People v. Benoit

Decision Date15 November 2019
Docket Number2018BX033787
Parties The PEOPLE of the State of New York, v. Francis BENOIT, Defendant.
CourtNew York Criminal Court

For the Defendant: Mariam Gaye, Esq., Bronx Defenders, 360 East 161st Street, Bronx, New York 10451

For the People: ADA Gabriel Fromer, Bronx District Attorney's Office, 215 East 161st Street, Bronx, New York 10451

Jeffrey Rosenblueth, J.

MOTION TO SUPPRESS STATEMENT AT THE SCENE: DENIED

MOTION TO SUPPRESS POLICE OBSERVATIONS: DENIED

MOTION TO SUPPRESS CHEMICAL TEST RESULTS: DENIED

MOTION TO SUPPRESS FIELD SOBRIETY TESTS: DENIED

MOTION TO SUPPRESS POST-MIRANDA STATEMENTS: DENIED

Defendant is charged in the accusatory instrument with one count of Driving While Intoxicated, per se [ VTL § 1192(2) ], one count of Driving While Intoxicated [ VTL § 1192(3) ] and one count of Driving While Ability Impaired [ VTL § 1192(1) ].

On November 20, 2018, defendant moved for an order to suppress any and all evidence related to his chemical breath test, or in the alternative, an Ingle /Johnson/ Atkins / Mapp /Dunaway hearing. Defendant further moved to suppress all police observations including what is depicted on the Intoxicated Driver's Testing Unit (hereinafter "IDTU") video recording. Finally, defendant moved to suppress any and all statements made by him for which the People provided proper notice pursuant to CPL § 710.30, or in the alternative, a Huntley /Dunaway hearing. On December 4, 2018, the People consented to an Ingle /Johnson/ Atkins / Mapp / Huntley /Dunaway hearing. On September 17, 2019, this Court held an Ingle /Johnson/ Atkins / Mapp / Huntley /Dunaway hearing. The sole witness at the hearing was Police Officer ("P.O.") Paul Catanzarita who testified on behalf of the People. The Court finds P.O. Catanzarita's testimony to be credible in all relevant aspects.

FINDINGS OF FACT

P.O. Paul Catanzarita has been an officer with the New York City Police Department for approximately five (5) years and nine (9) months and is currently assigned to midnight patrol with the 47th precinct. He has made approximately two (2) to three (3) arrests for driving while intoxicated. Officer Catanzarita received training from the highway patrol regarding the signs to look for in determining whether a person is under the influence of alcohol, including the smell of alcohol on one's breath, glassy, watery bloodshot eyes, unsteady balance and slurred speech. On October 7, 2018, P.O. Catanzarita was on midnight patrol with Sergeant Roth in a marked police vehicle in the vicinity of Palmer Avenue and Boston Road in the county of the Bronx. Boston Road is a four-lane roadway. Two lanes head northbound and two lanes head southbound. A double yellow line separates the northbound and southbound lanes. A dotted white line separates the two lanes on each side of the yellow line.

At approximately 3:50 A.M. at the intersection of Boston Road and Secor Avenue, P.O. Catanzarita observed a silver 2006 Jeep Liberty, operated by defendant, make a left-hand turn exiting a shopping center into one of the southbound lanes on Boston Road. When the light turned green on Boston Road, Sergeant Roth drove the marked police vehicle two (2) to three (3) car lengths behind defendant's vehicle in one of the southbound lanes on Boston Road for about two (2) to three (3) blocks. During this time, P.O. Catanzarita noticed defendant's vehicle swerving within its lane. The officer further observed, two (2) to three (3) times, defendant's driver's side tires crossing over the dotted white line separating the two southbound traffic lanes without signaling.

The officers activated their lights and sirens and stopped defendant's car for violating the Vehicle and Traffic Law infraction of failing to maintain a lane. After parking their police vehicle behind defendant's car, Sergeant Roth approached the driver's side of defendant's vehicle and P.O. Catanzarita approached the passenger's side of defendant's car. Sergeant Roth asked defendant how much he had to drink and defendant did not reply. Sergeant Roth then ordered defendant out of his car and defendant immediately stated that he needed to use the bathroom. Officer Catanzarita told defendant that he was not permitted to do so at that time. At some point during this exchange, approximately three (3) to four (4) minutes after Sergeant Roth and P.O. Catanzarita stopped defendant's vehicle, two (2) additional police officers arrived at the scene and parked their vehicle behind Sergeant Roth's marked police car. Sergeant Roth then directed defendant to the back of his vehicle where Officer Catanzarita and the two (2) additional police officers stood waiting for them. When P.O. Catanzarita was within arm's length of defendant, he smelled an odor of alcohol on defendant's breath and further observed that he had glassy watery eyes, slightly slurred speech and was swaying on his feet. Officer Catanzarita recognized those signs to be indicia of intoxication. Once defendant arrived at the back of his car, Sergeant Roth again asked defendant how much he had to drink and defendant replied, "I had one beer." P.O. Catanzarita testified that defendant was not under arrest, the officers did not display their weapons and defendant was not threatened or told by the officers that he was not free to leave at the time the statement was made.

