State v. Galazin10/23/2001
Appeal From: Circuit Court of Miller County, Hon. Mary A. Dickerson
Opinion Vote: AFFIRMED.
Limbaugh, C.J., Wolff, Benton and Price, JJ., and Gaertner, Sp .J., concur; White, J., dissents in separate opinion filed. Stith, J., not participating.
Opinion:
Defendant Mark Galazin was found guilty of one count of felony driving while intoxicated and other charges after he was stopped and arrested in the town of Lakeview, Missouri. The arresting officer was a Lake Ozark, Missouri, police officer. Following opinion by the court of appeals, this Court granted transfer. Mo. Const. art. V, sec. 10. The judgment is affirmed.
I.
Officer Patrick of the Lake Ozark police department, responding to a radio call, stopped Mark Galazin in Lakeview, Miller County, Missouri after observing his vehicle cross the center line of a road several times in a short distance. Galazin had no valid driver's license, and he failed three separate field sobriety tests. His speech was slurred, he smelled of intoxicants, and there were empty beer containers in his vehicle. The officer arrested Galazin, and at the station he refused to submit to a chemical or breath test. Galazin was charged with driving while intoxicated, sec. 577.010, RSMo 2000, failure to drive on the right side of the road, sec. 304.015, RSMo Supp. 1996, and driving while his license was suspended, sec. 302.321, RSMo Supp. 1997.
At trial, as the officer began to testify about his observations of Galazin's erratic driving, defense counsel objected and approached the bench:
Mr. Cisar: I have a foundation objection and I guess a relevancy question objection. He's testified he's a Lake Ozark police officer. He's testified he's essentially outside the city limits of Lake Ozark in the City of Lakeland at the corner of Business 54 and W at the Route C mart there. Lakeland may or may not have had a mutual aid compact or contract with Lake Ozark. They've now become a part of Lake Ozark this past election, but they weren't at the time. He's not inside the city limits of Lake Ozark. He's not indicated any necessity to come outside the city limits of Lake Ozark. He's about ready to testify about matters leading up to an arrest of Mr. Galazin outside the city limits of Lake Ozark, and I would object on the basis of foundation and relevancy.
The Court: Mr. Rives?
Mr. Rives: Well, Your Honor, this is a Miller County case, and the witness does operate in Lake Ozark which is within the confines of Miller County, and there is a mutual aid contract between the area where the defendant was arrested and Lake Ozark.
Mr. Cisar: There's been no evidence of that though.
Mr. Rives: If you want to voir dire the witness, voir dire the witness.
Mr. Cisar: It's not my burden.
The Court: He's making the objection, so you have to establish it.
[By the State]:
Q: Officer Patrick, you previously testified that you were an officer with the Lake Ozark Police Department; correct?
A. Yes, sir.
Q: And you were so on or about June 21, 1998?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: And you made contact with Mr. Galazin's vehicle in what area?
A: Lakeview.
Q: Lakeview, and that's Lakeview, Missouri?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: And did at or about June 21, 1998, to the best of your knowledge and belief, did Lake Ozark have a mutual aid contract with the City of Lakeview?
A: Yes.
Mr. Cisar: Your Honor, I'm going to object to that question on the basis of hearsay and best evidence. If there i
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Missouri DUI Attorneys
DUI Lawyers
|