State v. Zappa
| Decision Date | 22 August 2016 |
| Docket Number | Cr.A. No.: 1309010262 |
| Parties | STATE OF DELAWARE v. MICHAEL W. ZAPPA, Defendant. |
| Court | Delaware Court of Common Pleas |
Department of Justice
820 N. French Street, 7th Floor
Wilmington, DE 19801
Louis B. Ferrara, Esquire
Ferrara & Haley
1716 Wawaset Street
Wilmington, DE 19806
On September 14, 2013, Michael Zappa ("Defendant") was arrested and charged with Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol ("DUI"), in violation of 21 Del. C. § 4177. Defendant challenged the legality of the arrest and moved to suppress all evidence proffered by the State.
The Court held a suppression hearing over the span of three days. The hearing began on December 15, 2015 and continued on January 29, 2016. At the January hearing, Defendant moved for a mistrial after the State attempted to elicit certain testimony regarding Defendant's performance on the Intoxilyzer. Ultimately, the Court found that Defendant's motion for a mistrial was procedurally improper, treated it as an objection to the State's line of questioning, and sustained the objection.1 On June 13, 2016, the suppression hearing continued, and the Court concluded that the arrest was supported by probable cause.2
Immediately following the suppression hearing, the Court held a non-jury trial. At the conclusion of trial, the Court reserved its decision. This is the Court's final decision after trial.
During the suppression hearing, the Court heard testimony from Corporal Megan Hazzard ("Corporal Hazzard"), Trooper Christopher A. Jewel ("Trooper Jewel"), Corporal Heidi Carroll ("Corporal Carroll"), and Trooper Jenny Gliem ("Trooper Gliem") (collectively, the "Troopers"), each of whom were involved in either the traffic stop or subsequent arrest of Defendant. The Court also viewed a copy of Corporal Hazzard's Motor Vehicle Recording ("MVR"), which captured Defendant's behavior during the stop. In addition, Defendant took the stand and testified on his own behalf. The Court finds the facts as follows:
i. The Initial Stop at the Charcoal Pit
On September 14, 2013, at approximately 10:20-10:30 p.m., Corporal Hazzard was on patrol in North Wilmington operating a fully marked Chevrolet Tahoe (the "Tahoe"). While stopped at a red light at the intersection of Concord Pike and Garden of Eden Road, Corporal Hazzard heard the screeching of tires coming from a car. The car quickly rounded the bend of Silverside Road and merged onto Concord Pike, traveling southbound. Corporal Hazzard activated her emergency lights3 and attempted to catch up to the vehicle. The vehicle was traveling at a high speed and weaving in and out of traffic.4 Eventually Corporal Hazzard caught up with the vehicle when it stopped at a red light at The Charcoal Pit ("The Pit"). When the driver of the vehicle did not react to the emergency lights, Corporal Hazzard activated her siren. The driver failed to react to the sound of the siren so Corporal Hazzard yelled out of her window and instructed the driver to pull over. This prompted the driver to move his vehicle forward about one foot. Corporal Hazzard sounded her air horn and the driver moved forward another foot. At that point, Corporal Hazzard pulled over to the left of the vehicle and instructed the driver to pull over into The Pit parking lot. Defendant obliged and turned into the parking lot.
Corporal Hazzard then approached the vehicle, identified Defendant as the driver, and observed one passenger sitting in the front seat. Upon her initial contact with Defendant, Corporal Hazzard observed Defendant to look dazed with "glazed over" eyes and not fully alert. She also smelled a strong odor of alcohol emanating from Defendant's breath. Corporal Hazzard told Defendant to hand over the keys to his vehicle. Defendant complied and Corporal Hazzardplaced the keys on top of the car. When Corporal Hazzard asked Defendant if he knew why she stopped him, Defendant slurred his speech and was incomprehensible.
