Baldridge v. Director of Revenue

• Decision Date: 20 August 2002
• Docket Number: No. WD 60252.,WD 60252.
• Citation: 82 S.W.3d 212
• Parties: Samuel W. BALDRIDGE, Respondent, v. DIRECTOR OF REVENUE, STATE OF MISSOURI, Appellant.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

82 S.W.3d 212

Samuel W. BALDRIDGE, Respondent, v. DIRECTOR OF REVENUE, STATE OF MISSOURI, Appellant.

No. WD 60252.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District.

August 20, 2002.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Jeremiah W. (Jay) Nixon, Atty. Gen., Jefferson City, Keith V. Yarwood, Forest W. Hanna, III, Asst. Attys. Gen., Kansas City, for appellant.

Howard L. Lotven, Kansas City, for respondent.

Before BRECKENRIDGE, P.J., LOWENSTEIN and SMART, JJ.

PATRICIA BRECKENRIDGE, Judge.

The Director of Revenue appeals the trial court's judgment reinstating Samuel W. Baldridge's driver's license. The court set aside the revocation of Mr. Baldridge's license after finding that the Director failed to show by a preponderance of the evidence that Mr. Baldridge refused to submit to a chemical test of his breath after he was arrested for driving while intoxicated. The court also set aside the revocation on the basis that the surveillance videotape of Mr. Baldridge's arrest was not provided to Mr. Baldridge. On appeal, the Director claims that Mr. Baldridge's failure to give a proper breath sample constituted a refusal, as did his failure to consent to the officer's subsequent request for a urine test, despite the fact that the officer did not administer the implied consent warning a second time before requesting that he take the urine test. The Director also claims that the trial court's finding that Mr. Baldridge was not provided a copy of the surveillance videotape was beyond the scope of the trial judge's authority under § 577.041, RSMo 2000,¹ to review license revocations for refusal to submit to a chemical test.

This court finds that the Director made a prima facie case for license revocation under § 577.041 because § 577.041 does not require that the implied consent law warning be given a second time prior to an officer requesting a second test, and the Director presented sufficient evidence that Mr. Baldridge refused to submit to the urine test. The court also finds that there was insufficient evidence of fraud, deceit, or bad faith to apply the spoliation doctrine for the Director's failure to produce the surveillance videotape to create the adverse inference that the videotape would have shown that Mr. Baldridge's conduct at the time of the stop did not indicate that he was intoxicated. Without that adverse inference, the Director made a prima facie case for license revocation. Therefore, the judgment of the trial court is reversed. Because the trial court's ruling in this case was a directed verdict at the close of the Director's case, the cause is remanded to allow Mr. Baldridge the opportunity to present evidence, if any, to rebut the Director's prima facie case. Because of the time that has elapsed while the appeal was pending, the trial court may conduct a new trial, rather than a continuance of the prior trial, if deemed beneficial by the trial court.

Factual and Procedural Background

Around 11:30 P.M. on the night of February 13, 2001, Officer Travis Rhyne of the Lake Winnebago Police Department was patrolling 291 Highway when he saw a green Mitsubishi Diamonte passing oncoming traffic with its bright lights on. Officer Rhyne began following the Diamonte and noticed that the car crossed over the center line and was traveling four miles over the speed limit. Officer Rhyne pulled over the Diamonte.

As Officer Rhyne approached the car Mr. Baldridge, the driver, rolled down the driver's side window. Officer Rhyne immediately smelled the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from the car. Officer Rhyne explained to Mr. Baldridge that he had been stopped because of his failure to dim his headlights to oncoming traffic and Officer Rhyne asked for Mr. Baldridge's driver's license and proof of insurance. As Mr. Baldridge was looking for his driver's license, Officer Rhyne asked Mr. Baldridge to explain why he failed to dim his bright lights. Mr. Baldridge said that be had his bright lights on because he could not see. Officer Rhyne then reminded Mr. Baldridge to get out his driver's license. Mr. Baldridge fumbled through his wallet and found his driver's license, but he was unable to find his insurance card after fumbling through papers in his glove box. As Officer Rhyne spoke to Mr. Baldridge, he noticed that Mr. Baldridge's pupils were very large, his eyes were glassy and red, his breath smelled like alcohol, and his speech was slurred. When Officer Rhyne asked Mr. Baldridge how much he had had to drink that night, however, Mr. Baldridge replied that he had not had anything to drink.

