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State v. Davis8/17/1999
A jury convicted the defendant of driving under the influence (DUI), third offense, and the defendant received an eleven month, twenty-nine day workhouse sentence. He now appeals, arguing that the jury's verdict is contrary to the weight of the evidence and that the trial court denied his due process rights by not allowing him to recall a State witness. Finding no merit to the defendant's arguments, we affirm his conviction.
At trial, the State presented two witnesses, Officer Ezra Harris, the investigating police officer, and Denise Lawson, a paramedic. Officer Harris testified he responded to a dispatch of a motor vehicle accident in the early morning hours of September 21, 1996. He testified that when he arrived at the scene, he saw a Toyota Corolla registered in the defendant's name that had crashed head-on into a tree. According to Officer Harris, the windshield in front of the driver's seat was stained with blood and looked as if a person's head had smashed against it. Officer Harris testified that no individuals were at the scene, but he located the defendant and his brother-in-law, James Carney, at a nearby house. According to Officer Harris, the defendant admitted he was driving, and both he and Carney denied that anyone else was involved in the accident. Upon Officer Harris' request, the defendant gave him the car keys.
A photograph of the defendant taken shortly after the accident reflects cuts and wounds to his forehead and nose, and Officer Harris testified that the defendant had blood on his face. According to Officer Harris, however, the defendant refused medical treatment. Because the defendant smelled of alcohol, Officer Harris arrested him for DUI. In Officer Harris' opinion, the defendant was too intoxicated to drive, and a later breath test revealed a blood alcohol content of .19%. On cross-examination, Officer Harris testified that he had been trained to determine from the seata seat belt 's appearance whether it had been used during an accident and that in this case, the it did not appear the defendant was wearing his seatbelt. Officer Harris testified that even so, the defendant did not appear to have any chest injuries caused by hitting the steering wheel.
Denise Lawson, a paramedic, testified that she responded to the accident scene. She testified that both the defendant and Carney claimed they were the only individuals involved in the accident, but both also denied driving. According to Lawson, the defendant indicated to her he had been drinking. Lawson confirmed that the defendant refused medical treatment, but from talking with him, it did not appear to her that he had any chest injuries. She also testified, however, that it was not unusual for drunk drivers to escape injury in an accident because "their response is a little slower and they don't tend to brace themselves for the accident."
Several defense witnesses testified that during the hours prior to the accident, the defendant had spent time with a friend, Steve Webb. The defendant testified that Webb had been driving him and Carney from a Krystal fast-food restaurant when they crashed. According to the defendant, he was sleeping in the back seat and Carney was riding in the front passenger seat at the time of the crash. He testified that because of a head injury, he did not remember any of the events surrounding the accident, but he was certain that Webb was driving. He also claimed not to have had the car keys. He admitted drinking approximately fourteen beers in the hours preceding the crash. Carney's testimony substantially corroborated the defendant's, in that Carney testified that Webb was driving, that the defendant was in the back seat, and that he was in the front pas
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