STATE OF MISSOURI, Plaintiff-Respondent v. JUSTIN KEITH LONG

CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedMay 1, 2020
DocketSD35759
StatusPublished

This text of STATE OF MISSOURI, Plaintiff-Respondent v. JUSTIN KEITH LONG (STATE OF MISSOURI, Plaintiff-Respondent v. JUSTIN KEITH LONG) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri 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 MISSOURI, Plaintiff-Respondent v. JUSTIN KEITH LONG, (Mo. Ct. App. 2020).

Opinion

STATE OF MISSOURI, ) ) Plaintiff-Respondent, ) ) v. ) No. SD35759 ) Filed: May 1, 2020 JUSTIN KEITH LONG, ) ) Defendant-Appellant. )

APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF CHRISTIAN COUNTY

Honorable Larry G. Luna, Senior Judge

AFFIRMED

Following a bench trial, Justin Long (Defendant) was convicted of the class B

misdemeanor of driving while intoxicated (DWI). See § 577.010.1 Prior to trial, Defendant

filed motions in limine and to suppress evidence and statements. Defense counsel was

permitted to make continuing objections at trial, which were taken with the case. Ultimately,

the trial court denied the motions in limine, overruled the objections and admitted the

challenged evidence and statements.

1 All statutory references are to RSMo (2016). Presenting five points on appeal, Defendant contends the trial court erred by failing

to suppress evidence and statements because: (1) the arresting officer had “no reasonable

suspicion to detain” Defendant; (2) the arresting officer had “no reasonable suspicion to

extend his nonconsensual detention” of Defendant; (3) there was “no probable cause to

arrest” Defendant; (4) the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test “should not have [been]

admitted” because “the test was not performed properly”; and (5) the Portable Breath Test

(PBT) “should not have [been] considered” because “law enforcement had wrongly assured

[Defendant] the PBT would not be used against him[.]” Finding no merit in any of these

points, we affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

In reviewing the trial court’s ruling on a motion to suppress, “[t]his Court defers to

the trial court’s factual findings and credibility determinations and considers all evidence

and reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to the trial court’s ruling.” State v.

Lammers, 479 S.W.3d 624, 630 (Mo. banc 2016). The following summary of facts has been

prepared in accordance with these principles.

Around 2:40 a.m. on February 10, 2017, Ozark Police Officer Trevor Spencer was

parked in his patrol vehicle on the shoulder of the on-ramp to 65 Highway. Officer Spencer

saw an Acura SUV drive past him, park on the shoulder of the road, and turn on its

emergency flashers. Two passengers exited the passenger side of the vehicle and began

walking towards his patrol vehicle. Officer Spencer then activated his emergency lights and

contacted the two passengers, later identified as Jeremy Rice (Rice) and Angel Fulton

(Fulton), as they were walking toward his patrol vehicle. As the officer was exiting his

vehicle, he heard Fulton tell Rice to get back into the vehicle, saying: “We’re both drunk,

2 and we want to go home.” Officer Spencer instructed the two passengers to re-enter the

vehicle. The officer was concerned for everyone’s safety at the side of the road and about

the possibility of an escalating domestic situation. After both were in the vehicle, Officer

Spencer then contacted the driver, whom he identified as Defendant.

When the officer asked Defendant why the passengers had exited the vehicle,

Defendant said they had been in an argument and that they had been at Wise Guys, a local

bar. Officer Spencer observed: (1) an immediate smell of intoxicants on Defendant’s breath;

(2) Defendant’s eyes were glassy and bloodshot; and (3) Defendant’s “speech was a little bit

slurred.” Defendant said that he was “the most sober” and planned to bring everyone home.

When asked if he had consumed any alcoholic beverages, Defendant said he had consumed

three or four drinks of Crown Royal. At this point, Officer Spencer thought Defendant might

be impaired. Officer Spencer asked Defendant if he believed that he was impaired.

Defendant said he believed that he was over the legal limit. Officer Spencer asked Defendant

to take a PBT, but Defendant asked if he could take a field sobriety test instead. As

Defendant exited his vehicle, Officer Spencer observed Defendant sway back and forth.

Officer Spencer then conducted three field sobriety tests on Defendant. First, Officer

Spencer performed the HGN test. Defendant exhibited all six clues of impairment,

indicating intoxication. Defendant even exhibited what was referred to as vertical gaze

nystagmus, which, according to Officer Spencer, indicated a high level of intoxication.

Next, Defendant performed the walk-and-turn test. He showed one indicator of intoxication

out of a possible nine by using his arms for balance. Third, Defendant performed the one-

leg-stand test. He showed one indicator of intoxication out of a possible four by similarly

using his arms for balance.

3 Officer Spencer again asked Defendant to submit to the PBT, and this time Defendant

complied. The PBT was positive for the presence of alcohol. Defendant asked what he

blew, and the officer responded that it was a .197. Based on the “totality of the whole entire

event[,]” Officer Spencer believed that Defendant was operating a motor vehicle in an

intoxicated condition and placed him under arrest. Officer Spencer then transported

Defendant to the Ozark Police Department. As Defendant exited the vehicle, Defendant

stumbled and almost fell out of the patrol car. Apparently referring to the PBT result,

Defendant said, “I guess I am a one nine.”

Once at the station, Officer Spencer read Defendant his Miranda warning and an

implied-consent statement. Officer Spencer then completed the AIR interview with

Defendant. During that interview, Defendant agreed that he was operating a vehicle when

he stopped his vehicle in front of the patrol car, and that he had been drinking. He said he

had “four shots in about an hour” and was under the influence of an alcoholic beverage.

Defendant blew into the breathalyzer machine, which yielded a blood-alcohol content of

.139.

Defendant was charged with DWI. Prior to trial, Defendant filed motions to suppress

all evidence and statements obtained after an “unlawful detention” or arrest with “no

probable cause” in violation of his constitutional rights to be free from unreasonable search

and seizures under, inter alia, the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution. The

motions were taken with the case, and defense counsel was permitted to make continuing

objections at trial. Officer Spencer testified to the aforementioned facts at trial. Exhibits

included the dash cam video, which confirmed much of Officer Spencer’s testimony.

Exhibits also included the blood-alcohol test report, which was admitted to show

4 Defendant’s blood-alcohol level was above the legal limit. Testimony concerning the result

of the PBT was admitted to establish probable cause to arrest Defendant. Thereafter, the

court: (1) denied the motions in limine and objections at trial; (2) admitted the challenged

testimony and evidence; and (3) found Defendant guilty of DWI. This appeal followed.

Additional facts will be included below as we address Defendant’s five points on appeal.

Standard of Review

We review the denial of a motion to suppress to determine whether there was

substantial evidence to support the decision, and we will only reverse where the trial court’s

ruling is clearly erroneous. State v. Gaw, 285 S.W.3d 318, 319-20 (Mo. banc 2009); State

v. Johnson, 427 S.W.3d 867, 871 (Mo. App. 2014).

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STATE OF MISSOURI, Plaintiff-Respondent v. JUSTIN KEITH LONG, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-of-missouri-plaintiff-respondent-v-justin-keith-long-moctapp-2020.