Commonwealth v. Rassulo
Commonwealth v. Rassulo
Opinion of the Court
After a jury trial, the defendant, Donna Rassulo, was convicted of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol (OUI), and negligent operation of a motor vehicle.
When a defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence on appeal, we apply the familiar Latimore standard. See Commonwealth v. Latimore,
"There are three elements to the crime of operating under the influence of alcohol under G. L. c. 90, § 24 : (1) operation of a vehicle, (2) on a public way, (3) under the influence of alcohol." Commonwealth v. O'Connor,
The evidence offered at trial that this defendant was operating her vehicle while under the influence of alcohol was strong. An experienced, uniformed police officer testified that, on December 7, 2014, he was sitting in a police cruiser monitoring traffic at a busy intersection in the business district of West Concord. At approximately 5:30 P.M. , he heard "a loud crash and screeching tires." He looked to his left and saw a vehicle drive up and over a sidewalk, "heading pretty much directly at the gas station pumps in the gas station in front of that." When the car was approximately seventeen feet from the pumps, it changed direction and made "an abrupt turn back, accelerating back to Main Street towards the proper lane of travel" where it should have been traveling. Back in the street, it "continued straight across and struck another curbing" and then continued to travel down the road, before parking in a marked parking space, but "kind of awkwardly caddy-cornered and half of the vehicle was in the roadway." The roads in question are maintained by the town of Concord.
The officer pulled his cruiser behind the vehicle and discovered that the defendant was the operator. He also detected a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming directly from the defendant's breath. The defendant then failed attempts at performing three different field sobriety tests and was unsteady on her feet. Her speech was slurred; her eyes were glassy and bloodshot, and she admitted to consuming alcohol half an hour before the accident.
The defendant's mechanic testified that he spoke with the defendant during the week prior to December 9, 2014, about a steering problem she was having with her car, and that on December 23, 2014, he repaired a broken left tie rod and aligned the defendant's car.
Nonetheless, "[t]he weight and credibility of the evidence is the province of the jury." Commonwealth v. Dubois,
Judgments affirmed.
The defendant was found responsible for a civil marked lanes violation, which was placed on file.
According to the officer, during the booking process the defendant also volunteered that "alcohol consumption was a factor in the collision, as well as [an] anecdotal issue with her vehicle."
The mechanic testified that he had a telephone conversation with the defendant the week prior to December 9, 2014, during which she told him that the "car was driving funny and not feeling comfortable to drive, kind of scary." He also testified that a broken tie rod can cause a loss of control of a car, as "one wheel goes one way and the other one stays .... Depending on how hard you step on the gas, you'll have a carnival ride."
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.