Robert Olaf Anderson v. The State of Wyoming

2014 WY 13, 317 P.3d 1108, 2014 WL 282374, 2014 Wyo. LEXIS 13
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 27, 2014
DocketS-13-0019
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 2014 WY 13 (Robert Olaf Anderson v. The State of Wyoming) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Robert Olaf Anderson v. The State of Wyoming, 2014 WY 13, 317 P.3d 1108, 2014 WL 282374, 2014 Wyo. LEXIS 13 (Wyo. 2014).

Opinion

VOIGT, Justice.

[T1] A jury convicted the appellant of felony driving while under the influence of alcohol. He now challenges two rulings of the district court-one concerning discovery and one concerning the admissibility of evi *1111 dence-and also alleges his trial counsel was ineffective. Finding no error, we affirm.

ISSUES

[¶ 2] 1. Did the district court abuse its discretion by denying in part the appellant's pretrial Request for IntoxNet Database Pursuant to W.S. § 31-6-105(e) and Proof of Compliance with Statutory Predicate for Admission of a Chemical Test Result Under W.S. 31-6-105(a) ?

2. Did plain error occur, in the form of a violation of the appellant's constitutional right to confrontation, when the State's expert witness testified as to the operation, maintenance, and accuracy of the breath alcohol test machine used in this case?

3. Was the appellant's trial counsel ineffective in not calling an expert witness to testify as to the effect of diabetes on the results of a breath alcohol test?

FACTS

[¶ 3] The underlying facts of the traffic stop and arrest are not particularly material in this case. Suffice it to say that, upon receiving a REDDI+ 1 report, a Laramie police officer investigated and eventually arrested the appellant for per se driving while under the influence of alcohol. 2 During this process, the appellant "blew" blood aleohol content (BAC) tests that resulted in readings of 0.088% and 0.086%.

[T4] The State charged the appellant with one count of felony driving while under the influence of aleohol (DWUI) and the case proceeded towards trial. During the discovery phase, the appellant requested a substantial amount of information from the State relating to the breathalyzer, an Intoximeter EC/IR II, used to test his breath. The request included: (1) the appellant's breath test results; (2) the appellant's Operational Checklist for Intoximeter EC/IR I or II; (8) the most recent version of the Wyoming Intoximeter EC/IR administrator manual; (4) the complete IntoxNet database in an electronic format for the Intoximeter EC/IR II used in the case (gerial number 008087); (5) all monthly logs for the Intoximeter EC/IR II used in the case; (6) all maintenance records for the Intoximeter EC/IR II used in the case; and (7) all Litigation Support Packages that have ever been created for the Intoximeter EC/IR II used in the case. The State provided the appellant with three of these items: his breath test results, the Operational Checklist, and the administrator manual. It also provided the Litigation Support Package for the appellant's case, but none of the packages created in unrelated cases. The State objected to the remaining requests, asserting the appellant had a right only to the information directly related to his case.

[T5] Presented with this discovery dispute, the district court held a hearing, taking testimony from two potential expert witnesses concerning the subject breathalyzer's accuracy. The appellant presented Dr. Citron, an ophthalmologist, and the State presented Michael Moore, the head of Wyoming's chemical testing unit. Dr. Citron testified the general historical information from the IntoxNet database would allow him to decide if the machine was working properly; however, he admitted nothing in the information related to the appellant's test indicated it was rendering inaccurate results. The State's witness, Moore, also testified that his review of the data related to the appellant's tests did not suggest the machine was inaccurate and unreliable. Moore also explained that the required annual certification checks, monthly accuracy checks, and related safeguards ensured the machine's accuracy and reliability.

[¶ 6] Based upon the evidence presented at the hearing and analysis of controlling statutes and rules, the district court issued a clear and cogent order denying the appel *1112 lant's discovery request, consistent with the State's objection. It explained:

The statutory subsection [Wyo. Stat. Aun. § 31-6-105(e) (LexisNexis 2013)] relied upon by [the appellant] is clear and unambiguous on its face. It requires the defendant to receive information regarding Ais chemical test. It does not, however, authorize [the appellant] to receive information regarding any other test conducted by the Intoximeter EC/IR II used in this case. Stated simply, it does not support his request for the remaining items.

(Emphasis in original). The district court also found the quality procedures-annual certification, maintenance program, monthly accuracy checks-provided assurances that "nothing concerning [the appellant's] test warrants questioning the reliability of the Intoximeter EC/IR II used in this case in the manner desired by [the appellant]." Thus, it determined the IntoxNet data and other requests for general information concerning the breathalyzer were "not sufficiently material to the preparation of [the appellant's] defense to require discovery under Rule 16 [of the Wyoming Rules of Criminal Procedure]."

[T7] The case then proceeded to trial, during which the State established that the appellant had driven with a BAC above the legal limit. Particularly, the jury was presented with the appellant's breath tests resulting in readings of 0.088% and 0.086%. The State called Moore as an expert witness to explain the certification, maintenance, and calibration process for the Intoximeter EC/IR II. Moore opined the machine used on the appellant was reliable, basing his opinion on a breadth of available information including its certification records.

[¶ 8] The appellant did not present his own expert, Dr. Citron. Instead, his strategy focused on attacking Moore's credibility. The appellant attempted to show that, even though the machine previously had been certified as being accurate, it still had a propensity of being inaccurate and unreliable. On cross-examination, Moore conceded the subject machine previously had been taken out of service to be repaired and had also registered "mouth alcohol abort" messages on several occasions. But Moore was quick to clarify that a mouth abort message is not "an error in itself." Rather, such a message "means that there's alcohol in the mouth from some sources and [the machine] detects it and aborts the test, so it will not do an analysis on that subject at that point in time." Put another way, the machine would display such a message and shut down when it detected possible foreign substances that could taint the test. Ultimately, Moore continued to conclude the machine was reliable.

[¶ 9] The jury found the appellant guilty of felony driving while under the influence of aleohol, in violation of Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 31-5-288(b)(i) (LexisNexis 2018) (fourth or subsequent offense within ten years). The district court imposed a sentence of twenty to twenty-four months incarceration, with credit for time served. This appeal followed.

DISCUSSION

Did the district court abuse its discretion by denying in part the appellant's pretrial Request for IntoxNet Database Pursuant to W.S. § 31-6-105(e) and Proof of Compliance with Statutory Predicate for Admission of a Chemical Test Result Under W.S. 31-6-105(a)?

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2014 WY 13, 317 P.3d 1108, 2014 WL 282374, 2014 Wyo. LEXIS 13, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/robert-olaf-anderson-v-the-state-of-wyoming-wyo-2014.