Corporal Hazzard then asked Defendant for his license and registration. While retrieving these documents, Defendant asked Corporal Hazzard, "Are you military friendly?" Corporal Hazzard responded, 5 That prompted her to ask Defendant a number of questions about his whereabouts and driving. Defendant stated that he was coming from La Tolteca, where he consumed alcohol, and was driving home to his apartment.6 Eventually, Defendant handed the documents to Corporal Hazzard and stated that he did not live at the address listed on the vehicle's registration. He explained that he lived in an apartment in Rodney Square, and stated "You know, where the old courthouse was . . . my dad's law firm is there . . . if you get hurt, he can help you." Corporal Hazzard then asked Defendant, "Why were you driving like that?" Defendant responded, In response, Corporal Hazzard said to Defendant, "Don't say you are a service member . . . you're not acting like a Marine should [be acting]." At that point, the passenger—Defendant's then-girlfriend—became highly emotional and interrupted the conversation in an attempt to talk with Corporal Hazzard. Defendant told his girlfriend, while putting his hand up. Corporal Hazzard asked Defendant to step outside of the vehicle and Defendant responded, Before Defendant stepped out of the vehicle, the girlfriend again attempted to talk to Corporal Hazzard and was in a highly emotional state. Defendant shook his finger at her and said, "No. Stop talking."
Defendant exited his vehicle and immediately placed his hands on the driver's side of the car. He then indicated to Corporal Hazzard that he did not have any weapons, specifically stating, At that moment, the girlfriend got out of the vehicle and began talking over Defendant and Corporal Hazzard, both of whom told the girlfriend to get back in the car. When the girlfriend did not listen to either Corporal Hazzard or Defendant, Defendant yelled, "Get back in the car . . . You are not helping." Then with one hand, Defendant gestured for the girlfriend to get back into the car. After the girlfriend went back inside the vehicle, Corporal Hazzard asked Defendant to place his hand behind his back so that she could apply handcuffs. He apologized and immediately placed his hand behind him. When Corporal Hazzard asked why Defendant was yelling at the girlfriend, Defendant stated, Corporal Hazzard asked Defendant why the girlfriend did not understand and inquired whether she spoke English and if she had an education. Defendant explained that the girlfriend had recently been released from the hospital for being suicidal and reiterated that the girlfriend "just didn't understand." In response, Corporal Hazzard stated, "Well she needs to understand that this is police work." Corporal Hazzard secured Defendant in the back of her Tahoe on the passenger side so that she could separate him from the girlfriend.7
Then Corporal Hazzard turned her attention back to the girlfriend who remained highly emotional and began crying. Defendant became irate as he saw Corporal Hazzard engaging with the girlfriend. He could hear their conversation from the back of the Tahoe because the stop was being recorded. Defendant began grunting and shouting "Stop talking!" The girlfriend, stillseated in the vehicle, told Corporal Hazzard that she had grabbed the steering wheel while Defendant was driving in an attempt to kill both herself and Defendant. She then stated that she still wanted to hurt herself. At that point, Corporal Hazzard asked the girlfriend to step outside of the vehicle. The girlfriend complied and stood next to the driver's side with her hands on top of the vehicle.
Trooper Jewel arrived on the scene while Corporal Hazzard was questioning the girlfriend, and Corporal Hazzard briefed him on the situation.8 While Corporal Hazzard was talking to the girlfriend, the girlfriend stated that she had consumed alcohol and had taken her prescribed anxiety medication. She then began crying and told Corporal Hazzard and Trooper Jewel that she wanted to die. Corporal Hazzard placed her on the sidewalk curb next to The Pit along the driver's side of the vehicle. When Defendant saw and heard this exchange, he began yelling, "Don't touch her!" and started tapping his handcuffs on the window of the Tahoe.
Given the passenger's mental state, Corporal Hazzard determined that the girlfriend needed to be evaluated at a hospital and that Defendant needed to be evaluated for DUI. Thus, she called for assistance from another police unit.
At the same time, Trooper Jewel went to check on Defendant who was handcuffed in the rear of Corporal Hazzard's Tahoe. He opened the Tahoe door and Defendant stated, "Marine Special Forces, you can't cuff me," as he handed the handcuffs to Trooper Jewel. Trooper Jewel asked Defendant to exit the patrol vehicle to reapply the handcuffs. Defendant initially refused to be re-handcuffed but eventually complied and was placed back in the Tahoe. As Trooper Jewel walked away, Corporal Hazzard handcuffed the girlfriend and Defendant then became incredibly animated. He yelled, jerked his body, banged his head against the seat of the Tahoe,and then banged his head against the window. Trooper Jewel once again walked over to the Tahoe and told Defendant to stop banging on the window. Defendant yelled, "What are you doing to her?" Corporal Hazzard then joined Trooper Jewel...
To continue reading
Request your trial