Com. v. Modaffare
| Decision Date | 22 January 1992 |
| Citation | 529 Pa. 101,601 A.2d 1233 |
| Parties | COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee, v. James Lee MODAFFARE, Appellant. |
| Court | Pennsylvania Supreme Court |
John B. Mancke, Mancke and Wagner, Harrisburg, for amicus curiae, Pennsylvania Ass'n of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Frederic J. Ammerman, Dist. Atty., Michael J. Saglimben, Asst. Dist. Atty., Clearfield, for appellee.
Stuart Suss, Deputy Dist. Atty., West Chester, for amicus curiae, Pennsylvania District Attorneys Ass'n.
Before NIX, C.J., and LARSEN, FLAHERTY, McDERMOTT, ZAPPALA, PAPADAKOS and CAPPY, JJ.
In 1988, in a trial by jury in the Court of Common Pleas of Clearfield County, the appellant, James Lee Modaffare, was convicted of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol. An appeal was taken to the Superior Court, whereupon the judgment of sentence was affirmed. We granted allowance of appeal.
On the evening of June 8, 1987, appellant and a friend, Brenda K. Guthridge, traveled together by car to two taverns in Curwensville, Pennsylvania. At the taverns, appellant and Guthridge consumed beer. Later, while driving himself and Guthridge home at approximately 2:30 a.m., appellant struck a parked car. Appellant and Guthridge suffered injuries in the collision and were transported to a hospital. At the hospital, a state police trooper requested that appellant consent to a determination of his blood alcohol level. Appellant gave his consent, and, at 4:20 a.m., a blood sample was taken. The sample was forwarded to a crime laboratory for analysis. Appellant's blood alcohol level proved to be 0.108%.
Appellant was charged under two provisions of the drunk driving law. The first provision, 75 Pa.C.S. § 3731(a)(1), makes it an offense to drive "under the influence of alcohol to a degree which renders the person incapable of safe driving." At trial, appellant was acquitted on this charge. Appellant was found guilty, however, of a violation of 75 Pa.C.S. § 3731(a)(4), which provides:
(a) Offense defined.--A person shall not drive, operate or be in actual physical control of the movement of any vehicle while:
....
(4) the amount of alcohol by weight in the blood of the person is 0.10% or greater.
Appellant filed a motion seeking a new trial. A new trial was granted as to the charge under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3731(a)(4), but, upon re-trial, appellant was again convicted.
The issue presented is whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain the conviction. In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence we are required to view the evidence, and all reasonable inferences therefrom, in the light most favorable to the Commonwealth as the verdict winner. Commonwealth v. Hughes, 521 Pa. 423, 430, 555 A.2d 1264, 1267 (1989). The test is whether the evidence, when so viewed, is sufficient to prove every element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Id.
Appellant argues that, because his blood sample was drawn approximately one hour and fifty minutes after the accident, it did not accurately reflect the content of alcohol in his blood at the time he was driving. See generally Commonwealth v. Gonzalez, 519 Pa. 116, 125-34, 546 A.2d 26, 30-35 (1988) (). In particular, appellant argues that expert testimony adduced by the Commonwealth on the issue of blood alcohol content was sufficiently ambiguous as to leave open to speculation the question of his blood alcohol content while driving. Upon the record presented, we agree that the evidence of appellant's blood alcohol level was insufficient to prove beyond reasonable doubt that his blood alcohol level was equal to or greater than 0.10% while driving.
In 75 Pa.C.S. § 3731(a)(4), supra, it is made an offense to drive a vehicle while one's blood alcohol content is 0.10% or greater. In contrast, we note that the legislatures of certain other states have enacted statutes making it an offense to drive with a blood alcohol content of 0.10% "as shown by" or "as determined by" a blood alcohol test administered within a specified time after driving has ceased. See generally People v. Mertz, 68 N.Y.2d 136, 506 N.Y.S.2d 290, 497 N.E.2d 657 (1986) (). Under such statutes, the facts of the present case might readily support a conviction. * Our statute, however, is more limited in its focus. It makes one's blood alcohol content while driving the pivotal issue.
The legislature has provided that blood tests conducted after suspected drunk drivers have been stopped will be used as evidence of the suspects' blood alcohol contents while driving. See generally 75 Pa.C.S. § 1547 (). In cases where test results show levels of alcohol significantly above 0.10% and where blood samples have been obtained soon after suspects have been driving, there is a very strong inference that blood alcohol levels were in the prohibited range while driving. However, where, as in the present case, the blood test result barely exceeded the 0.10% level and the lapse of time between driving and the taking of the blood sample was significant, the inference of guilt is weakened.
The blood test in this case was not performed until approximately one hour and fifty minutes after appellant's accident. It revealed a blood alcohol content that was barely above the 0.10% level, i.e., 0.108%. The Commonwealth introduced testimony from the physician who drew the blood sample for analysis. He testified that a person's blood alcohol level fluctuates with the passage of time, such that the level gradually rises after drinks have been consumed until a peak is...
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