Officer Rhyne returned to his patrol car and ran a check on Mr. Baldridge's license through the Cass County dispatch. Officer Rhyne learned that Mr. Baldridge had had several previous traffic contacts, including a previous alcohol suspension. Officer Rhyne then asked Mr. Baldridge to step out of his car. As Mr. Baldridge got out of his car, he appeared to be off-balance. Officer Rhyne administered three field sobriety tests, all of which indicated that Mr. Baldridge was intoxicated. Officer Rhyne then asked Mr. Baldridge if he had smoked any marijuana. Mr. Baldridge said that he had smoked marijuana earlier in the evening. Officer Rhyne arrested Mr. Baldridge for driving while intoxicated. After he handcuffed Mr. Baldridge and placed him in the patrol car, Officer Rhyne advised Mr. Baldridge of his Miranda² rights.

Officer Rhyne took Mr. Baldridge to the police station, where he again informed Mr. Baldridge of his Miranda rights by reading the warning from the Department of Revenue's Alcohol Influence Report. Mr. Baldridge indicated that he understood his Miranda rights. Officer Rhyne then read the implied consent law warning from the Alcohol Influence Report. Specifically, Officer Rhyne told Mr. Baldridge that he was under arrest for driving while intoxicated; that to determine the alcohol or drug content of his blood, Officer Rhyne was requesting that Mr. Baldridge submit to chemical tests of his breath and urine; that if Mr. Baldridge refused to take the tests, his driver license would immediately be revoked for one year; and evidence of Mr. Baldridge's refusal to take the tests could be used against him in court.

Officer Rhyne first asked Mr. Baldridge to submit to a breath test. Mr. Baldridge did not ask to speak to an attorney before he agreed to submit to the test. Before administering the breath test, Officer Rhyne observed Mr. Baldridge for fifteen minutes to ensure that Mr. Baldridge did not have anything in his mouth. Officer Rhyne also checked the breathalyzer machine to make sure it was working properly.

The first time Mr. Baldridge blew into the machine, Officer Rhyne believed that Mr. Baldridge intentionally let air escape out the side of his mouth and his nose. Officer Rhyne heard the air and felt it as he held onto the tube. The blow light on the machine did not disappear, and the machine did not record a result. Officer Rhyne stopped the test and explained to Mr. Baldridge that the machine indicates when the person is not properly blowing into the machine and he again instructed Mr. Baldridge how to properly blow into the machine. Mr. Baldridge blew into the machine a second time and again Officer Rhyne believed that Mr. Baldridge let the air escape out the side of his mouth and his nose. The machine did not record a result. Officer Rhyne reiterated how to properly blow into the machine and he told Mr. Baldridge that he did not have to give him another chance. The third time, Officer Rhyne believed that Mr. Baldridge blew lightly into the machine but again let air escape out of the side of his mouth and his nose. The machine's blow light was flashing periodically, but the machine recorded a blood alcohol content of .015%.

Even though the breathalyzer machine recorded a result after Mr. Baldridge's third attempt at blowing into the machine, Officer Rhyne did not believe the test was accurate because he thought Mr. Baldridge was intentionally letting air escape through his mouth and nose. Because he believed that Mr. Baldridge was intentionally giving an insufficient breath sample, Officer Rhyne marked on the Alcohol Influence Report that Mr. Baldridge had refused to take the breath test.

Officer Rhyne next requested that Mr. Baldridge take a urine test. Officer Rhyne requested the urine test because he thought the breath test was inaccurate due to Mr. Baldridge giving an insufficient breath sample and because Mr. Baldridge had admitted smoking marijuana earlier in the evening. Also, Officer Rhyne was aware the law allowed him to request two chemical tests. When Officer Rhyne asked Mr. Baldridge to take the urine test, however, Mr. Baldridge said that he was not going to take it because Officer Rhyne could not ask for another test. After Officer Rhyne explained to Mr. Baldridge that he could ask Mr. Baldridge to submit to two tests, Mr. Baldridge again insisted that Officer Rhyne could not, and Mr. Baldridge said that he would not take the urine test.

When Officer Rhyne informed Mr. Baldridge he was marking down a refusal, Mr. Baldridge argued with Officer Rhyne and said that he had not refused anything. Officer Rhyne did not show Mr. Baldridge the results of the breath test because Mr. Baldridge had attempted to grab the results a couple of times before, and Officer Rhyne was afraid Mr. Baldridge would destroy the printout. When Officer Rhyne placed the printout of the breath test results under his desk and away from Mr. Baldridge's reach, Mr. Baldridge accused Officer Rhyne of throwing away evidence. So, Officer Rhyne picked up the printout and put it out of Mr. Baldridge's reach. Mr. Baldridge stood up, reached across the desk, and grabbed the paper out from under Officer Rhyne's hand. At that point, Officer Rhyne handcuffed Mr. Baldridge for safety purposes. After refusing to answer any of the interview questions from the Alcohol Influence Report, Mr. Baldridge again argued about the refusal and became ...