People v. Kiertowicz
| Decision Date | 23 August 2013 |
| Docket Number | No. 1–12–3271.,1–12–3271. |
| Citation | 2013 IL App (1st) 123271,995 N.E.2d 512,374 Ill.Dec. 373 |
| Parties | The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee, v. Matthew KIERTOWICZ, Defendant–Appellant. |
| Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Amanda N. Graham, Katie J. Kizer, Law Office of Kizer & Graham, Terrence P. LeFevour, Chicago, for appellant.
Anita M. Alvarez, State's Attorney, Chicago (Alan J. Spellberg, Anne L. Magats, Assistant State's Attorneys, of counsel), for the People.
[374 Ill.Dec. 374]¶ 1 Following a bench trial, defendant Matthew Kiertowicz was convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI). In reaching a guilty verdict, the trial court found that defendant, who failed three field sobriety tests, was in actual physical control of his parked vehicle when police officers found him alone and asleep in the driver's seat while the engine was running. After hearing factors in aggravation and mitigation, the trial court sentenced defendant to 18 months' conditional discharge, to undergo significant risk treatment, to attend a victim impact panel, and to pay a $1,250 fine. On this direct appeal, defendant does not challenge the trial court's finding that he was driving under the influence, but instead claims that the State failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he had actual physical control of his vehicle because there was no evidence that he possessed the ignition key or that he was locked alone in the vehicle. For the following reasons, we affirm.
¶ 3 The evidence at trial established that, on April 1, 2010, Harwood Heights police officer Edward Smith (Smith) observed defendant asleep in the driver's seat of his vehicle, which was idling at a stop sign with the taillights illuminated and smoke emitting from the exhaust pipe. Smith woke defendant and requested he perform three field sobriety tests, which he failed. Defendant was then arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol (625 ILCS 5/11–501(a)(2) (West 2006)), transportation of alcoholic liquor in a motor vehicle (625 ILCS 5/11–502 (West 2006)), failure to have insurance (625 ILCS 5/7–601 (West 2006)), failure to wear a seatbelt (625 ILCS 5/12–603.1 (West 2006)), and parking where prohibited (625 ILCS 5/11–1303 (West 2006)). As a result, defendant's driver's license was suspended for a minimum of 12 months pursuant to section 11–501.1 of the Illinois Vehicle Code. 625 ILCS 5/11–501.1 (West 2006).
¶ 4 Prior to trial, defendant filed a petition to rescind the statutory suspension of his license, and the trial court held a summary suspension hearing. At the hearing, Smith, a 12–year police veteran who has conducted between 50 to 75 DUI investigations, testified that, on the morning of April 1, 2012, he was on patrol in Harwood Heights in a marked police vehicle and in uniform. At approximately 6:30 a.m., Smith observed a black BMW convertible stopped in the roadway about eight feet behind a stop sign at the intersection of Natchez and Sunnyside Avenues. Smith was 100 yards away when he first observed the vehicle, and it was dawn and the lighting was “very good.” As Smith drove toward the vehicle, he observed that “the rear taillights [were] illuminated and smoke [was] coming from the exhaust pipe,” but the vehicle did not move for over 30 seconds. Smith, along with his partner,1 exited the police vehicle and approached the BMW on foot. Smith observed that both rear windows were down and that water had puddled in the back seats, presumably due to a recent rainstorm. Defendant was asleep in the driver's seat, and the gear was shifted in park. Smith identified defendant in court.
¶ 5 Smith testified that, after he knocked on the window, defendant woke up and opened the driver's side door. Smith inquired as to what defendant was doing there and he replied that he was waiting for a friend. Smith observed that defendant's speech was slurred, his eyes were bloodshot and glassy, and his breath smelled of alcohol. Smith inquired of defendant if he had been drinking that evening and defendant responded that he had consumed two beers. Smith observed a glass container next to defendant that appeared to contain beer. Smith asked defendant if the beer was his, and defendant responded that it belonged to a friend. Based on these observations, Smith requested defendant to exit his vehicle and perform three field sobriety tests. Smith determined that defendant failed all three tests and placed him under arrest. Defendant refused a Breathalyzer test.
