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STEINER v. STATE9/26/1997
Janis Rodgers Steiner was convicted in Baldwin District Court of driving under the influence of alcohol, a violation of § 32-5A-191(a), Ala. Code 1975. She appealed to Baldwin Circuit Court, and a jury found her guilty of driving under the influence.
I.
Before trial, Steiner moved to suppress the introduction of the results of an Intoxilyzer 5000 ("I-5000") test performed by Alabama State Trooper Stan Stabler on the grounds that the State would be unable to establish a proper predicate for the introduction of the test results. Steiner argued that the State would be unable to prove that the I-5000, a device that measures blood alcohol content, was in good working condition at the time the test was administered to Steiner because the officer who tested the device to ensure that it was properly calibrated, Trooper Larkus Smith, was not available at trial for cross-examination. The State argued that the introduction of the logbook in which Trooper Smith made entries would be sufficient to establish that the device was properly calibrated. Steiner cited §§ 12-21-300 and 12-21-301, Ala. Code 1975, and Rule 803(8)(B), Ala.R.Evid., in support of her argument that the logbook would be admissible as a substitute for Trooper Smith's testimony only if the State had given proper notice of its intent to use only the logbook at trial. The trial court then denied Steiner's motion to suppress.
Trooper Stabler testified at trial that he was certified by the Department of Forensic Sciences to perform the I-5000 test and that he performed the test on Steiner using the procedure set forth in the rules and regulations of the Department of Forensic Sciences. Stabler testified that Trooper Smith was a member of the Department of Public Safety's implied consent unit which inspects all I-5000 devices used in the state. Trooper Smith did not testify at trial. The I-5000 logbook, indicating that the device had passed inspection during the calendar
months immediately preceding and following Steiner's blood alcohol test, was introduced to establish that the device was in proper working order. The results of the test, showing that Steiner's blood alcohol level was between .112 and .119 percent, were then introduced. The test results indicated that Steiner was intoxicated beyond .08 percent, that gives rise to the statutory presumption of intoxication. Steiner argues that the introduction of the results of the tests constitutes reversible error.
The State argues that the I-5000 logbook was admissible under the business records exception to the hearsay rule. Rule 803(8), Ala. R. Evid. Steiner argues that the logbook was not admissible because, she says, it falls within the "law enforcement exception" to the business records exception found in Rule 803(8)(B). The State contends that the law enforcement exception is inapplicable to the inspection log book for the I-5000. We agree with the State.
Section 32-5A-194(a)(1), Ala. Code 1975, provides that blood alcohol tests shall be admissible so long as the tests "have been performed according to the methods approved by the Department of Forensic Sciences." The rules of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences relating to chemical tests for intoxication, Chapter 370-1-1, provide that breath-testing equipment shall be inspected at least once each calendar month by an implied consent unit inspector for the Department of Public Safety. (C.R.45-52.) Thus, blood alcohol test results may be admissible under the statute if the officer who performed the inspection testifies that the device was properly calibrated.
In Ex parte Mayo, the Alabama Supreme Court set out an alternate method for establishing the necessary predi
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