State v. Corvers

646 So. 2d 1125, 1994 WL 638086
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 16, 1994
Docket94-KA-387
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 646 So. 2d 1125 (State v. Corvers) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Corvers, 646 So. 2d 1125, 1994 WL 638086 (La. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinion

646 So.2d 1125 (1994)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Leslie CORVERS.

No. 94-KA-387.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fifth Circuit.

November 16, 1994.

*1126 Lloyd J. LeBlanc, Jr., Asst. Dist. Atty., LaPlace, for plaintiff/appellee.

Robert T. Garrity, Jr., Harahan, for defendant/appellant.

Before GRISBAUM, WICKER and GOTHARD, JJ.

WICKER, Judge.

Leslie L. Corvers was charged by bill of information with violation of La.R.S. 14:98, operating a vehicle while intoxicated (DWI). On March 17, 1994 she was tried and found guilty as charged. Immediately after the verdict she was sentenced to serve ten days in the parish jail, which was suspended subject to payment of a fine of $500 and court costs, performance of four eight-hour days of community service, and attendance at a court-approved driver improvement school. She now appeals the conviction, contending that the evidence was insufficient to prove her guilty of driving while intoxicated.

There is no right of appeal from a conviction for this offense, which is a misdemeanor and thus not triable by a jury. La. Code Crim. P. art. 912.1. However, in the interest of judicial economy, this Court has previously exercised its supervisory jurisdiction in appeals of matters involving nonappealable judgments and has maintained such matters as applications for supervisory writs. State v. Boudreaux, 504 So.2d 1165, 1167 (La.App. 5th Cir.1987); State v. Easley, 517 So.2d 363, 364 n. 1 (La.App. 5th Cir.1987). Accordingly, we will review this matter under our supervisory jurisdiction.

FACTS

The evidence at trial consisted entirely of the testimony of Larry Leblanc, a deputy with the St. John Sheriff's Office. Deputy Leblanc testified that on September 13, 1993 at approximately 2:03 a.m. he was dispatched to Central Avenue in LaPlace in response to an accident call. Upon his arrival he learned that the defendant apparently was travelling south on Central at a high speed and lost control of her vehicle. It flipped several times and knocked down several mailboxes, struck a gas meter, and ended up a few feet from a trailer home.

According to Deputy Leblanc, the defendant was alone in her car and no one else was involved in the accident. When he got to the scene, the defendant was not in a condition for him to administer a sobriety test because she was hysterical and "completely uncooperative." He saw no beer cans or any type of alcoholic beverages in her vehicle. Leblanc identified Leslie Corvers as the woman who was at the scene of the accident.

Leblanc admitted he had not observed the accident itself, but stated he arrived on the scene "no more than a couple of minutes" after the time of the accident. He stated that the police had been called by the occupant of the mobile home, in whose yard the defendant had landed. He described the defendant as combative towards the deputies and the emergency medical technicians on the scene: "She didn't want to be fooled with at all. She had to be removed from the vehicle. And then while they were trying to restrain her neck in case of neck injuries, she was very combative with them." Leblanc testified that when he spoke to the defendant *1127 at the scene, he detected a strong odor of an unknown alcoholic beverage on her breath. Leblanc said that when he advised the defendant of her rights at the scene, she was conscious, she talked to him, and she signed the rights form. Because the defendant had sustained several injuries in the accident, however, she was taken to a hospital.

At the hospital Deputy Leblanc asked the defendant to undergo a blood test. She refused initially, but agreed to comply after he advised her that when an accident involves major damage and serious injury, state law requires a driver to give blood for testing. Leblanc observed a nurse draw blood from the defendant at the hospital. The deputy then sealed it up, transported it to the sheriff's office and put it in a cooler. The next morning he turned the cooler over to another deputy, who in turn transported it to the state police crime lab. Leblanc testified further, "Upon receiving the results back, I think it was a .16," a warrant was issued for the arrest of the defendant for driving while intoxicated. After the arrest warrant was issued, they contacted the defendant and she turned herself in at the jail.

On redirect the prosecution attempted to introduce the report of the blood analysis, but the defense objected on the ground that it was beyond the scope of redirect because it had not been discussed on cross examination. That objection was sustained by the trial judge. The report was not introduced into evidence, but Deputy Leblanc was asked if he personally saw the blood analysis report. He indicated he had and stated that the report indicated the defendant's blood contained.16 grams. This testimony differed slightly from the officer's testimony on direct examination when he testified that he "thought" the results were .16. Defense counsel did not object to these questions or answers on either direct or redirect examination.

In finding the defendant guilty, the trial court stated:

The Court has heard all of your arguments. While accepting what you said, the Court's also heard the witness testify the defendant had to be helped out of the car. He further testified that at the hospital he personally spoke to her with reference to drawing blood. And when she refused, he indicated to her it was the policy, State's policy she could not refuse to submit to the drawing of blood when there is an accident involving serious injury and major property damages. This Court finds that it is sufficient to establish that the defendant was, in fact, the driver of the vehicle involved in the accident on the said date. For that reason, based upon the testimony, there has been nothing to contradict the testimony that her blood alcohol level was point one six. The Court finds her guilty of Driving While Intoxicated.

ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR NOS. 1 AND 2.

On appeal the defendant makes the following assignments of error:

1. The trial court found the defendant guilty of driving while intoxicated, absent evidence that the defendant was driving, or operating the vehicle.

2. The trial court found the defendant guilty of driving while intoxicated absent evidence of blood alcohol content, an intoxilizer reading, or field sobriety test.

By means of these assignments of error, the defendant contends that there is insufficient evidence to support the verdict.

To convict an accused of driving while intoxicated, the State must prove that the defendant was operating a motor vehicle or other means of conveyance and that the defendant was under the influence of alcoholic beverages or that his blood alcohol concentration was 0.10 percent or more by weight based on grams of alcohol per 100 cubic centimeters of blood, or that he was under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance. La.R.S. 14:98(A); State v. Fontenot, 408 So.2d 919, 921 (La.1981); State v. Kent, 610 So.2d 265, 267 (La.App. 5th Cir.1992); State v. Weilbaecher, 534 So.2d 973, 975 (La. App. 5th Cir.1988).

The defendant contends that there was not sufficient evidence of the elements of the offense that she was "operating" the vehicle and that she was "intoxicated while operating the vehicle." The State contends that the *1128

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

Related

State v. Simard
817 So. 2d 366 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2002)
State v. Pendelton
696 So. 2d 144 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1997)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
646 So. 2d 1125, 1994 WL 638086, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-corvers-lactapp-1994.