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State v. Larson12/7/2004
en 80 to 85 mph at the time of the wreck. Sergeant Sangray determined the accident was caused by speed, inattentive driving, alcohol influence and failure to wear seatbelts.
Estimates at trial by Larson's expert, Dr. Denmen Lee, indicated Larson's speed at the time of the accident was between 63 to 71 mph with a standard deviation of plus or minus 4 mph. Dr. Lee disputed the officer's calculations, in particular, alleging they only used three skid marks when the prevailing science required four. The officers' estimates, Dr. Lee testified, were too high and did not reflect Larson's speed accurately.
The State filed an Information on November 27, 2001, charging Larson with one count of negligent homicide, a felony, pursuant to § 45-5-104, MCA; one count of driving under the influence of alcohol, a misdemeanor, pursuant to § 61-8-401, MCA; one count of failing to wear a seatbelt, a misdemeanor, pursuant to § 61-13-103, MCA; and one count of speeding, a misdemeanor, pursuant to § 61-8-303(1)(b), MCA.
Prior to trial, the State filed motions in limine seeking to exclude evidence of other traffic accidents near the same location; evidence of the erection of new highway signs at the location of the accident; and evidence of Clare's blood alcohol concentration. Similarly, Larson filed a motion in limine to exclude any evidence involving the "retrograde extrapolation" of his blood alcohol concentration test administered after the accident. Retrograde extrapolation is the use of a test administered after an event to determine a person's blood alcohol at an earlier time by adding on the average metabolic destruction of alcohol during the period of delay.
On March 14, 2003, the District Court issued its ruling on the motions in limine. The District Court denied the State's request to exclude evidence of other traffic accidents but granted the State's request to prohibit evidence of new highway signs unless offered to rebut or refute evidence from the State that it did not consider the site of the accident to be dangerous. The District Court also granted the State's request to exclude evidence of Clare's blood alcohol as well as Larson's request to exclude any evidence regarding the retrograde extrapolation results of the blood alcohol concentration test.
The trial began on March 17, 2003. The State's evidence at trial showed during the evening hours of November 10 and early morning hours of November 11, 2001, Larson and two college friends, Morgan and Clare, were drinking in his vehicle and in various bars and residences in the Conrad and Dutton area.
At about 3:30 a.m., Larson was driving his pickup at a high rate of speed south on the frontage road between Conrad and Brady when it veered off the right shoulder of the road surface near the beginning of a left curve. Larson pulled the pickup back onto the asphalt surface but overcorrected, sending his pickup across the highway and into the ditch on the left side of the highway. At that point, the car flipped multiple times, ejecting all three passengers, who were not wearing seatbelts.
The State's expert, Lynn Kurtz, of the state crime lab, testified analysis of Larson's blood sample taken three hours after the accident showed a blood alcohol concentration of 0.12%. Kurtz also testified concerning the effects of alcohol on an individual's ability to operate a motor vehicle, stating alcohol impairs an individual's ability to drive.
Over Larson's objections, Kurtz also discussed how an individual processes alcohol in three phases, describing the intervals as "alcohol absorption phase," "peak alcohol phase," and "elimination phase." When posed with a hypothetical question about which of
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