Com. v. Atencio

• Decision Date: 02 February 1982
• Citation: 429 N.E.2d 37,12 Mass.App.Ct. 747
• Parties: COMMONWEALTH v. Joseph ATENCIO.
• Court: Appeals Court of Massachusetts

Page 37

429 N.E.2d 37

12 Mass.App.Ct. 747

COMMONWEALTH v. Joseph ATENCIO.

Appeals Court of Massachusetts, Essex.

Argued Oct. 9, 1981.

Decided Dec. 11, 1981.

Further Appellate Review Denied Feb. 2, 1982.

Michael G. Drew, Norwood, for defendant.

John Gillen, Asst. Dist. Atty., for the Commonwealth.

Before DREBEN, CUTTER and SMITH, JJ.

CUTTER, Judge.

On June 20, 1979, Atencio and his brother were driving on a road in Danvers when Atencio lost control of his pick-up truck. The truck hit the rear of an automobile which had stopped at a red light, bounced off, and hit a moped with two riders. These riders were hurled violently into the air. One person was injured. The other hit a traffic light stanchion and later died of his injuries. In the accident, Atencio was injured and needed medical attention. He was taken in an ambulance to Hunt Memorial Hospital as rapidly as possible after his arrest at the accident scene on charges of operating under the influence of liquor and operating to endanger.

Separate complaints were issued in a District Court charging each of these two offenses. A later complaint also charged vehicular homicide. After a trial without a jury, Atencio claimed a trial de novo before a jury of six. Thereupon, his attorney filed motions (a) to dismiss the charge of operating under the influence of liquor, and (b) to suppress or to limit any testimony at trial concerning Atencio's use of alcohol on the day of the accident. The motion to dismiss was based on the ground that Atencio had not been informed at the time of his arrest or thereafter of his ability to request at his own expense an immediate examination by a physician selected by him. See G.L. c 263, § 5A, as amended through St.1960, c. 237. ¹ Atencio was not so informed. The motions, after a somewhat confused hearing, were denied by the motion judge, who was not the trial judge.

Verdicts of guilty of each of the three charges were returned against Atencio by the jury of six. Atencio has appealed and argues four issues on appeal. The facts have been stated only to the extent required for discussion of these four issues. We affirm one of the convictions and vacate the other verdicts for reasons stated in part four of this opinion.

1. The motions to dismiss the complaint of driving under the influence of liquor and to suppress or limit evidence of intoxication were properly denied at the stage of trial when that was done. The motion judge found (a) that, when arrested, Atencio "was in a drunken condition and needed medical care;" (b) that Atencio was assisted from his vehicle, handcuffed, and transported to the hospital where, after examination, he was admitted as a patient; (c) that the arresting officers "were both at the hospital and at the (accident) scene sporadically" trying to straighten out "most complicated occurrences" involving investigation and victim assistance at the scene; (d) that a police sergeant on one visit to the hospital spoke to Atencio, lying on a cot, gave him the standard Miranda warnings, and informed him of his right to a breathalyzer test; (e) that an officer (who had been present at the time of Atencio's arrest), on one visit to the hospital gave Atencio a citation (see G.L. c. 90C, § 1, as amended by St.1975, c. 418) for driving under the influence and driving to endanger, but "never completed the initial identification process" and never took Atencio to a police station or completed the booking process; (f) that Atencio testified that he had no memory of the accident and subsequent events; and (g) that Atencio spent the night in the hospital, and on "the next day, when he awoke ... called for his clothes and voluntarily checked out and went ... home."

On these subsidiary findings, warranted by the evidence upon the motions, the motion judge concluded that Atencio was "fully advised of his rights insofar as it was practicable to do so" and "was never booked within the meaning of" G.L. c. 263, § 5A, see note 1, supra. As a consequence, the judge denied the motions.

