Commonwealth v. Shanoski
Commonwealth v. Shanoski
Opinion of the Court
The defendant, Glenn Shanoski, appeals from his Superior Court convictions of operating under the influence of intoxicating liquor, fifth offense, G. L. c. 90, § 24(1)(a )(1), and negligent operation of a motor vehicle, G. L. c. 90, § 24(2)(a ). Concluding that the Commonwealth established that the defendant was represented by counsel during the proceedings resulting in his prior convictions and presented sufficient evidence of the defendant's identity, we affirm.
1. Representation by counsel. Convictions that were obtained in violation of the right to counsel may not be used as predicates for a subsequent offense. See Commonwealth v. McMullin,
We pretermit the question whether the defendant rebutted the presumption of regularity, as the Commonwealth demonstrated that the defendant was represented by counsel during his 1995 plea.
2. Sufficiency of the evidence. When reviewing the denial of a motion for a required finding of not guilty, "we consider the evidence introduced at trial in the light most favorable to the Commonwealth, and determine whether a rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt." Commonwealth v. Oberle,
Here, the female civilian witness observed a man driving erratically. He stopped and approached her car, and she noticed that he was "a big guy,"
One of the responding officers observed a female siting in a car and the defendant, whom he identified, on the opposite side of the road. The defendant had a "strong odor of alcoholic beverage" and "slurred speech." He repeatedly told the officer "that the nice girl was just really worried about his welfare." He later told the booking officer that he worked for the MBTA. From this evidence, the jury could rationally conclude that the big MBTA employee smelling of alcohol and speaking in a slurred voice arrested by the officers was the same big MBTA employee smelling of alcohol and speaking in a slurred voice observed driving by the civilian witness. See Commonwealth v. Coates,
The fact that the civilian witness did not identify the defendant as the driver directly does not defeat the sufficiency of the evidence. "Proof of the identity of the person who committed the offense may be established in a number of ways and '[i]t is not necessary that any one witness should distinctly swear that the defendant was the [person], if the result of all the testimony, on comparison of all its details and particulars, should identify [the person] as the offender."
Judgments affirmed.
The defendant raises no challenge to the Commonwealth's use of his other three prior convictions. Indeed, at trial, the defendant conceded the sufficiency of the evidence of the other three prior convictions.
In 2004, the Legislature created a much more complicated waiver procedure for the legal counsel fee. See G. L. c. 211D, § 2 1/2, as amended by St. 2004, c. 149, § 195.
The record reflects that the defendant is six feet, two inches tall, and weighs 265 pounds, which the jury presumably could observe for themselves.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.