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State v. Hullinger7/10/2002
years and trains them according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) standards. Although Ludwig may not be "highly skilled or experienced," there was no evidence presented that his training did not comply with NHTSA standards or that his administration of the test on Hullinger was not in accordance with those standards. Some state court jurisdictions that have examined this issue, as noted above, have concluded that HGN evidence is admissible if the officer has been adequately trained to administer the test and the test was administered in accordance with that training. State v. Zivcic, 598 NW2d 565 (WisCtApp 1999); State v. Taylor, 694 A2d 907 (Me 1997) (use limited to evidence to support probable cause to arrest without a warrant or as circumstantial evidence of intoxication); Schultz v. State, 664 A2d 60 (MdCtApp 1995); City of Fargo v. McLaughlin, 512 NW2d 700 (ND 1994); State v. Murphy, 451 NW2d 154 (Iowa 1990). A minority of jurisdictions require additional foundational evidence regarding the correlation between HGN test results and alcohol impairment. State v. Helms, 504 SE2d 293 (NC 1998) (reversible error without proper foundation); Murphy, 953 SW2d 200 (test is "scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge" and must be offered through expert witness). This additional foundational evidence was presented to the trial court by an expert witness at the suppression hearing.
[ ] The trial court abused its discretion in excluding this relevant evidence in a prosecution for driving under the influence in violation of SDCL 32-23-1(2). We reverse and remand for proceedings consistent with this opinion. HGN testing is nationally recognized as a reliable field sobriety test and if it can be shown that the test was properly administered by a trained officer, such evidence should be admitted for a jury to consider at trial along with evidence of the other accepted field sobriety tests administered in this state.
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