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State v. Engesser4/23/2003
Defendant was tried by a jury and convicted of vehicular homicide and two counts of vehicular battery. He was sentenced to prison. He appeals asserting that the trial court erred in (1) denying the suppression of his blood draw result; (2) allowing a police officer to testify whether he thought defendant was untruthful during an interview; (3) refusing hearsay evidence; and (4) failing to instruct the jury on spoliation. We affirm on all issues.
[ .] In the early evening of July 30, 2000, the defendant, Oakley B. Engesser, and Dorothy Finley were at the Full Throttle Saloon, near Sturgis, South Dakota. Roanna Clifford visited with Finley for approximately 30 to 45 minutes. She did not see Finley drink any alcoholic beverage, but noticed that Engesser was drinking beer. Through the course of the conversation, Finley said that she and Engesser had her red Corvette. Although she did not see Engesser and Finley leave the Full Throttle, Clifford estimates that they left at approximately 6:00 p.m.
[ .] Between 7:30 and 7:45 p.m. that same evening, Beau Goodman was driving east on Interstate 90 when he saw a red Corvette entering the Interstate a few hundred feet behind his vehicle. Goodman estimates that he was traveling between 75 to 80 miles per hour. When he looked into his rearview mirror, he could not see the red Corvette. Then, he looked to his side and saw the Corvette zip by him. Describing the car as a "red blur," Goodman was unable to see who was driving. As the Corvette raced down the road, Goodman saw it slam into the back end of a white minivan. The collision occurred at approximately 8 p.m.
[ .] In the white minivan were Todd and Jackie McPherson, along with their two children, three-year-old Cassie and one-year-old Alex. They were traveling eastbound on Interstate 90 between Sturgis and Rapid City. Todd was driving. He had the cruise control set at 70 to 75 miles per hour. The only passenger in a seatbelt was Alex, who was riding in his car seat. As they were driving, the McPhersons noticed that two vehicles ahead pulled onto the shoulder of the interstate. Consequently, Todd pulled into the left lane. At this point, he described the traffic flow as ordinary, explaining that all the vehicles appeared to be traveling at the same pace. After he passed the parked vehicles on the shoulder of the road, Todd moved back into the right lane. Checking his rearview mirror, Todd did not see any vehicles approaching at a fast rate of speed.
[ .] Just beyond the parked vehicles, Todd felt a tremendous impact when his vehicle was hit from behind by the red Corvette. As the minivan careened into the ditch, Todd was thrown from the driver's seat to the back of the van, landing with his head in the backseat and his feet facing the driver's seat. Jackie remained in the front passenger seat, her right leg wedged between the seat and the door. Cassie, who had been sitting on Jackie's lap, was also thrown to the backseat of the van. She had shattered glass all over her head and dress. Jackie reached over and turned off the ignition. She was also able to push her door open. Once out of the car, she was unable to open the side door of the van, so she reached inside the broken windows and pulled her children from the vehicle. Initially, Todd was pinned inside. He was eventually able to free himself and climb out of the van. Cassie complained that her leg hurt and Jackie also noticed a large bump on Cassie's head. Todd was transported to the hospital in Rapid City, where he was diagnosed with broken ribs, whiplash, a bruised ankle, and body stiffness. Jackie was also diagnosed with severe whiplash. That same evening, Jackie and Cassie were released from the hospital, but Todd remained there for four
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