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State v. Mingie4/21/1999
The appellant, Mitchell Edward Mingie, was convicted by a Hamilton County jury of one (1) count of driving under the influence of an intoxicant, fifth offense. He also pled guilty to one (1) count of driving on a revoked license. The trial court sentenced Appellant to concurrent terms of six (6) months for driving on a revoked license and eleven (11) months and twenty-nine (29) days for driving under the influence. On appeal, Appellant claims that the evidence was insufficient to sustain the jury's verdict for driving under the influence. After a thorough review of the record before this Court, we affirm the trial court's judgment.
I.
Officer Ragan McDevitt with the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department testified as follows. At approximately 9:30 p.m. on June 22, 1996, he was dispatched to the scene of a single motor vehicle accident in Hamilton County, Tennessee. When McDevitt arrived, other emergency personnel were present, and Appellant, his wife, and his fifteen (15) year old niece, Jessica Long, were standing outside of the vehicle. When McDevitt inquired as to how the accident occurred, Appellant informed the officer that he had lost control of the vehicle while maneuvering a curve and traveling down a hill. Appellant advised the officer that he had been driving the vehicle and did not have his driver's license.
The vehicle involved in the accident was a Toyota pickup with a bench seat. When McDevitt questioned the passengers as to their relative positions in the truck when the accident occurred, Cheryl Mingie, Appellant's wife, advised the officer that she had been sitting in the middle of the seat. Jessica stated that she was sitting next to the passenger door.
While investigating the accident, the officer noticed that Appellant was having difficulty keeping his balance. McDevitt observed that Appellant had bloodshot eyes and smelled of alcohol. Further, McDevitt noticed that Appellant's speech was slow and he was unstable on his feet. Officer McDevitt arrested Appellant for driving under the influence of an intoxicant and, while escorting Appellant to the police car, had to "hold on to him to keep him from falling."
Subsequently, Appellant signed an implied consent form and acquiesced in a breathalyzer test. Appellant's blood alcohol content was found to be 0.17.
At trial, Jessica Long testified on behalf of the defense. She stated that Cheryl Mingie, not Appellant, had been driving the vehicle at the time of the accident. Jessica testified that, when Officer McDevitt inquired as to who was the driver of the vehicle, Appellant responded, "If I tell you I was driving this truck, will you let the ladies go?" On cross-examination, however, Long acknowledged that she failed to advise anyone that Cheryl Mingie was the driver of the vehicle until the day of trial, which was approximately eighteen (18) months after the date of the incident.
The jury found Appellant guilty of driving under the influence of an intoxicant. The parties submitted the issue whether Appellant was guilty of a fifth offense to the trial court. The trial court found Appellant to be a fifth offender of driving under the influence. Appellant also pled guilty to driving on a revoked license. From his conviction of driving under the influence, Appellant brings this appeal.
II.
In his sole issue on appeal, Appellant challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. Specifically, he claims that he cannot be convicted solely on the basis of his uncorroborated extra-judicial confession. He further argues that because Jessica Long was present at the time of the accident, her testimony is more reliable than that of
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