Leon v. Marner
Leon v. Marner
Opinion of the Court
*666¶ 1 In this special action, Petitioner Jorge Leon challenges the respondent judge's ruling affirming his conviction, following a jury trial in Pima County Justice Court, for driving or being in actual physical control of a vehicle with an illegal drug or "its metabolite" in his body, in violation of A.R.S. § 28-1381(A)(3). Leon's appeal to the Pima County Superior Court argued the justice court "err[ed] as a matter of law in finding that benzoylecgonine [ (BE) ], an inactive metabolite of cocaine, satisfied the requirement of a metabolite of a drug as used in [ § 28-1381(A)(3) ]" and in its related instructions to the jury. The respondent judge affirmed Leon's conviction, and this special action petition followed. For the following reasons, we accept jurisdiction and grant relief.
Jurisdiction
¶ 2 Special action review is highly discretionary. State ex rel. Romley v. Fields ,
Factual and Procedural Background
¶ 3 The facts are undisputed. As set forth in the respondent judge's ruling, in May 2015, law enforcement officers were responding to a single-vehicle accident in the median of I-19 when they made contact with Leon, who was standing by his broken-down truck. After conducting field sobriety tests and suspecting impairment, the officers charged Leon with driving under the influence in violation of § 28-1381(A)(1) and (2)
Justice Court Proceedings and Jury Trial
¶ 4 Relying on Harris ,
¶ 5 Leon renewed his argument just before trial, when the justice court was settling jury instructions. He asked the court to include the following instruction:
"Metabolite," as used in these instructions, means only a metabolite that itself is capable of causing impairment. Thus, to prove a violation of A.R.S. § 28-1381(A)(3) based on metabolites of proscribed drugs, the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that any metabolite found in the blood of Jorge Leon while he was driving or in actual physical control of a vehicle is both a metabolite of a proscribed drug AND the metabolite is capable of causing impairment in and of itself.
The state conceded that BE was a non-impairing metabolite, but it opposed any such instruction, arguing that § 28-1381(A)(3) is a "strict liability" statute and "that the Harris case is expressly limited to Carboxy[-]THC because of the nature of how it metabolizes, whereas cocaine, which is a very fast metabolizing drug, will metabolize very quickly in the system." The court agreed with the state and denied Leon's request, stating it would instruct the jury using the language of the statute, but modified, as urged by the state, to replace "any drug defined in § 13-3401 or its metabolite" with "[BE], a metabolite of cocaine."
¶ 6 At trial, a forensic scientist for the Arizona Department of Public Safety testified Leon's blood sample contained BE, "one of the main metabolites of cocaine." She explained that cocaine metabolizes rapidly, would remain present in someone's blood for "just a few hours," and continues to metabolize after blood is drawn. In contrast, she said BE, as a metabolite of cocaine, would be detectable for "about a day," or, in the case of "chronic heavy binges," "up to ... five days." She explained cocaine is a stimulant drug that has multiple effects; BE, in contrast, is "an inactive metabolite, which means it's not having any effect on the body."
¶ 7 In moving for acquittal pursuant to Rule 20, Ariz. R. Crim. P., Leon's attorney argued, "Because of the jury instruction on the [ § 28-1381(A)(3) charge], I must concede that there is substantial evidence to go to the jury," but added, "I would disagree with the jury instruction and I believe it doesn't accurately state the law[ ] that now stands." With respect to the § 28-1381(A)(3) charge, the justice court instructed the jury:
The State has charged the Defendant with driving or being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle within the State while there is BE in the Defendant's body.... The central elements that the State ... must prove are:
1. The Defendant was driving [or in] actual physical control of a motor vehicle.
2. This occurred within Pima County, Arizona, at or near the vicinity and on ... or about the time alleged in the Complaint.
3. That at the time of the driving o[r] being in actual physical control of the vehicle, a drug [BE], a metabolite of cocaine[,] was in the Defendant's body.
The jury acquitted Leon of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs while impaired to the slightest degree, see § 28-1381(A)(1), but convicted him of the § 28-1381(A)(3) charge.
Appeal to Superior Court
¶ 8 Leon appealed from his conviction, again relying on our supreme court's decision in Harris . He argued the trial court had erred as a matter of law in rejecting his proposed instruction and "in ruling that a non-impairing metabolite of a drug satisfied the prohibition of [ § 28-1381(A)(3) ]," thereby resulting in his wrongful conviction under that section of the statute. In its answering brief on appeal, the state again characterized Harris as "a narrow decision addressing only Carboxy-THC." It argued BE is distinguishable because "[c]ocaine is quickly metabolized directly into BE" and Carboxy-THC "is a second metabolite of THC and can stay in a *668person's body for as many as twenty-eight to thirty days."
¶ 9 In affirming Leon's conviction, the respondent judge concluded the justice court had not erred in rejecting Leon's proposed jury instruction or "in ruling that the prohibition of the statute is satisfied by a non-impairing metabolite of a drug." The respondent further concluded the court's final jury instructions "did not misstate the law or the statute." Citing "distinctive" features of BE and this court's decision in State v. Werderman ,
¶ 10 In his petition for special action relief, Leon argues the respondent judge "perpetuated [the] error" of the justice court by upholding his conviction, pursuant to § 28-1381(A)(3), for driving while BE, a non-impairing metabolite of cocaine, was present in his body. In response, no longer relying on the authorities it cited in the courts below, the state argues the holding in Harris "should not be extended to BE because of the numerous differences between BE and Carboxy-THC."
