State v. Baldwin

• Decision Date: 20 December 2001
• Docket Number: No. 19390-0-III.,19390-0-III.
• Citation: 37 P.3d 1220,109 Wash.App. 516
• Court: Washington Court of Appeals
• Parties: STATE of Washington, Respondent, v. Logan C. BALDWIN, Petitioner.

37 P.3d 1220

109 Wash.App. 516

STATE of Washington, Respondent, v. Logan C. BALDWIN, Petitioner.

No. 19390-0-III.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 3, Panel Seven.

December 20, 2001.

Logan C. Baldwin, pro se.

Dominic M. Bartoletta, Spokane, WA, for Appellant.

Patrick T. Johnson, Jr., Brian C. O'Brien, Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys, Spokane, WA, for Respondent.

SCHULTHEIS, J.

Washington's implied consent statute, RCW 46.20.308, authorizes a police officer who reasonably believes that a driver is under the influence of alcohol or drugs to ask the driver to take a breath or blood test. The driver is deemed to have given consent, but may refuse. Refusal will result in various repercussions, including the admissibility of the refusal into evidence at a subsequent criminal trial. RCW 46.20.308(2); RCW 46.61.517.

Logan Baldwin was stopped on suspicion of driving under the influence. He admitted to a police officer that he had drunk one glass of wine and had taken an antidepressant —amitriptyline—the night before. When a breath test revealed he was within the legal limit for alcohol consumption, the officer decided a blood test was needed to determine whether a drug agent was responsible for Mr. Baldwin's obvious impairment. Mr. Baldwin refused to allow a blood test. His refusal was admitted into evidence at trial and he was convicted by a district court jury of driving under the influence.

On appeal, Mr. Baldwin contends the implied consent statute is unconstitutional as applied to drug cases and argues that refusal to submit to a blood test for drugs may not be referenced in a criminal trial. Pro se, Mr. Baldwin contends the statute does not authorize blood draws based on suspicion of drug impairment, citing City of Kent v. Beigh, 102 Wash.App. 269, 6 P.3d 1211 (2000), aff'd, 145 Wash.2d 33, 32 P.3d 258 (2001). Because we find that a blood test for drugs is justified under these circumstances, admission of Mr. Baldwin's refusal complied with legislative intent, and the Washington Supreme Court rejected the Court of Appeals' reasoning in Beigh, we affirm.

FACTS

On an afternoon in May 1999, Washington State Trooper David Fenn saw a motorcycle run a stop sign, swerve into the opposing lane, stop, and almost fall over as the driver got off. Trooper Fenn approached the driver, Mr. Baldwin. As Mr. Baldwin fumbled for his driver's license, the trooper noticed the odor of intoxicants on his breath and observed poor finger coordination, bloodshot eyes, and slurred speech. When asked if he had been drinking, Mr. Baldwin replied that he had drunk one glass of wine at lunch. The trooper then asked if Mr. Baldwin was taking any medications. He answered that he had taken amitriptyline the night before, that it made him tired, and that he had come home from work one day last week because the medication made him so tired.

Mr. Baldwin flunked the field sobriety tests. Trooper Fenn arrested him and read him his Miranda¹ rights. After driving Mr. Baldwin to the patrol office, Trooper Fenn read him the implied consent warnings. These warnings included notice that refusal to take the breath test could result in revocation of his license and admission of the refusal in a subsequent criminal trial. RCW 46.20.308(2). Mr. Baldwin agreed to take the BAC Verifier DataMaster breath test for alcohol. When the results showed alcohol concentration levels below .07, Trooper Fenn decided that alcohol alone could not account for Mr. Baldwin's level of impairment. Consequently, he gave Mr. Baldwin the implied consent warning again, this time specifically for a blood draw to test for drugs. Mr. Baldwin signed an agreement to take the blood test, but as he and the trooper were en route to the hospital for the test, Mr. Baldwin changed his mind, claiming fear of needles. Trooper Fenn asked him if he wanted to consult with anyone before making this decision. Mr. Baldwin said no, that he was sure he did not want to take the test. The trooper drove Mr. Baldwin home, where Mr. Baldwin voluntarily showed the trooper the prescription for amitriptyline and agreed that a label on the bottle warned against driving and against mixing the medication with alcohol.

