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Buckles v. State4/16/1992
The major issue to be resolved in this case is whether a defendant, charged with aggravated vehicular homicide and aggravated driving under the influence, is entitled to have the jury instructed that it may consider the conduct of a victim who was operating another vehicle in arriving at a determination as to whether the actions of the defendant constitute the cause of death of that victim. Other issues presented and argued relate to the sufficiency of probable cause to arrest Donald J. Buckles, Jr. (Buckles) for driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor in order to justify the lawfulness of a test of his blood for the presence of alcohol, the results of which were introduced into evidence; the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain the determination by the jury that Buckles' conduct was the proximate cause of the death of David Stegena (Stegena) and the injuries to Maria Lisa Lucero (Lucero); exclusion of evidence of Stegena's use of controlled substances on the occasion in question; and the insufficiency of the record on appeal. We hold that the trial court erred when it instructed the jury with respect to the issue of causation and when it excluded the evidence of the use of a controlled substance by Stegena. We uphold the ruling of the trial court that admitted the result of Buckles' blood alcohol test into evidence. In light of the reversal of the case, we do not further consider the issues relating to the sufficiency of the evidence or the adequacy of the record for review. The judgment and sentence is reversed, and this case is remanded for a new trial in accordance with this opinion.
Buckles, in his Brief of Appellant asserts the following issues:
1. Did the trial court err by admitting evidence of the Appellant's blood alcohol test?
2. Was the evidence admitted in this trial sufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Appellant's violation of W.S. ยง 31-5-233 was the proximate cause of another person's death or serious bodily injury?
3. Did the trial court err by failing to instruct the jury that it could consider whether evidence of negligence by the deceased had any bearing on the alleged misconduct of the Appellant, and that it could further consider such evidence regarding the issue of whether Appellant's misconduct was the proximate cause of the accident?
4. Did the trial court err by refusing to admit evidence that the other driver had ingested cocaine prior to the accident?
5. Does this court's decision in Bearpaw v. State, No. 89-214 slip op. (Wyo., Dec. 7, 1990) [803 P.2d 70 (1990)], require this case to be reversed and remanded for a new trial?
As Appellee, the State of Wyoming, rephrases those issues in this way:
1. Whether the trial court's evidentiary rulings were proper.
2. Whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain Appellant's convictions of aggravated vehicular homicide and aggravated driving under the influence .
3. Whether the trial court properly instructed the jury on the necessary elements of the offenses, including causation.
4. Whether the absence from the appellate record of certain portions of the trial deprives Appellant of the effective assistance of appellate counsel or necessitates reversal of Appellant's convictions.
At about 10:30 P.M., on the evening of September 1, 1989, Stegena and Lucero went to Food Bonanza, located in Cheyenne Plaza in the city of Cheyenne, to shop for groceries. They completed their shopping in about an hour, and they left the parking lot at Food Bonanza with Stegena driving Lucero's 1984 Subaru. Stegena drove along a frontage road that parallels
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