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City of Springfield v. Hampton9/29/2004
Steven Maurice Hampton appeals from a conviction for driving while intoxicated. [FN1] Hampton raises one point on appeal challenging the trial court's admission of the evidence of intoxication because of the officer's lack of authority to make the initial stop for speeding. We affirm.
FACTS
In the early morning hours of October 12, 2000, Officer Brian Reeves of the Springfield Police Department observed a white Dodge Ram pickup truck traveling northbound on Kimbrough Avenue at a rate of speed that appeared to be greater than the posted 20 mile-per-hour speed limit. Officer Reeves' radar equipment indicated that the pickup was traveling at 30 miles per hour. Reeves concluded that the vehicle was likely speeding and he activated his emergency equipment and stopped the truck. Steven Hampton was driving the vehicle. When Officer Reeves made contact with Hampton, Reeves noticed that Hampton's breath contained an odor of intoxicants, his eyes were bloodshot and glossy, and his speech was somewhat slurred. Reeves conducted three field sobriety tests--the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, the walk-and-turn test and the one-leg stand test--on Hampton. He failed each test and was arrested for driving while intoxicated; he was given a blood alcohol content test at the jail which showed that he had a blood alcohol level of .161 %.
The City of Springfield charged Hampton with driving while intoxicated and speeding. At the ensuing proceedings, the Springfield Municipal Court found Hampton guilty on both charges, and Hampton subsequently requested a trial de novo.
Prior to the trial, Hampton moved to suppress the intoxication evidence due to an inadequate basis for the traffic stop. On May 6, 2003, the Honorable Dan Conklin denied the motion to suppress and found Hampton guilty on both counts. On July 10, 2003, the court sentenced Hampton to a five hundred dollar fine, a sixty-day suspended jail sentence and one year of supervised probation for the driving while intoxicated violation.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
Appellate review of a trial court's decision regarding a motion to suppress evidence "is limited to a determination of whether there is substantial evidence to support its decision." State v. Tackett, 12 S.W.3d 332, 336 (Mo.App. W.D.2000). The trial court's ruling on a motion to suppress evidence will be reversed only if it is clearly erroneous and the appellate court is left with a definite and firm belief that a mistake has been made. State v. Leavitt, 993 S.W.2d 557, 560 (Mo.App. W.D.1999). All evidence and any reasonable inferences that could be drawn from the evidence will be viewed in the light most favorable to the trial court's ruling. Tackett, 12 S.W.3d at 336. Both the record made at the suppression hearing as well as the evidence introduced at trial are included within the scope of review. State v. Deck, 994 S.W.2d 527, 534 (Mo. banc 1999). If the ruling is plausible, in light of the entire record, an appellate court will not reverse, even if convinced that it would have weighed the evidence differently. State v. Milliorn, 794 S.W.2d 181, 184 (Mo. banc 1990). The factual findings are reviewed only to ascertain if they are supported by substantial evidence, viewing the facts in the light most favorable to the trial court's ruling and disregarding contrary evidence and inferences. State v. Hoopingarner, 845 S.W.2d 89, 92 (Mo.App. E.D.1993). Although the appellate court gives deference to the trial court's determination of the credibility of witnesses, whether the Fourth Amendment was violated is a question of law that the appellate court reviews de novo. State v. Pfleiderer, 8 S.W.3d 249, 253 (Mo.App. W.D.1999).
ANALYSIS
*2 The thrust of Hampton's point on appeal is that Officer Reeves was without authority to stop hi
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