Summary
The Supreme Court of Indiana held that Indiana’s operating-while-intoxicated statutes apply to vehicle operation on both public and private property, including property owned by the defendant. The court relied on Indiana Code section 9-30-5-9, which provides that operating a vehicle somewhere other than on a highway is not a defense. The court reversed the trial court’s suppression order and remanded the case.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether Indiana Code sections 9-30-5-1(b) and 9-30-5-2 apply to the operation of a vehicle while intoxicated on private property, including property owned by the defendant.
- Whether the defendant's undeveloped constitutional challenge to applying the OWI statutes on his private property should be addressed.
- Whether the defendant's challenge to probable cause for the blood draw should be addressed when probable cause was not the basis of the trial court's suppression order.
Holdings
- Indiana Code sections 9-30-5-1(b) and 9-30-5-2 apply when a motorist operates a vehicle while intoxicated on public or private property, including property owned by the motorist. Indiana Code section 9-30-5-9 expressly provides that operating a vehicle somewhere other than on a highway is not a defense to a Chapter 5 prosecution.
- The court declined to address the defendant's constitutional claim because it was merely asserted and was not supported or developed.
- The court declined to address the defendant's probable-cause challenge because it was not the basis of the trial court's suppression order.
Key quotations
“It is not a defense in an action under [Chapter 5] that the accused person was operating a vehicle in a place other than on a highway.” (at 659)
“Thus, regardless of where the defendant's driving occurred, whether on public or private property, and even if on the defendant's own property, the State is authorized to charge him with intoxicated driving offenses pursuant to Indiana Code §§ 9-30-5-1 and 9-30-5-2.” (at 659)
Factual background
In June 2006, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources investigated an off-road vehicle crash that caused the defendant, Adam L. Manuwal, to suffer fractures and head trauma. Manuwal had been operating an all-terrain vehicle on his own property in a wooded area approximately three hundred yards from his cabin and away from a public roadway; a friend was also present on the property. Police suspected alcohol consumption, and Manuwal's blood was drawn at the hospital.
Procedural history
After an all-terrain-vehicle crash on the defendant's private property, the defendant was charged with two Class A misdemeanors. The trial court granted his motion to suppress, concluding that the OWI statutes did not apply to operation on the defendant's own private property. The State dismissed the charges and appealed under Indiana Code section 35-38-4-2(5); the Court of Appeals affirmed, and the Supreme Court granted transfer.
Remand instructions
The trial court's order granting the motion to suppress was reversed, and the cause was remanded.