Dressel v. State5/26/1999
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND JUDGMENT [No. 4054 - May 26, 1999]
Following a bench trial before District Court Judge H.E. Crutchfield, Dale D. Dressel was convicted of disorderly conduct, driving while intoxicated (DWI), driving while license revoked (DWLR), resisting arrest, and operating an off-road vehicle on a roadway. Dressel appeals, alleging various errors. We affirm.
On September 5, 1997, at approximately 9:00 a.m., Eldon Doty, Dressel's neighbor, was playing with his dog in his front yard on Sandland Drive in Delta Junction. Doty saw Dressel driving a three-wheel off-road vehicle down Sandland Drive. As neighbors, Doty, age 65, and Dressel, age 72, had a history of discord. Dressel, for no apparent reason, drove up to Doty, yelling and cursing. He got off his three-wheeler and threatened to hit Doty. When Doty told Dressel to go home, Dressel swung at Doty. Doty raised his arm and warded off Dressel's first swing and then punched Dressel. Dressel swung at Doty a second time and Doty again punched Dressel, this time in the eye. Doty's punch knocked Dressel down. When Doty bent over to pick up his hat, which had fallen off during the altercation, Dressel swung a third time at Doty, again missing. Doty then walked back to his house.
Dressel remounted his three-wheeler and left, but threatened to return with a friend and a shotgun. Doty's wife, who had witnessed the altercation, heard Dressel's threat and decided to call the Alaska State Troopers to prevent the incident from escalating.
In addition to the unprovoked attack, Doty testified that "it was pretty obvious that [Dressel] was intoxicated. I mean his actions, his body actions, and the look on his face, and his language . . . . hen he got close to me, I could smell alcohol." He added, "he wasn't functioning, you know. I mean, he didn't act like he had control of his balance[.]" Doty's wife also testified that, based on her observations, Dressel "was obviously drunk."
Alaska State Trooper Dane Gilmore responded, arriving at approximately 9:50 a.m. After talking with the Dotys, he went to Dressel's residence to further investigate the disorderly conduct. Upon contacting Dressel, Gilmore thought that he was intoxicated. He saw that Dressel had bloodshot and watery eyes, that he smelled of alcohol, his speech was loud, and his dexterity was poor. During this contact, Dressel told Gilmore that he had been driving the three-wheeler on Sandland Drive, acknowledged that it was a public road, admitted that he did not have a license, and said that he had been drinking "since 4 a.m." He also admitted that he had an altercation with Doty, but he asserted that Doty had been the aggressor, and that Doty had hit him with a pipe. He told Gilmore that he was going to shoot Doty.
Sometime during his contact with Dressel, Gilmore had radioed for assistance. While Gilmore was talking to Dressel, Trooper Donald Bunselmeier arrived to assist. Dressel became more aggravated and aggressive when Bunselmeier arrived.
Based on his Discussions with the Dotys and with Dressel, Gilmore decided to arrest Dressel for disorderly conduct and for DWI. When the troopers attempted to handcuff Dressel, he pulled away from them, twice yanking his arm away from Bunselmeier. Despite the troopers' warning that they would "cap-stun" him with pepper spray if he continued to pull away, Dressel continued to resist. Gilmore then "cap-stunned" him and the troopers took him to the ground, where they were then able to secure him with handcuffs. Dressel continued to resist as the troopers put him into Gilmore's vehicle.
After placing Dressel into Gilmore's vehicle, Gilmore transported Dressel to the Fo
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