Raper v. State
Raper v. State
Opinion
Danny Stephen Raper was charged with and convicted of driving or being in actual physical control of a vehicle while under the influence of a substance which impaired his ability, in violation of §
"There should not be a conviction upon circumstantial evidence unless to a moral certainty it excludes every other reasonable hypothesis than that of the guilt of the accused. No matter how strong may be the circumstances, if they can be reconciled with the theory that the Defendant is innocent then the guilt of the accused is not shown by that full measure of proof that the law requires and the Defendant should be acquitted."
The trial court instructed the jury as follows:
"Upon considering all of the evidence or lack of evidence, if you have a reasonable doubt about the defendant's guilt arising out of any part of the evidence or lack of evidence, you should find the defendant not guilty . . . .
"Ladies and gentlemen, there is some evidence in the case that would be classified as circumstantial evidence, and I'll advise you as to the law of circumstantial evidence. The mere fact that evidence is of a circumstantial nature does not make it deficient. Circumstantial evidence is entitled to the same weight as direct evidence provided it points to the guilt of the accused. The test of the sufficiency of circumstantial evidence is not whether the possibility exists that someone other than the accused may have committed the crime, or some other element of the crime, but rather whether the evidence excludes every reasonable hypothesis but that of the accused's guilt. Whether the circumstances as proved produce a moral conviction to the exclusion of every reasonable doubt."
As Raper notes in his brief, a trial court has broad discretion in fashioning a jury instruction, provided it accurately reflects the law and facts of the case. See Coon v.State,
Raper attempts to argue on appeal that the trial court erred by misstating the law and facts when it charged the jury on circumstantial evidence. He alleges that these misstatements were confusing and *Page 546
misleading, and that they did not accurately reflect upon the facts of this case. A careful review of the record clearly indicates that Raper's objection was addressed to the trial court's alleged error of omission in completely charging the jury, not to an alleged error of commission in charging the jury. By making a specific objection, Raper waived all grounds not asserted. See Ex parte Frith,
Raper was arrested and taken to the police station where the Intoxilyzer 5000 test was administered. The test results indicated that no alcohol was detectable in Raper's blood. This was so even though Mitchell had earlier noticed a "slight" odor of beer on Raper's person. After this test was administered, Raper was allowed to make a telephone call. He looked up the same number three times before he could remember it correctly. Because the police department's telephone system had six different lines, Mitchell showed him how to use the telephone three times. All that was required to make an outgoing telephone call was to push one additional number before dialing the telephone number. The remaining numbers were for intra-office use. Even after Mitchell showed Raper which number to push, he pushed the wrong number several times before he selected the correct one. After gaining access to an outside line, Mitchell noticed that Raper was "real slow" in pushing the telephone number he dialed. While being "booked," Raper repeatedly told Mitchell that he was not drunk, but that "he had been to the hospital at Fulton" where he received a shot for the injury to his arm. In Mitchell's opinion, Raper was not in a condition to operate his car safely.
In determining whether sufficient evidence has been produced to sustain a conviction, the evidence must be reviewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution. Cumbo v. State,
"The test to be applied is whether the jury might reasonably find that the evidence excluded every reasonable hypothesis except that of guilt; not whether such evidence excludes every reasonable hypothesis but guilt, but whether a jury might reasonably so conclude."Cumbo, 368 So.2d at 874. See also Davis v. State,
After reviewing the evidence that existed before Raper presented the above two motions, it is clear that the state's evidence is inconsistent with any reasonable hypothesis but that of Raper's guilt. Raper concedes that he was in actual physical control of his car. However, he argues that the state failed to prove he was "under the influence." Officer Mitchell testified that Raper's eyes were "glossy, glass-looking," that his speech was slurred, and that he had trouble determining where he was when asked. He further testified concerning the difficulty with which Raper had in his repeated attempts to use the telephone and the fact that Raper repeatedly claimed that he was not drunk, but that he had received a shot for the injury to his arm. Mitchell, who had known Raper for approximately 10 years, stated that, in his opinion, Raper was not in a condition to operate his vehicle safely. All of this evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution, was legally sufficient to sustain a conviction. The trial court was correct in submitting this case to the jury and in denying Raper's motions to exclude the evidence and for judgment of acquittal.
"Danny Stephen Raper . . . on, to-wit: January 26, 1990, while he was under the influence of a substance which impaired his mental or physical facilities [sic], . . . did drive or have actual physical control over a vehicle upon a public road or the highways within the corporate limits of the City of Red Bay, Franklin County, Alabama, in violation of Municipal Ordinance No. 83-3-15 of the City of Red Bay, Franklin County, Alabama, which adopts §
32-5A-191 of the Code of Alabama. . . ."
Section
Initially, Raper argues that the complaint is fatally defective because it fails to allege he was under the influence of a substance "to a degree which rendered him incapable of safely driving." He claims that the omission of this "necessary element" of the offense did not allow him to be accurately inform[ed] . . . of the offense charged nor did it state an offense prohibited by law." In Ex parte Buckner,
Following the analysis and logic in Buckner, we hold that, for purposes of §
Additionally, Raper argues that the complaint is defective because it contains no recitation to a particular subsection of §
For the above reasons, the judgment of the circuit court is due to be, and it is hereby, affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
All Judges concur.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Danny Stephen Raper v. State.
- Cited By
- 48 cases
- Status
- Published