing the administrative agency acted unreasonably, illegally, or in abuse of discretion. . . . Dortenzio v. Freedom of Information Commission, 48 Conn. App. 424, 430, 710 A.2d 801 (1998).” (Internal quotation marks omitted.) Dept. of Public Safety v. Freedom of Information Commission, 51 Conn. App. 100, 104, 720 A.2d 268 (1998).

A

The plaintiff first argues that exhibit B was not sufficiently rehable or trustworthy and, therefore, its admission in evidence substantially prejudiced the plaintiffs rights. Specifically, the plaintiff argues that the documents contained in exhibit B are not in compliance with article III of the compact because there was no proof that her conviction in Florida was reported by the “licensing authority” in Florida, as required, because there was no signature or logo evidencing that the documents were reported by the Florida department of motor vehicles.

[331]*331The following additional facts are necessary to the resolution of this issue. The trial court; found that exhibit B, as introduced by the state at the administrative hearing, included “the original traffic ticket citing the plaintiff on the drunk driving charge.” The Florida “DUI Uniform Traffic Citation” provides the date and time of the offense, the statute violated and the blood alcohol level of the plaintiff, and contains the signatures of the arresting officer and the plaintiff. The other side of the document is an abstract of the court disposition and indicates the name of the presiding judge and bears an original signature, although there is no indication of the signer’s title or position. The information from the Florida trial court indicates that the plaintiff pleaded nolo contendere, was found guilty, fined and placed on probation and had her driving privileges revoked in Florida for a period of six months.

The trial court concluded that the hearing officer properly admitted the document into evidence and used it to support his final decision because the document bore sufficient indicia of reliability, including the signature of the plaintiff. The trial court further concluded that it is of no significance that “there is no evidence to show whether it was the Florida department of motor vehicles or the Florida court that forwarded it to Connecticut.”

Insofar as the plaintiff is arguing that exhibit B itself is inadmissible, we note that “[administrative tribunals are not strictly bound by the rules of evidence and . . . they may consider evidence which would normally be incompetent in a judicial proceeding, so long as the evidence is reliable and probative. . . . There is, moreover, no specific prohibition against hearsay evidence in the [UAPA], which provides that [a]ny oral or documentary evidence may be received, but [that] the agency shall, as a matter of policy, provide for the exclusion of irrelevant, immaterial or unduly repetitious evidence.” [332]*332(Citations omitted; internal quotation marks omitted.) Cassella v. Civil Service Commission, 4 Conn. App. 359, 362, 494 A.2d 909 (1985), aff'd, 202 Conn.

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

Related

Wethersfield v. Eser
Connecticut Appellate Court, 2022
Allstate Ins. Co. v. Tenn
Supreme Court of Connecticut, 2022
Glanz v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles
210 Conn. App. 515 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2022)
Reyes v. Bridgeport
Connecticut Appellate Court, 2014
In re Shane M.
148 Conn. App. 308 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2014)
Cormier v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles
938 A.2d 1258 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2008)
Spear v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles
879 A.2d 477 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2005)
State v. Dipaolo
868 A.2d 98 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2005)
Friedman v. Connecticut Bar Examining Committee
824 A.2d 866 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2003)
Williams v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles
786 A.2d 1130 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2001)
Back Bay Rest. v. State Dept. of Labor, No. Cv 00 0504360s (Aug. 14, 2001)
2001 Conn. Super. Ct. 11079 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2001)
Bard v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles
768 A.2d 960 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2001)
Jayson v. Urban Redevelopment Commission, No. Cv95 0148934 (Jan. 10, 2001)
2001 Conn. Super. Ct. 700 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2001)
Cetnarowski v. Ferris, No. Cv 99 0498515s (Jul. 20, 2000)
2000 Conn. Super. Ct. 8840 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2000)
Kelly v. Ron's Golf Cart Rental, No. 385960 (May 26, 2000)
2000 Conn. Super. Ct. 6378 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2000)
State v. Swanson, No. 085967, (Apr. 10, 2000)
2000 Conn. Super. Ct. 5085-gt (Connecticut Superior Court, 2000)
State v. Doe
765 A.2d 518 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2000)
Bard v. Kozowski, Comm., Motor Vehicles, No. Cv 98 0492740s (Jun. 23, 1999)
1999 Conn. Super. Ct. 7722 (Connecticut Superior Court, 1999)
Kostrzewski v. Commissioner of Motor Vehicles
733 A.2d 227 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1999)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
727 A.2d 233, 52 Conn. App. 326, 1999 Conn. App. LEXIS 94, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kostrzewski-v-commissioner-of-motor-vehicles-connappct-1999.