Labarge v. Commonwealth
| Decision Date | 22 February 2022 |
| Docket Number | 0081-21-2 |
| Court | Virginia Court of Appeals |
| Parties | LESTER LOUIS LABARGE v. COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA |
FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF HANOVER COUNTY Patricia Kelly, Judge.
Theodore D. Bruns (Blackburn, Conte, Schilling & Click on brief), for appellant.
Liam A. Curry, Assistant Attorney General (Mark R. Herring [1] Attorney General, on brief), for appellee.
Present: Russell, Malveaux and Friedman Argued at Richmond, Virginia, Judges.
Lester Louis Labarge ("appellant") was convicted of involuntary manslaughter, in violation of Code § 18.2-36, and reckless driving, in violation of Code § 46.2-852. On appeal, appellant argues that the trial court erred in finding the evidence sufficient to convict him of each offense. For the following reasons, we affirm.
In accord with familiar principles of appellate review, we state the facts in the light most favorable to the Commonwealth, the prevailing party at trial. Gerald v. Commonwealth, 295 Va. 469, 472 (2018).
On the night of October 11, 2018, a motor vehicle accident occurred near Exit 38-B on Interstate 295 South. At approximately 9:00 p.m., Hanover County dispatchers directed Engine 6, Medic 6, and Rescue 10-respectively a fire engine, an ambulance, and a heavy rescue vehicle-to an accident scene.
Engine 6 crew members Christopher Elish and Carter Lewis testified that it was windy and raining heavily as the engine made its way to the accident scene. Lewis also noted that there was a "lot of water on the road." Elish heard Lieutenant Brad Clark, Engine 6's officer, instruct his driver to "take it easy" and caution him that "you don't want to lose control, just make sure we get there." Lewis estimated that Engine 6 drove to the accident scene at approximately forty miles per hour.
When Engine 6 arrived at the accident scene, the driver parked it with its front end on the shoulder by the median and its back end in the left-hand lane ("Lane 1"). Lewis and Elish testified that after Engine 6 stopped, its emergency lights remained activated and flashing. The crew dismounted, and as Elish reached for some equipment, he heard Clark say, "ya gotta be kidding me." Elish looked at Clark, who was standing in front of Engine 6 and watching to the rear, and then looked back to see a tractor-trailer "coming through the rain[, ] coming for us." Elish noted that the vehicle, driven by appellant, was in the second lane from the median ("Lane 2"). The tractor-trailer struck the rear of Engine 6.
As a result of the collision, Lieutenant Clark was pinned beneath Engine 6 and died of blunt force trauma to the torso. Appellant was indicted for involuntary manslaughter and reckless driving.
At trial, Zachary Daniel testified as an expert in forensic meteorology and described the weather conditions that existed along 295 South on October 11. Daniel noted that the remnants of Hurricane Michael were moving through the area and that at 9:00 p.m., the area remained under flash flood and high wind warnings. Based upon data recorded at two sites proximate to Exit 38-B, Daniel stated his conservative opinion that about four inches of rain fell in the area throughout October 11. He further opined that at about 9:00 p.m., the wind was blowing from the north at a sustained speed of twenty-five to thirty-five miles per hour and gusting above forty miles per hour. Daniel explained that this wind would have struck a vehicle traveling on 295 South near Exit 38-B on its left side. He further stated that under such conditions, a high-profile vehicle such as a panel truck or tractor-trailer would be susceptible to "catch[ing] the wind like a sail."
Lieutenant Colin Bunn, the driver of Medic 6, testified that while driving to the accident scene, he experienced heavy rain and high winds. Bunn further stated that he limited his speed to forty-five miles per hour to "try[] to maintain complete control of the vehicle in . . . the wind." Nevertheless, at one point, the wind was heavy enough to blow Medic 6 from Lane 1 into Lane 2. As Bunn drove with his siren and emergency lights activated, he saw a pickup truck and two tractor-trailers pass his ambulance. The tractor-trailers were in the right-hand center lane of the highway ("Lane 3"). Bunn testified that he was "concern[ed]" when the tractor-trailers passed him at a speed exceeding his own. While the tractor-trailers were passing, Bunn could see Engine 6 ahead of him. The engine was parked on the left shoulder with its rear extending into Lane 1, and its emergency lights were flashing. Bunn soon witnessed one of the tractor-trailers lose control and "hydroplane, jackknife," so that its trailer swung to the right while its tractor remained "still in line . . . to where it was heading," which was "towards the back of Engine 6." He estimated that "[m]aybe three seconds" elapsed between the moment the tractor-trailer began to slide and the moment it hit the rear of Engine 6.