Discussion
¶ 11 Special action relief is available for a respondent's abuse of discretion, Ariz. R. P. Spec. Act. 3(c), and a court abuses its discretion if it commits an error of law, City of Tucson v. Clear Channel Outdoor, Inc. ,
¶ 12 With limited exceptions, erroneous jury instructions are subject to either harmless or fundamental error review. See Neder v. United States ,
¶ 13 The evidence is undisputed that BE is a non-impairing metabolite of cocaine, a point the state conceded in the justice court, the superior court, and its response in this court. The state argued, however, that BE was nonetheless a prohibited substance *669under § 28-1381(A)(3), and, as noted above, jurors at Leon's trial were instructed they could find Leon guilty of violating § 28-1381(A)(3) if they found he was driving or in actual physical control of a vehicle while "a drug [BE], a metabolite of [c]ocaine[,] was in [his] body." Because no other instruction offered an alternative means of convicting Leon of the § 28-1381(A)(3) offense, the jury, by its verdict, could only have found that Leon had BE, a non-impairing metabolite of cocaine, in his system while he was driving.
State ex rel. Montgomery v. Harris
¶ 14 In Harris , the defendant was charged with violating § 28-1381(A)(3) based on blood test results showing the presence of Carboxy-THC, a non-impairing metabolite of cannabis.
¶ 15 Although Harris involved only Carboxy-THC, our supreme court's stated reason for its discretionary review was not limited to that substance; as noted earlier, the court "granted review because whether § 28-1381(A)(3) applies to non-impairing metabolites presents a recurring issue of statewide importance." Id. ¶ 7. The court found the statute's reference to "its metabolite" ambiguous, and it engaged in analysis to construe the statute "sensibly" and consistent with legislative intent. Id. ¶¶ 12-13. The court rejected the state's suggestion "that 'its metabolite' includes any byproduct of a drug listed in § 13-3401," finding that construction "leads to absurd results," "[m]ost notably" because it "would create criminal liability regardless of how long the metabolite remains in the driver's system or whether it has any impairing effect." Id. ¶¶ 14-15. And, citing a non-impairing metabolite that bufotenine, a proscribed substance, shared in common with "a legal serotonin supplement," the court further observed, "the State's interpretation would permit prosecution if the discovered substance is a metabolite of a proscribed drug even if the proscribed drug was never ingested," rendering the state's argument "untenable." Id. ¶ 17.
¶ 16 Nor did the court in Harris suggest the meaning of "its metabolite" was contingent on the length of time a metabolite remained in someone's system, whether twenty-eight days in the case of Carboxy-THC or the one to five days that, according to testimony at Leon's trial, BE remains in one's *670bloodstream after ingesting cocaine.
¶ 17 In its consideration of legislative purpose, the court further stated, "[I]n enacting the (A)(3) charge, the legislature sought to proscribe driving by those who could be impaired from the presence of illegal drugs in their body" by establishing "that a driver who tests positive for any amount of an impairing drug is legally and irrefutably presumed to be under the influence." Id. ¶ 22. But, the court continued, "Although the legislature could rationally choose to penalize the presence of any amount of an impairing metabolite, we do not believe that [it] contemplated penalizing the presence of a metabolite that is not impairing." Id. The court concluded, "Because the legislature intended to prevent impaired driving, we hold that the 'metabolite' reference in § 28-1381(A)(3) is limited to any of a proscribed substance's metabolites that are capable of causing impairment." Id. ¶ 24.
Conclusion
¶ 18 In light of our supreme court's express holding, limiting the meaning of "metabolite" in § 28-1381(A)(3) to those "capable of causing impairment," id. , Harris cannot fairly be characterized as "narrow" or as "pertain[ing] only to Carboxy-THC" as the respondent judge suggested in his ruling and the state argues here. See also Dobson v. McClennen ,
Disposition
¶ 19 For all of the foregoing reasons, we accept jurisdiction of Leon's petition for special action and grant relief. The respondent judge's ruling on appeal is vacated and Leon's conviction is reversed.
Section 28-1381(A)(1) prohibits driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs if impaired to the slightest degree, and § 28-1381(A)(2) prohibits having a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more within two hours of driving when the alcohol concentration results from alcohol consumed either before or while driving.
Carboxy-Tetrahydrocannabinol.
The original charges had been dismissed in July 2015 but were refiled in March 2016 and subsequently amended.
In Harris , our supreme court was "asked to determine whether the phrase 'its metabolite' includes [Carboxy-THC], a non-impairing metabolite of Cannabis," and it "conclude[d] that it does not."
The state requested this modification, telling the court it was "only alleging the one metabolite."
The state also repeated its reliance on State v. Werderman , a case involving BE in which this court concluded Harris was not "a significant change in the law," Ariz. R. Crim. P. 32.1(g), entitling the defendant to post-conviction relief.
As noted above, this court's Werderman decision is not applicable here.
At trial and on appeal before the respondent judge, the state cited this court's decision in State v. McFadden , No. 1 CA-CR 14-0614,
In its response to Leon's petition, the state also argues the court's analysis in Harris "should not apply to cocaine" "[b]ecause cocaine metabolizes so quickly," apparently referring to evidence that cocaine metabolizes to BE in "just a few hours." But the court in Harris considered similar evidence-that an impairing metabolite of THC, Hydroxy-THC, does not "exist in the blood for very long" and is quickly converted to Carboxy-THC.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Jorge LEON v. Hon. James E. MARNER, Judge of the Superior Court of the State of Arizona, in and for the County of Pima, and The State of Arizona, Real Party in Interest.
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published