State v. Asbridge

• Decision Date: 13 November 1996
• Docket Number: No. 950413,950413
• Citation: 555 N.W.2d 571
• Parties: STATE of North Dakota, Plaintiff and Appellee, v. Darold A. ASBRIDGE, Defendant and Appellant. Criminal
• Court: North Dakota Supreme Court

Page 571

555 N.W.2d 571

STATE of North Dakota, Plaintiff and Appellee, v. Darold A. ASBRIDGE, Defendant and Appellant.

Criminal No. 950413.

Supreme Court of North Dakota.

Nov. 13, 1996.

Cynthia M. Feland, State's Attorney, Carson, for plaintiff and appellee.

Michael R. Hoffman (argued), and Thomas A. Dickson (on brief), Bismarck, for defendant and appellant.

VANDE WALLE, Chief Justice.

Darold A. Asbridge appealed from a criminal judgment entered on a jury verdict finding him guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol in violation of N.D.C.C. § 39-08-01. We conclude the statutorily-required foundation for the trial court's admission of Asbridge's blood-test result under N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07 was properly established, reject other allegations of reversible error, and affirm the criminal judgment.

On May 12, 1995, North Dakota Highway Patrolman Rick Michels stopped Asbridge's vehicle north of Elgin after observing it cross over the center line into Michels' lane of traffic. Michels recognized Asbridge and noticed he had red, bloodshot eyes, flushed cheeks, and the odor of alcohol on his breath. Michels requested that Asbridge accompany him to his squad car.

While in the squad car, Michels gave Asbridge the implied consent advisory and asked him to recite the alphabet and count backwards from 75 to 60. Asbridge said he could perform both tests, but he wanted to speak with an attorney before doing them. Asbridge then performed several roadside field sobriety tests, which he failed. Michels placed Asbridge under arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol, informed him of his Miranda rights, and took him to the Elgin Hospital for a blood test. The test result showed Asbridge had a blood alcohol concentration of .19 percent by weight.

At Asbridge's trial, the blood-test result was admitted into evidence over Asbridge's objection that no proper foundation was provided for its admission under N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07. The jury found Asbridge guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol.

I

The primary issue in this case is whether the trial court correctly ruled the statutory foundation requirements under N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07 were satisfied for admission of the blood-test result.

The prosecution relied on three exhibits to establish foundation for introduction of the blood-test result. Michels identified State's Exhibit 1, which is a checklist he completed indicating that he had performed each required step to submit the blood sample for analysis. Asbridge did not object to this exhibit. Michels also identified State's Exhibit 2, which is a "statement" of the registered nurse who collected Asbridge's blood sample. The nurse stated the method she used to collect the blood sample. Asbridge objected, based on lack of foundation, but the objection was overruled.

Finally, Michels identified State's Exhibit 3, which was a notarized statement from the State Department of Health and Consolidated Laboratories signed by Aaron E. Rash:

"I, Aaron E. Rash, do hereby certify that I am the duly appointed Deputy State Toxicologist of the State of North Dakota and the official custodian of the records and files of the office thereof, and that I have carefully compared the Analytical Report (Form 107) and Form 104 TL-95-0714 ASBRIDGE, DAROLD A hereto attached with the respective original as the same appears of record on file in the Office of the State Toxicologist in the County of Burleigh, North Dakota, and find the same to be a true and correct copy thereof and of the whole thereof. Further I certify that the analysis of the blood sample has been performed according to the method and with a device approved by the State Toxicologist and by an individual certified by the State Toxicologist to conduct blood alcohol analysis pursuant to 39-20-07 subsection 5 of NDCC."

The Analytical Report and Form 104 were attached to the document. The Analytical Report stated the "Approved Method to Conduct Blood Alcohol Analysis 2(5-1-95)" was used and a "Shimadzu Model GC-9A, Serial # 20540N" was the testing device used. The Analytical Report was signed by a chemical analyst, Thomas Hoesley.

Asbridge objected, claiming foundation was lacking because no list of certified operators or analysts was introduced, no list of certified testing devices was introduced, and no certified copy of the approved method to conduct a blood-alcohol test was introduced. Asbridge also asserted the statements in the Rash document were inadmissible hearsay. The prosecutor argued that the form had been changed by the State Toxicologist to reduce the amount of paperwork involved in alcohol-related cases. The trial court allowed the exhibit and blood-test result into evidence.