¶ 6 After Smith's testimony, the trial court denied the State's motion for a directed finding. The State then introduced into evidence a videotape from the police vehicle's dashboard camera, which recorded defendant's field sobriety tests. For the purposes of the hearing, the parties stipulated that the videotape was a true and accurate depiction of the traffic stop. The trial court then admitted the videotape into evidence without objection and it was played before the court. The 11–minute videotape did not record the entire encounter and began sometime after defendant exited his vehicle to perform the field sobriety tests. The videotape starts with a depiction of defendant's vehicle on the side of Natchez Avenue, stopped several feet behind the stop sign at the intersection with Sunnyside Avenue. The vehicle's lights are off and there is no visible exhaust emitting from the tail pipe. The dashboard camera is then shifted slightly to the right, revealing two other vehicles parked behind defendant's vehicle. The remainder of the video depicts defendant performing the three field sobriety tests.
¶ 7 The State rested and the trial court denied defendant's petition, finding that reasonable grounds existed for the initial inquiry that subsequently led to the discovery that defendant was under the influence of alcohol.
¶ 8 Following the hearing, defendant filed a motion in limine that sought to bar the State from introducing evidence pertaining to defendant's statements made prior to the time the dashboard camera began recording the incident; however, the appellate record does not reflect the disposition of the motion. Defendant also filed a motion to quash the arrest, claiming: (1) that his arrest was illegal because Smith did not observe him violate any local, state, or federal law; (2) that he was legally parked in his vehicle at the time of his arrest; (3) that Smith lacked probable cause for requiring defendant to perform the field sobriety tests; (4) that he passed all three sobriety tests; and (5) that all the evidence obtained from his arrest should be suppressed. The motion to quash was denied.
¶ 9 At trial, Smith testified that he had received DUI training at the police academy and through a field-training program, and had made between 50 to 75 DUI arrests in his 13 years as a Harwood Heights police officer. On April 1, 2012, Smith was patrolling the area near the intersection of Natchez and Sunnyside Avenues in Harwood Heights. At approximately 6 a.m. that morning, he observed a black BMW stopped eight feet from the stop sign with its taillights illuminated. It took Smith 30 seconds to drive 100 yards toward the BMW, which did not move during that time. Smith drove up behind the BMW and waited another five seconds for it to move, which it did not.
¶ 10 Smith testified that he observed “someone in the driver's seat, the only occupant of the vehicle in the driver's seat not moving.” The vehicle was running with its taillights illuminated and smoke emitting from the exhaust pipe. Smith exited his vehicle and, accompanied by another officer, approached the BMW on foot. Defendant was asleep in the driver's seat with his head leaned back and eyes closed. Smith identified defendant in court. Before waking defendant, Smith checked to make sure the gearshift was in park. After Smith knocked on the vehicle's window, defendant awoke and Smith began a conversation with him. Defendant had an odor of liquor on his breath, slurred his speech, and had glassy, bloodshot eyes. Smith observed that defendant had a clear glass halfway filled with a yellow-colored liquid, and when he asked defendant what the beverage was, defendant responded that it was beer.
¶ 11 At that point, the trial court stopped Smith's testimony, and the trial was continued. During the next proceeding, the parties stipulated that the remainder of Smith's testimony would be the same as his testimony from the prior hearing on defendant's motion to rescind. The State then introduced into evidence the same dashboard video that the trial court viewed in the previous hearing. Both parties stipulated that the video was a fair and accurate depiction of the investigation and arrest of defendant. The video was admitted into evidence and the trial court viewed the recording in its entirety.
¶ 12 The State rested, and defendant moved for a directed finding, claiming: (1) that Smith's testimony was not credible because he testified that the traffic stop took place on April 8, 2012, when defendant was in fact arrested on April 1, 2012; and (2) that the State failed to prove defendant had actual physical control of his vehicle because Smith never mentioned the ignition key in his testimony and the dashboard video did not show the vehicle's lights on or smoke emitting from the tail pipe. The State responded that it had met its burden of proof because Smith testified that defendant was alone in the driver's seat of his vehicle, which had its taillights illuminated and exhaust smoke emitting from the tail pipe. Defendant replied that Smith could not have observed that because the video showed that there was another vehicle parked behind defendant's vehicle.
¶ 13 Following arguments, both parties rested, and the trial court denied defendant's motion to quash, finding that the police had probable cause to arrest him. The...
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...P.2d 231 (Okla.Cr.App. 1978). A case discussing the issue of circumstantial evidence is People v. Kiertowicz , 2013 IL App (1st) 123271, 995 N.E.2d 512 (Ill. App. 1 Dist., 2013). In this case a police officer testified that he observed the vehicle’s taillights illuminated and that exhaust s......