Captain David Johnston, the officer for Rescue 10, testified that when Rescue 10 responded to the initial accident, the conditions were very windy and extremely rainy. Johnston stated that his emergency lights and siren were on and that as Rescue 10 exited from Interstate 95 South onto 295 South, two in-line tractor-trailers passed it to the right. Johnston recalled commenting to Rescue 10's driver that "they must have a deadline" because he was "surprised at how fast they were traveling based on the conditions that we were seeing." As Rescue 10 approached the initial accident scene, Johnston could see Engine 6 parked with its emergency lights flashing. Johnston then "lost that visual" and did not know why until he realized that a tractor-trailer had crashed "across the roadway."
Following appellant's crash, Sergeant Matthew Jester and Trooper David Fleenor of the Virginia State Police were dispatched separately to the scene. Both men testified that the weather conditions that evening were very poor and included heavy winds and high amounts of rain, and Jester stated that the conditions were the worst he had ever experienced while on duty. Due to the weather conditions, both men reduced their speed as they drove to the accident: Jester to between thirty and thirty-five miles per hour and Fleenor to forty-five to fifty-five miles per hour. Even at this reduced speed, Jester's vehicle was blown laterally on the highway and at times he found it difficult to keep a straight course due to the wind. Fleenor described occasionally losing traction because his tires were "digging into puddles." Jester also encountered standing water and "was hydroplaning on and off."
From the crash scene, appellant was taken to the hospital where he was interviewed by Trooper D.M. Fisher of the Virginia State Police. Appellant explained to Fisher that he had been "in the right middle lane [Lane 3] going about 65 miles an hour, it was raining really hard, and the wind was pushing [him] to the left, so [he] decided to change lanes into the left middle lane [Lane 2]." When appellant changed lanes, he "hydroplaned and lost control" and struck the rear of Engine 6. Trooper Fleenor was also present during this interview. He recalled appellant stating that there had been heavy rain and wind on 295 South and that ever since driving onto 295 South the wind had been "blowing his empty trailer around." Appellant also said that when he approached the site of the accident, a crosswind struck his tractor-trailer from the right and caused him to change lanes from Lane 3 to Lane 2. At that point, appellant's trailer hydroplaned and veered to the left towards the fire truck; when appellant "attempted to correct the veer," he struck Engine 6. Appellant stated that he had been traveling at approximately sixty to sixty-five miles per hour.
Sergeant Jester was also at the hospital and overheard a telephone conversation between appellant and appellant's son. Appellant stated that he had been in the right center lane (Lane 3) as he approached the accident scene and that he had seen emergency equipment and personnel in the left lane (Lane 1). Appellant said that when he hydroplaned, his tractor-trailer "just went where it wanted to go." Appellant stated that he had been driving about sixty miles per hour, thought there had been several inches of water on the road, and had experienced his truck being "blown around" by very strong winds. During cross-examination, Jester was questioned about his contemporaneous notes of appellant's conversation. Asked whether his notes stated, "[s]aw fire engine half in left lane, blocking left lane, was changing lanes, right center lane to left center lane, said truck just went where it wanted . . . [, ]" Jester replied, "Yes, that's initially what I wrote down."
Thomas Yager testified at trial as an expert on hydroplaning. Yager had examined the crash site and appellant's trailer and opined that appellant had experienced "dynamic hydroplaning." He explained that this occurs when "a wedge of water . . . lift[s] the tire tread off of the pavement and it becomes a water ski." Under such conditions, a driver would lose steering control. Yager stated that several factors are implicated in a hydroplaning event including the weight on a vehicle's tires, because as the load on a specific tire changes "the footprint area changes." Yager opined that weight had been a factor in appellant's crash because appellant's empty trailer had made a smaller "footprint," and thus had lacked the ability to drain water from between the tires and the road "at the normal hydroplaning speed." Thus hydroplaning "would happen at a much lower speed, . . . probably more in the 30 to 40 miles per hour range." Yager also explained that changing...
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