The result of a blood-alcohol test must be admitted into evidence in an alcohol-related proceeding if the test was fairly administered according to the toxicologist's approved procedures. State v. Zimmerman, 516 N.W.2d 638 (N.D.1994); N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07(8). Whether a blood test was fairly administered is a preliminary question of admissibility left to the discretion of the trial judge. State v. Vogel, 467 N.W.2d 86 (N.D.1991); N.D.R.Ev. 104(a) and 1008. The statute, N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07, eases the burden of the prosecution in laying an evidentiary foundation for a blood-alcohol report and balances procedural efficiency and scientific reliability by allowing scrupulously completed documents as evidence in lieu of lengthy testimony. See State v. Schwalk, 430 N.W.2d 317 (N.D.1988).

In State v. Jordheim, 508 N.W.2d 878, 881 (N.D.1993), we carefully outlined one method of developing the proper foundation for admission of blood-test results absent testimony of the chemist who performed the test:

"There are four main foundational elements in NDCC 39-20-07 that must be either documented or demonstrated for the admission of the test report. First, the sample must be properly obtained. Second, the blood test must be fairly administered. Third, the method and devices used to test the sample must be approved by the State Toxicologist. Finally, the blood test must be performed by an authorized person or by one certified by the State Toxicologist as qualified to perform it.

"These foundational elements can be demonstrated by properly completed and certified documents alone. For a blood-alcohol test, the technician who drew the blood need not testify, if a written statement of the technician is introduced showing that the sample was drawn according to the methods approved by the State Toxicologist. NDCC 39-20-07(5) and (10). Fair administration, chain of custody, and compliance with the State Toxicologist's methods can be proved through a completed and certified Form 104. McNamara v. North Dakota Dep't of Transp., 500 N.W.2d 585, 589-90 (N.D.1993); State v. Schwalk, 430 N.W.2d at 322. The approved methods, devices, and persons certified to administer the test can be shown by introducing copies of records filed by the State Toxicologist and certified by the clerk of court. NDCC 39-20-07(7). See also Erickson v. Director, North Dakota Dep't of Transp., 507 N.W.2d 537 (N.D.1993) (inspection requirements of NDCC 39-20-07(6) do not apply to laboratory blood testing equipment approved under (5)). When properly completed, these documents furnish the foundation to admit the blood-test report. Under the statute, testimony disputing the facts contained in these documents, if properly completed, will generally affect the weight given the blood-test result and not its admissibility."

Asbridge incorrectly assumes that Jordheim sets forth the exclusive method for admission of a blood-test result when the chemical analyst is not called to testify. As we have noted, blood-alcohol tests are governed by N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07(5), which authorizes the State Toxicologist to "approve satisfactory devices and methods of chemical analysis and determine the qualifications of individuals to conduct such analysis, and ... issue a certificate to all qualified operators...." Those records, when "certified by the clerk of the district court, must be admitted as prima facie evidence of the matters stated in the records," and a certified copy of the blood analysis issued by the State Toxicologist "must be accepted as prima facie evidence of the results of a chemical analysis performed under this chapter." N.D.C.C. § 38-20-07(7) and (8). Although subsections (7) and (8) state that these certified documents "must" be admitted and accepted as prima facie evidence, the legislature's use of the word "must" merely requires their admission and specifies their evidentiary effect in court. That these certified documents "must" be admitted in evidence does not suggest the legislature intended the certified lists of approved chemical-test operators and chemical testing devices, and the approved method to conduct alcohol analysis, are the only documents that will furnish the foundation for admission of a blood-test result.

We believe Rash's personal "certification page," which essentially incorporated by reference information in the attached Form 104 and Analytical Report, satisfies the foundational requirements for admission of a blood-test result under N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07(5). When the "certification page" and attachment are considered together, Rash certifies that the analysis was performed according to the method ["Approved Method to Conduct Blood Alcohol Analysis 2 (5-1-95)"] and with a device ["Shimadzu Model GC-9A, Serial # 20540N"] approved by the State Toxicologist and by an individual [Thomas Hoesley] certified by the State Toxicologist to conduct blood-alcohol analysis. This certification satisfies the statutory directives in N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07(5), and if the sample was properly obtained and the test was fairly administered, the blood-test result "must be received in evidence...."

Because N.D.C.C. § 39-20-07(5) is a valid statutory exception to the hearsay rule, see Zimmerman, Rash's "certification page" was not...