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Schofield v. Commonwealth10/18/2005
Hervey W. Schofield, III (Licensee) appeals from an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Montgomery County (trial court) denying his statutory appeal of a one-year suspension of his driver's license by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Bureau of Driver Licensing (Department). The Department suspended Licensee's operating privileges because he was convicted by the State of New Jersey of driving while intoxicated (DWI) with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08%. It was Licensee's first offense. Because Licensee's conviction took place after the effective date of an amendment to the Vehicle Code that no longer requires a one-year suspension for a first time DUI offense based upon a BAC of 0.08%, Licensee contends that the Department's one-year suspension was not authorized under the statute.
The pertinent facts are not in dispute. On January 30, 2004, Licensee was charged with DWI in the State of New Jersey, and he was convicted on March 23, 2004, because his blood alcohol content (BAC) was found to be 0.08%. New Jersey is a party to the Driver License Compact of 1961 (Compact), and in accordance with its terms, the New Jersey Division of Motor Vehicles reported Licensee's conviction to the Department. On May 17, 2004, the Department notified Licensee that his operating privilege was suspended for one year, pursuant to 75 Pa. C.S. §§1532(b)(3) and 1581. On May 18, 2004, Licensee appealed that suspension.
At the hearing before the trial court, the Department offered into evidence a certified copy of Licensee's conviction and then rested. The only evidence offered by Licensee was a stipulation that his BAC level, which resulted in his New Jersey DWI conviction, was 0.08%. Licensee argued that for a license suspended pursuant to the Compact, the relevant date is the date of conviction, not the date of the offense. By the time of Licensee's New Jersey conviction on March 23, 2004, Pennsylvania law no longer required a one-year suspension for a first time DUI offense where the licensee had a BAC of 0.08%. The trial court found, however, this was not the law in Pennsylvania as of March 23, 2004, for offenses that occurred before February 1, 2004, such as Licensee's. Further, the trial court rejected Licensee's argument that for all out-of-state offenses that trigger the Compact, the operative date is the conviction date. The trial court found Licensee's suspension to be required under Article IV(a)(2) of the Compact, and it dismissed Licensee's appeal. Licensee then appealed to this Court.
On appeal, Licensee raises the same issue. Licensee asserts that Act 2003-24 does not authorize a license suspension for an out-of-state DUI conviction where the operator's BAC was 0.08%. Licensee acknowledges that Act 2003-24 generally does not apply to offenses committed before February 1, 2004, including his. However, he contends that there is an exception for out-of-state offenses based upon a BAC of 0.08% that occurred between September 30, 2003, and February 1, 2004.
Act 2003-24 enacted significant amendments to the Vehicle Code relevant to DUI conduct, and those amendments had different effective dates. Effective September 30, 2003, Section 3731 of the Vehicle Code was amended to reduce the BAC level needed for a DUI conviction from 0.10% to 0.08%. Section 22 of Act 2003-24. Effective February 1, 2004, the prior suspension provisions in the Vehicle Code were repealed and replaced by a new Chapter 38, 75 Pa. C.S. §§3801-3817. Section 22 of Act 2003-24. Accordingly, on February 1, 2004, 75 Pa. C.S. §3731 was replaced by 75 Pa. C.S. §3804(e), which provides that first-time offenders with a BAC of 0.08% do not have their licenses suspended. 75 Pa. C.S. §3804(e)(2)(i
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