Thereafter, Sergeant Roth asked defendant to submit to a portable breath test (hereinafter "PBT") to determine his blood alcohol content and defendant agreed to take the test. Sergeant Roth placed the PBT device up to defendant's mouth and defendant attempted to submit to the test four (4) times, but each time the test resulted in an insufficient sample. After the fourth failed attempt, defendant asked either to speak to "an attorney" or "my attorney", (Hearing Tr. , pg. 57 lines 20-21). P.O. Catanzarita asked defendant why he required an attorney and defendant stated it was because he was "being harassed," (Hearing Tr. pg. 61, lines 1-2). Defendant was asked to submit to the PBT once again, and after he did so, a PBT reading of .15 was obtained.

Based upon the result of the PBT and the officers' observations of defendant's physical condition, they concluded that defendant operated his vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and placed him under arrest at 3:56 A.M. After he was placed in handcuffs, defendant asked P.O. Catanzarita whether he was going to "get an attorney" or if he "needed an attorney," (Hearing Tr. pg. 58, line 23, pg. 59 lines 1-7).

P.O. Catanzarita transported defendant to the 45th precinct where defendant was asked to submit to a chemical breath test at 6:11 A.M. Defendant immediately replied that he would take the test. After several attempts to submit to the test, the Intoxilyzer 9000 machine generated a breath sample of .09 blood alcohol content. Subsequently, upon defendant's consent, several sobriety tests were administered to him including the walk and turn test, the one- legged stand test and the horizontal gaze nystagmus test

.

At 6:31 A.M., Officer Catanzarita advised defendant of his Miranda rights and defendant agreed to answer questions related to his arrest. P.O. Catanzarita asked defendant a series of questions and defendant answered, in sum and substance, "I was driving the vehicle. I was going home. I was picking up a friend. I was driving for about two minutes before I was stopped. I was drinking one Guinness beer. I was at Mingles bar. I'm not sure when I started. I'm not sure when I stopped. I did not have any drinks in the last hour before I was stopped. I last ate at approximately 12:00 A.M. to 1:00 A.M.I had spaghetti and fish. I took medication around 7 A.M. to 7:30 A.M. I'm not sick or injured, I don't have any disabilities. I'm not diabetic. I don't have allergies. I had four (4) to five (5) hours of sleep last night. I have slept today, I'm not tired. I did not feel the effects of alcohol or drugs as I was driving. I do not feel that alcohol or drugs affected my driving to the slightest degree. The vehicle does have a mechanical problem with the engine mount. I feel I was driving well. I would go to work or school in my condition at the time of the stop. On a scale of one (1) to ten (10) where zero (0) is totally sober or no impairment at all and ten (10) is falling down drunk or too impaired to function at all, I would rate myself a one (1). I feel I'm the same as when I was first stopped."

Based upon P.O. Catanzarita's observations of defendant on the scene and at the precinct, the result of defendant's chemical breath test and P.O. Catanzarita's training and experience, he concluded that defendant was intoxicated.

DEFENDANT'S CLAIMS

Defendant claims that there was no legal basis for the police to stop his vehicle because: (1) P.O. Catanzarita's observation of his vehicle's tires crossing over the white dotted line which separated the southbound lanes of traffic on Boston Road was not sufficient to establish probable cause that he committed a traffic violation; (2) P.O. Catanzarita did not provide adequate details of the circumstances surrounding the stop of defendant so that this Court could determine whether defendant committed a traffic infraction; (3) P.O. Catanzarita did not establish "reasonable suspicion" that defendant committed, was committing or about to commit a crime and (4) P.O. Catanzarita did not establish that defendant's driving prompted him to have a concern for public safety because he did not testify that it posed a danger to other drivers or pedestrians.

Additionally, with respect to defendant's statement on the scene that he had "one beer" defendant asserts that it was made when he was subject to custodial interrogation without being advised of his Miranda warnings and thus, the statement should be suppressed.

Defendant further claims that his Breathalyzer chemical test result, the results of the sobriety tests conducted at the 45th precinct and the statements he made...

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