Livingston v. State

537 N.E.2d 75, 1989 Ind. App. LEXIS 305, 1989 WL 45305
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedMay 4, 1989
Docket53A01-8901-CR-10
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 537 N.E.2d 75 (Livingston v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Livingston v. State, 537 N.E.2d 75, 1989 Ind. App. LEXIS 305, 1989 WL 45305 (Ind. Ct. App. 1989).

Opinion

NEAL, Judge.

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

Defendant-appellant, Timothy M. Livingston (Livingston), appeals from his conviction in the Monroe Superior Court for operating a vehicle with a .10% or greater blood alcohol content, a Class D felony under IND. CODE 9-11-2-3.

We affirm in part and reverse in part.

STATEMENT OF THE FACTS

On September 17, 1987, at approximately 10:20 p.m., Livingston was stopped by an Indiana State Police Officer after he had been observed driving erratically and at speeds in excess of 80 miles per hour. Livingston’s eyes were bloodshot, his pupils were dilated and there was a strong odor of alcohol on his breath. Livingston was taken to a State Police post where the officer administered an intoxilyzer test which revealed Livingston’s blood alcohol content to be .13%.

Livingston was charged by an Information with operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated (DWI), a Class A misdemeanor under IND. CODE 9-11-2-2 (Count I); operating a motor vehicle with a .10% or greater blood alcohol content, a Class C misdemeanor under IND. CODE 9-11-2-1 (Count II); operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated within five years of a previous DWI conviction, a Class D felony under IND. CODE 9-11-2-3 (Count IA); and operating a motor vehicle with a .10% or greater blood alcohol content within five years of a previous DWI conviction, a Class D felony under IND. CODE 9-11-2-3 (Count IIA).

The case was tried before a jury which found Livingston guilty on Counts II and IIA. The trial court then sentenced Livingston to two years in jail, with all but 180 days suspended, and suspended his driver’s license for two years.

ISSUES

Livingston raises two issues on appeal which are as follows:

I. Whether there was sufficient evidence to establish that Livingston had a .10% or greater blood alcohol content at the time of the alleged offense.
II. Whether there was sufficient evidence to support enhancement of the offense to a Class D felony (Count IIA).

In addition, Livingston raises the issue of whether the trial court erred in denying his motion for mistrial concerning comments it made to the jury during deliberations on Count IIA. We need not address this issue, however, because of our disposition on Issue II. We will discuss Issues I and II together.

DISCUSSION AND DECISION

Livingston first contends there was insufficient evidence to establish that he operated a vehicle with a .10% or greater blood alcohol content. When sufficiency of the evidence is challenged, this court will neither reweigh the evidence nor judge the credibility of the witnesses. Rather, we will consider only the evidence most favorable to the judgment together with any reasonable inferences to be drawn therefrom. If there is sufficient evidence of probative value to support a finding of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, the conviction will be affirmed. Pearson v. State (1988), Ind., 523 N.E.2d 747; Gatewood v. State (1982), Ind. 430 N.E.2d 781.

*77 In the present case, Livingston notes the presumption set out in IND. CODE 9-ll-4-15(b) which is as follows:

If, in a prosecution for an offense under IC 9-11-2, evidence establishes that:
(1) a chemical test was performed on a test sample taken from the person charged with the offense within the period of time allowed for testing under section 2 of this chapter; and
(2) the person charged with the offense had at least ten-hundredths percent (0.10%) by weight of alcohol in the person’s blood at the time the test sample was taken; the trier of fact shall presume that the person charged with the offense had at least ten-hundredths percent (0.10%) by weight of alcohol in the person’s blood at the time the person operated the vehicle. However, this presumption is rebuttable.

He argues, however, that sufficient evidence was presented to rebut the presumption. Specifically, Livingston claims that, by the officer’s own recollection, the intoxi-lyzer test was performed at least 29 minutes after he was stopped. He further cites the officer’s admission that a person’s blood alcohol content may either be rising or falling when he is tested. He finally notes that Dr. Larry Hughes, an expert on alcohol absorption, testified that it was medically possible for a subject to test below a .10% blood alcohol content and 30 to 35 minutes later test over .10%. Livingston concludes, therefore, that there was not sufficient evidence to establish that he had a blood alcohol content of .10% at the time of the alleged offense. We disagree.

Given the factual circumstances of this case, the jury could reasonably have determined that Livingston’s blood alcohol content met or exceeded .10% at the time of the alleged offense. Livingston testified that on the day of his arrest he went to a local lounge at approximately 5:15 p.m., where he consumed three beers, had dinner, after which he consumed another beer and a shot of peppermint schnapps, and then left for home at approximately 9:00 p.m. Police records indicate that when he was stopped, Livingston stated he had five or six beers and two drinks but nothing in the last two hours. The arresting officer testified that he did not observe Livingston put anything in his mouth after he was stopped. Finally, the record establishes the officer followed the method approved by the State Department of Toxicology in administering the intoxilyzer test to Livingston. This involved observing Livingston for a period of 20 minutes prior to the test to ensure that he consumed no food or drink.

In this case, the jury could have determined that Livingston’s blood alcohol content at the time of the alleged offense was lower than the level indicated by the test. However, given the evidence which established that Livingston did not ingest any alcohol for a period of approximately two hours and 20 minutes prior to the test, we believe the jury could reasonably have concluded that his blood alcohol content was higher at the time of the alleged offense. Nevertheless, the evidence presented was more than sufficient to sustain the jury’s finding that Livingston operated a vehicle with a .10% or greater blood alcohol content. See Sullivan v. State (1988), Ind. App., 517 N.E.2d 1251.

Livingston also contends there was insufficient evidence to support enhancement to a Class D felony. We agree. During the enhancement phase of the trial the State introduced the following three documents: a certified copy of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles driving record of a Timothy M. Livingston, showing a “DWI-Liquor” notation on September 27, 1982; a certified copy of a docket sheet from the Monroe Superior Court showing that a Timothy M. Livingston entered a change of plea and was sentenced for driving while intoxicated on September 27, 1982; and a certified copy of the abstract of court record showing that a Timothy M. Livingston was convicted of driving while intoxicated on September 27, 1982, in Monroe County Superi- or Court.

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

Related

Presley Jermaine Brown v. State of Indiana
Indiana Court of Appeals, 2020
Khalil Jalon Payne v. State of Indiana
96 N.E.3d 606 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 2018)
Justin Deon Coates v. State of Indiana
Indiana Court of Appeals, 2013
Jordan Heimansohn v. State of Indiana
Indiana Court of Appeals, 2013
Jones v. State
716 N.E.2d 556 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1999)
Finney v. State
686 N.E.2d 133 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1997)
State v. Albright
622 N.E.2d 995 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1993)
Warthen v. State
588 N.E.2d 545 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1992)
Mordacq v. State
585 N.E.2d 22 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1992)
Keegan v. State
564 N.E.2d 533 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1990)
Haas v. State
567 So. 2d 966 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1990)
State v. Kubik
456 N.W.2d 487 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1990)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
537 N.E.2d 75, 1989 Ind. App. LEXIS 305, 1989 WL 45305, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/livingston-v-state-indctapp-1989.