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Razor v. State1/14/2003
James Russell Razor was charged with operating a motor vehicle after having been declared a habitual violator, driving while under the influence of alcohol to the extent he was a less safe driver, speeding, and following too closely. The state nolle prossed the charges of speeding and following too closely. A jury found Razor guilty of driving after having been declared a habitual violator and driving under the influence of alcohol. He appeals from the convictions entered on the verdict.
1. Razor challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support the convictions. Viewing the evidence in a light most favorable to the verdict, it shows that on February 12, 2000, a deputy sheriff noticed Razor's car as it followed a dump truck. The deputy believed Razor was too close to the dump truck, and was concerned that debris might come out of the dump truck, hit Razor's windshield and cause Razor to lose control. Razor accelerated past the dump truck, and the deputy began following Razor. The deputy paced Razor and determined that he was traveling 56 miles per hour in a 45 miles per hour zone. The officer stopped Razor for speeding and following too closely.
As the deputy approached Razor's car, he saw an open container of beer on the floorboard near Razor's passenger. The deputy asked for Razor's license and proof of insurance. Razor produced a state-issued identification card and insurance card, but no driver's license. The deputy detected an odor of alcohol on Razor's breath, and asked Razor if he had been drinking. Razor replied that he had consumed two beers.
The deputy ran a check on Razor's driver's license. The deputy found that Razor had been declared a habitual violator and that his license had been revoked. Razor was personally served with notice of his status on June 23, 1995, which was less than five years before this stop.
At the deputy's request, a second deputy arrived to help administer field sobriety tests. Razor failed all but one test. The deputy read the implied consent notice and requested that Razor submit to a urine test. Razor did not respond, and the officer treated his unresponsiveness as a refusal to be tested.
The revocation notice signed by and served upon Razor satisfied the state's burden of showing Razor had been notified of his habitual violator status less than five years before he was stopped. Thus, the evidence was sufficient for a rational trier of fact to find Razor guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of driving within five years after being declared a habitual violator. Likewise, the deputy's observations were sufficient for a rational trier of fact to find Razor guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of driving while under the influence of alcohol to the extent he was a less safe driver.
2. Razor contends the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence when the arresting officer lacked probable cause to make the initial traffic stop. Specifically, he argues that there was no evidence of speeding because there was no testimony regarding the time or distance involved in the deputy's pacing of Razor's car; and there was no evidence that Razor was following the dump truck too closely inasmuch as there was no testimony as to the distance between Razor's car and the dump truck, the speed at which those vehicles were traveling, or the road or traffic conditions.
To be lawful, an investigative stop of a vehicle must be based upon specific and articulable facts that, when taken together with the rational inferences arising therefrom, provide the requisite reasonable suspicion to warrant the intrusion. In making this determination, we examine whether the officer had a particularized and obje
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