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STATE v. ORTIZ1/5/1993
a consequence of that [conduct]. . . . [By contrast] misconduct with a motor vehicle requires proof of the mental state involved in criminal negligence which is not an element of manslaughter." Id., 482. Thus, in a prosecution for misconduct with a motor vehicle in violation of General Statutes 53a-57, proof that the driver was under the influence of intoxicating liquor is neither necessary nor sufficient to warrant conviction because it is the driver's mental state that is in issue. Id., 483. The essential questions for the trier of fact on a charge of misconduct with a motor vehicle are whether the defendant operated a motor vehicle with criminal negligence and whether that conduct caused the death of another person. Nevertheless, the fact that a driver was under the influence of intoxicating liquor can be relevant, if not highly relevant, in the jury's consideration of those questions.
For this reason, although the defendant correctly points out that operation of a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor is not per se criminal negligence, a jury may still conclude, under the circumstances of a particular case, that the defendant was criminally negligent when he operated his vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor. Thus, in State v. Dawson, 23 Conn. App. 720, 723-24, 583 A.2d 1326 (1991), the evidence showed that the defendant operated his motor vehicle after consuming enough alcohol to achieve a blood alcohol level of 0.16, proceeded at a rate of speed far greater than the posted speed limit, drove onto the soft shoulder of an s-curve, reentered the roadway, locked his brakes and skidded 120 feet across the center line into the victim's car. We noted that, on the basis of the evidence adduced in that
case, the jury could have reasonably found, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant failed to perceive that he was taking a substantial and unjustifiable risk of being unable to control his motor vehicle and killing another person both in driving his motor vehicle with an elevated blood alcohol content and in driving at an excessive speed. Id., 723. Yet, we concluded that "the risks of being unable to control his car after drinking and of killing another while on the road were such that the failure to perceive them constituted a gross deviation from the standard of care of a reasonable person." (Emphasis added.) Id., 724.
Likewise, in the present case, there was sufficient evidence from which a jury could reasonably conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was criminally negligent. The jury could have reasonably concluded that some time before 3:30 p.m. on May 26, 1990, the defendant consumed sufficient alcohol, equal to between nine and twelve beers, to bring his blood alcohol content to between 0.19 and 0.24, that the alcohol he consumed affected his coordination and motor skills, that he then entered his vehicle to drive around New Haven, and in doing so he failed to perceive the substantial and unjustifiable risk that he would be unable to take proper safety precautions, to judge the speed of approaching vehicles, and to react appropriately to traffic hazards, and that he could thereby kill another person. In addition, the jury could also have concluded that the defendant cut the corner when making a left
turn onto Trumbull Street, despite the fact that his view of oncoming traffic was obscured; that he failed to observe or judge the speed of the approaching motorcycle properly; and that in doing so failed to perceive the substantial and unjustifiable risk that he would collide with an oncoming vehicle and kill another person. Finally, the jury could reasonably have concluded that the defendant's failur
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