State of Indiana and Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles v. Nicholas Hargrave

51 N.E.3d 255, 2016 Ind. App. LEXIS 26, 2016 WL 390070
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedFebruary 2, 2016
Docket82A01-1504-CR-137
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 51 N.E.3d 255 (State of Indiana and Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles v. Nicholas Hargrave) 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
State of Indiana and Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles v. Nicholas Hargrave, 51 N.E.3d 255, 2016 Ind. App. LEXIS 26, 2016 WL 390070 (Ind. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinions

VAIDIK, Chief Judge.

Case Summary

[1] After Nicholas Hargrave was charged with operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated in a manner that endangered a person, Hargrave surrendered his Commercial Drivers License (CDL) and pleaded guilty. The trial court ■ withheld judgment of conviction, and Hargrave was ordered to participate in a diversion program. Hargrave’s case was deferred with a provision that it would be dismissed if he successfully completed the diversion program. In the meantime, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (the BMV) refused to reinstate Har-grave’s driving privileges without proof he held SR22 insurance. After the trial court granted Hargrave’s petition asking it to order the BMV to reinstate his driving privileges without requiring him to provide proof of SR22 insurance, the BMV intervened in the case and filed a motion to correct error. In this motion, [257]*257the BMV asked the trial court to determine that 1) Hargrave was not eligible for a diversion program because he held a CDL at the time of the offense, and 2) Hargrave was required to provide proof of insurance for three years following the termination of his suspension. The trial court denied the motion, and the State appealed.

[2] Because the BMV properly interpreted federal regulations adopted by Indiana statutes to mean that a person who holds a CDL at the time he commits a traffic violation may not participate in a diversion program, the trial court erred in denying the State’s motion to correct error on this issue. In addition, because Har-grave’s driving privileges were suspended under Indiana Code section 9-30-6-9, Hargrave is required to file proof of financial responsibility for three years following the termination of his suspension under Indiana Code section 9-30-6-12, and the trial court erred in denying the State’s motion to correct error on this issue as well. We therefore reverse the trial court’s denial of the State’s motion to correct error.

Facts and Procedural History

[3] At approximately 1:00 a.m. on April 2, 2014, three Vanderburgh County Sheriffs Office deputies were dispatched to an intersection where they found twenty-eight-year-old Nicholas Hargrave slumped over in the driver’s seat of his pick-up truck. When Deputy Mark Harrison opened the unlocked driver’s-side door, the deputy immediately noticed a strong odor of alcohol. When the deputy asked Har-grave if he knew where he was, Hargrave responded with slurred speech that he was at a bar. When he exited his truck, Har-grave was unsteady on his feet. The deputies transported him to the Vanderburgh County Confinement Center, where he failed three standardized field sobriety tests and submitted to a chemical breath test, which revealed he had an alcohol concentration equivalent to .21 grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath at approximately 2:00 a.m. The State charged Har-grave with one count of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated as a Class A misdemeanor1 and one count of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated in a manner that endangered a person as a Class A misdemeanor.2

[4] At the time of his arrest, Hargrave had a commercial driver’s license (CDL). At the April 2 initial hearing, the trial court recommended the suspension of Har-grave’s operator’s license for 180 days based upon the court finding probable cause to believe Hargrave committed the charged offenses.3 The Bureau of Motor Vehicles (the BMV) immediately suspended Hargrave’s license, effective April 2. Two weeks later, Hargrave surrendered his CDL.

[258]*258[5] On May 23, Hargrave pleaded guilty to the charged offenses. The trial court withheld the judgment of conviction and ordered Hargrave to participate in a diversion program.4 Hargrave’s case was deferred until July 1, with the provision that it would be dismissed upon Har-grave’s successful completion of the diversion program.

[6] On July 1, Hargrave filed a petition wherein he explained to the trial court that he had attempted to have his operator’s license reinstated without providing proof that he had obtained SR22 insurance.5 However, the BMV refused to reinstate his license without such proof. Hargrave asked the trial court to order the BMV to reinstate his driving privileges without requiring him to provide proof of SR22 insurance. At a hearing on the petition, defense counsel reported that Hargrave was participating in the diversion program and doing fine. Counsel asked the trial court for a progress hearing on October 15. The State did not object to any of Hargrave’s requests, and the trial court granted the petition, reduced Hargrave’s suspension to ninety days, and scheduled a hearing for October 15.

[7] Three weeks later, on July 28, 2014, the BMV filed a motion to intervene as well as a motion to correct error asking the trial court to vacate its July 1, 2014, order. Specifically, the BMV asked the trial court to determine that 1) pursuant to 49 CFR § 384.226, which was adopted by Indiana Code section 9-24-6-2(d), Har-grave was not eligible for a diversion program because he held a CDL at the time he committed the offense; and 2) Har-grave was required to file an SR22 certification as proof of insurance for three years following the termination of his suspension.

[8] At a hearing on the BMV’s petition, the trial court admitted into evidence a January 2008 letter from then-BMV Chief Legal Counsel to Hargrave’s counsel. Specifically, the letter, which was presumably unrelated to counsel’s representation of Hargrave, provided that it was the position of the BMV and the Attorney General that if an individual “surrender[ed] his CDL after an arrest for driving while intoxicated, but before entry into a diversionary program and before a conviction that is defined by Federal Regulations, he would then be eligible for a diversionary program.” Hargrave’s Ex. 1.

[9] However, counsel for the BMV explained that the letter was written in 2008, “two or three General Counsels ago for the BMV, at least one Attorney General back, and several years ago.” Tr. p. 16. Counsel further explained that the position of the BMV and Attorney General had [259]*259changed. According to the BMV’s counsel, the BMV “believe[d] in reading 49 CFR 384.226, if the Court defers the judgment with a person who has a CDL at the time of the incident, that being the OWI, that is considered masking and risks a large amount of federal [dollars] in deferring that judgment.” Id.

[10] Following the hearing, the trial court denied the BMV’s motion to correct error. The State appeals.

Discussion and Decision

[11] The State argues that the trial court erred in denying its motion to correct error. This court reviews the trial court’s decision to deny a motion to correct error for an abuse of discretion. Garrett v. Spear, 24 N.E.3d 472, 473 (Ind.Ct.App.2014). A trial court abuses its discretion when its decision is contrary to law. Id. at 473-74.

[12] When an administrative agency charged with enforcing a statute provides a reasonable interpretation of the statute, this Court should defer to the agency. Ind. Wholesale Wine & Liquor Co. v. State ex rel Ind.

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51 N.E.3d 255, 2016 Ind. App. LEXIS 26, 2016 WL 390070, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-of-indiana-and-indiana-bureau-of-motor-vehicles-v-nicholas-hargrave-indctapp-2016.