Pamela Kay Bergman v. State

CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 21, 2005
Docket01-03-01269-CR
StatusPublished

This text of Pamela Kay Bergman v. State (Pamela Kay Bergman 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
Pamela Kay Bergman v. State, (Tex. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

Opinion issued April 21, 2005







In The

Court of Appeals

For The

First District of Texas





NO. 01-03-01269-CR





PAMELA KAY BERGMAN, Appellant


V.


THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee





On Appeal from County Criminal Court at Law No. 1

Harris County, Texas

Trial Court Cause No. 1146115





MEMORANDUM OPINION

          Pamela Kay Bergman, appellant, pleaded not guilty to driving while intoxicated (“DWI”). The jury found her guilty. The trial court assessed punishment at three-days’ confinement and a $2,000 fine. In six issues, appellant contends (1) the evidence is factually insufficient to support her conviction; (2) the trial court erred by sustaining the State’s objections, thereby denying appellant her fundamental right to confrontation under the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution and under Article I of the Texas Constitution; (3) the trial court erred by permitting the State to “lead” a witness while viewing a videotape of the arrest that he had not previously seen; (4) the trial court erred by admitting evidence that was of little or no probative value and unfairly prejudicial; (5) the trial court erred by permitting the State to conduct a demonstration in the presence of the jury; and (6) the trial court erred by permitting a lay witness to offer expert testimony regarding intoxication. We affirm.

                                                        Background

          On November 23, 2002, Houston Police Officer G.E. Miller was patrolling Post Oak Road as part of his assignment to the DWI Task Force. As he proceeded northbound on Post Oak, he noticed a Ford Expedition stopped on the southbound side of Post Oak with the driver’s door open. Appellant was driving the vehicle and John Nichols was in the passenger seat. Miller made a U-turn and as he drove behind appellant’s vehicle, he saw her door close and the vehicle drive away. Miller began recording on his patrol car-mounted video camera and noticed appellant commit a number of traffic violations, including seeing her vehicle accelerating and decelerating in an unusual manner, making a wide turn, crossing a lane divider, nearly striking another vehicle, and driving over a solid white line onto the shoulder and curb. After Miller activated his emergency lights, appellant pulled over and entered a parking lot at Miller’s request.

          When Miller asked to see appellant’s driver’s license, appellant gave him her State Bar of Texas identification card and explained that she did not have her driver’s license with her. Appellant apologized to Miller and told him that she had a cast on her leg and one of her contact lenses had fallen out. Miller smelled a “very distinct and strong odor” of alcohol on appellant’s breath and saw that her eyes were glazed, glassy, and watery. In response to his question about her consumption of alcohol that evening, appellant told Miller that she had consumed one glass of wine about four hours earlier.

          Miller then administered two field sobriety tests on appellant. First, he administered the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (“HGN”) test. Before appellant began, Miller noticed her poor balance as she exited the vehicle. Appellant demonstrated all six clues for intoxication on the HGN test.

          Miller next administered the modified alphabet test in which he asked appellant to recite the alphabet beginning with the letter “G” and ending with the letter “X.” Appellant did not perform well on this test because she started with “H” and ended with “Z.”

          Miller concluded that appellant was intoxicated and decided to arrest her for DWI. Rather than informing appellant that he was arresting her, Miller told her that he did not believe she had only one glass of wine and indicated that he would offer her a breath test. Miller tried to bring appellant’s hands together behind her back to place handcuffs on her and place her in custody, but appellant resisted. Appellant repeatedly screamed “no” and “help me,” and began struggling, which made it difficult for Miller to place her in handcuffs. At this point, Nichols got out of the vehicle, ignored Miller’s repeated instructions to stay in the vehicle, and approached Miller yelling and pointing his finger at him. Nichols claims he was telling Miller not to “manhandle” appellant. Nichols grabbed both of Miller’s arms, but Miller was able to call for back up while trying to hold on to appellant and keep her between himself and Nichols.

          Nichols and Miller continued to struggle as appellant broke free and ran back to her vehicle. After Nichols lost his balance, Miller let him fall to the ground. Inside her vehicle, appellant called 911 on a cellular telephone. Miller instructed her to stay there. As Miller waited for back up, a car driven by William Whigham, a retired Harris County deputy sheriff, pulled into the parking lot. Whigham and his sister Jennie Tompkins, a passenger in Whigham’s vehicle, saw from the freeway service road what appeared to be Nichols fighting with Miller and believed that Miller might need help. Miller arrested appellant for suspicion of DWI and transported her to the police station. Nichols was arrested for interfering with the duties of a public servant.

          A number of field sobriety tests were performed by Officer P. Lassalle on appellant at the station. However, appellant refused to submit her breath for an intoxilyzer analysis. Officers then took

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