The State charged Mr. Baldwin with driving under the influence of intoxicants and/or drugs. The district court trial was set for August 26, 1999. On August 16, the district court convened a hearing on Mr. Baldwin's motion in limine to exclude the testimony regarding the implied consent warnings and his refusal to take the blood test. The prosecutor commented that the proceedings sounded like a suppression hearing rather than a motion in limine. Mr. Baldwin argued that the trooper did not have probable cause to request a blood test, and consequently no basis to report his refusal to submit to the test. When asked if the trial court would suppress the refusal, the court responded, "I can't think of any reason, well it is not entirely before me. Unless there is some new evid[ence,] some good reason or some law ah, I can't see any reason to suppress." Clerk's Papers at 31. The parties agreed to exclude any testimony that Trooper Fenn had received drug recognition training.

On the day of trial, Mr. Baldwin again asked the court to exclude the refusal testimony, arguing that the trooper had no expert basis for his observations of Mr. Baldwin's alleged impairment. Because the only reason to admit Mr. Baldwin's refusal of the blood test was to infer that he was trying to hide evidence, he argued, the prejudice of this evidence outweighed its probative value. In particular, Mr. Baldwin did not want Trooper Fenn to testify that the reason he asked for the blood test was because he believed Mr. Baldwin's impairment was greater than the breath test indicated. The trial court expressed bewilderment that the State agreed to exclude evidence of the trooper's drug recognition expertise, but denied the motion to exclude the refusal.

Trooper Fenn testified, reporting Mr. Baldwin's statements, his general cooperation with the investigation, and his refusal to take the blood test due to fear of needles. The jury heard from other State's witnesses, including a doctor who described the effects of amitriptyline and the drug's lingering effects in a person's system. Mr. Baldwin offered no witnesses and did not testify. The jury returned a verdict of guilty.

On appeal to the superior court, Mr. Baldwin first raised the issues of the constitutionality of the implied consent statute as applied to the blood test, and the statutory authority for admissibility of the refusal to submit to a blood test. The superior court affirmed his conviction. This court accepted discretionary review of the superior court's decision. RAP 2.3(d).

CONSTITUTIONALITY OF IMPLIED CONSENT AS APPLIED TO DRUG CASES

Mr. Baldwin first challenges the constitutionality of the implied consent statute as applied to driving under the influence (DUI) drug cases. He contends DUI drug cases do not involve the exigent circumstances that would support an exception to the warrant requirement for searches and seizures. We presume a statute is constitutional, and Mr. Baldwin must prove its unconstitutionality—as it applies to him— beyond a reasonable doubt. State v. Shultz, 138 Wash.2d 638, 642, 980 P.2d 1265 (1999),cert. denied, 529 U.S. 1066, 120 S.Ct. 1672, 146 L.Ed.2d 481 (2000).

Preliminarily, the State argues that Mr. Baldwin waived this issue because he did not raise it in a pretrial suppression motion as required by CrRLJ 3.6 and LCrRLJ 8.2. Generally a motion to suppress must be in writing, supported by an affidavit or document setting forth the relevant facts. CrRLJ 3.6. The local rule provides that motions to suppress must be filed three weeks before the hearing and must be heard at least one week before trial. LCrRLJ 8.2(d). However, the trial court may waive these requirements. LCrRLJ 8.2(d). Although a party waives a motion to suppress by failing to bring such a motion in a reasonable time, courts may allow such motions at any time before the case is called to trial. See State v. Baxter, 68 Wash.2d 416, 422, 413 P.2d 638 (1966)

(defendant must bring motion to suppress within "reasonable time" before trial to allow trial court to rule; a motion after conclusion of the State's case is untimely). The purpose of the rule is to allow the trial court an opportunity to fully consider the motion. Id. There is no question here that Mr. Baldwin failed to comply with CrRLJ 3.6 when he did not file a written pretrial motion to suppress, but the court heard arguments and ruled on the merits. Because the trial court reached the suppression issue before trial, we find that Mr. Baldwin did not waive the issue.

On the other hand, it is also true that Mr. Baldwin did not challenge the constitutionality of the implied consent statute before or during trial. Generally this court will not address issues raised for the first time on appeal, unless the claimed error affects a constitutional right and prejudices the defendant. State v. Williams, 137 Wash.2d 746, 749, 975 P.2d 963 (1999). Mr. Baldwin challenges the implied consent statute as a violation of his constitutional right to be free of unlawful searches and seizures. He contends the application of the statute caused his refusal to submit to the blood test to be admitted at trial, prejudicing his defense. Although the prejudicial effect of the admission of this evidence—even if error—is questionable, the importance of the constitutional rights involved and the unique nature of Mr. Baldwin's argument support acceptance of this issue for review.

The taking of a blood sample is a search and seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment and article I, section 7 of the Washington Constitution. State v. Dunivin, 65 Wash.App. 501, 507, 828 P.2d 1150 (1992). It is now well established by both the United States Supreme Court and the Washington Supreme Court that the State can constitutionally...