The judge's action was correct. Atencio was in need of medical care. There had been a serious automobile accident. There were people in need of treatment and the available police officers were fully occupied by various aspects of the exigency. There was no indication in the evidence of any police attempt or desire to avoid or subvert the policy behind § 5A. Thus the application of any sanction of exclusion of evidence would have been wholly inappropriate and would not have had any "prophylactic" tendency to prevent improper police conduct in other cases. ² See Rawlings v. Kentucky, 448 U.S. 98, 110, 100 S.Ct. 2556, 2564, 65 L.Ed.2d 633 (1980). It should be noted that § 5A itself contains no required sanctions for noncompliance with its terms. ³ Atencio, in any event, was afforded prompt and thorough medical care and examination at the hospital, and was seen by the doctors there. He thus has established no significant prejudice from the omission of the statutory notice.

2. There was no error at trial in receiving the testimony of a witness (Enright), who went to the passenger side of Atencio's vehicle when he heard the crash, that his "observation of these men ... (was) they were both drinking." A lay witness may testify to another's sobriety or lack of it. Edwards v. Worcester, 172 Mass. 104, 105-106, 51 N.E. 447 (1898); Holton v. Boston Elevated Ry., 303 Mass. 242, 246, 21 N.E.2d 251 (1939). See Liacos, Handbook of Massachusetts Evidence, 102 (5th ed. 1981); Hughes, Evidence, § 324 (1961 ed.).

3. The assistant district attorney in closing argument referred to a notation on Atencio's hospital record, admitted in evidence under G.L. c. 233, § 79, that about Atencio there was a "strong odor of alcohol." In his brief the prosecutor concedes that the word "strong," modifying "odor of alcohol," was deleted by stipulation on one page of the exhibit headed "Emergency Room Note-6-20-79." Counsel's reference was to another page (headed "Code Trauma Sheet" as to which no request for the deletion of the word "(s)trong" seems to have been made. ⁴ Observation about an odor of alcohol on a patient's breath in a hospital record admitted in evidence may be considered by the trier of the facts. Cowan v. McDonnell, 330 Mass. 148, 149, 111 N.E.2d 759 (1953), and cases cited.

Despite the provision in G.L. c. 233, § 79, that references "to the question of liability" are not made admissible by the section, the section has been given "liberal interpretation." Commonwealth v. Franks, 359 Mass. 577, 579-580, 270 N.E.2d 837 (1971). See Bouchie v. Murray, 376 Mass. 524, 527-531, 381 N.E.2d 1295 (1978); Liacos, Handbook of Massachusetts Evidence, 332-335 (5th ed. 1981). A record, "which relates directly and mainly to the ... medical history of the patient, should be admitted, even though incidentally the facts recorded may have some bearing on the question of liability." Leonard v. Boston Elevated Ry., 234 Mass. 480, 483, 125 N.E. 593 (1920). See Commonwealth v. Concepcion, 362 Mass. 653, 654, 290 N.E.2d 514 (1972). Once the hospital records were received in evidence without objection to specific parts of them, any fact stated in them "could be considered on any issue to which it was relevant." See Cohen v. Boston Edison Co., 322 Mass. 239, 241, 76 N.E.2d 766 (1948).

The prosecutor made reference (without any clear defense objection) to a statement on the hospital record, under the heading "Admission Summary," that "pt. (patient) stated 'he was bombed' (intoxicated). In an auto accident today." This also reasonably could be mentioned by the prosecutor in argument. ⁵ We need not discuss whether this statement, already admitted as part of his hospital record appraising his medical condition, would have been admitted over objection as an admission (see Commonwealth v. Pina, 342 Mass. 472, 473-474, 174 N.E.2d 370 (1961) ) or as a prior inconsistent statement casting doubt on the credibility of Atencio's testimony that he did not feel the effect of two beers which he admitted consuming before the accident.

4. As already stated, separate complaints charged Atencio with (a) driving to endanger, (b) driving under the influence of liquor, and (c) vehicular homicide. The jury found...