Summary
The Sixth District Court of Appeals of Ohio affirmed the Ottawa County Municipal Court’s judgment in a prosecution for operating a motor vehicle with a prohibited breath-alcohol concentration. The court held that excluding a 1998 Ohio Department of Health memorandum concerning observation periods after an invalid breath sample was not an abuse of discretion because the memorandum was not a statute or formally promulgated regulation and was not relevant legal authority. The court also concluded that the exclusion did not prevent the appellant from presenting evidence challenging the reliability of the breath test.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the trial court abused its discretion by excluding a 1998 Ohio Department of Health memorandum concerning the procedure to follow after an invalid breath-test sample.
- Whether exclusion of the memorandum denied Ambrozy a meaningful opportunity to present a defense concerning the accuracy and reliability of the breath-test results.
Holdings
- The trial court did not abuse its discretion by excluding the memorandum because it was not a statute or formally promulgated administrative regulation and was not relevant or enforceable as legal authority in the circumstances presented.
- Excluding the memorandum did not deprive Ambrozy of a meaningful opportunity to present a defense because she remained free to present evidence and cross-examine witnesses concerning the reliability of the DataMaster machine and the administration of the breath tests.
Key quotations
“We therefore agree with the state of Ohio that a directive from a memorandum does not rise to the level of an administrative regulation, and is not enforceable.” (¶ 26)
“On consideration whereof, the judgment of the Ottawa County Municipal Court is hereby affirmed.” (¶ 40)
Factual background
A Port Clinton officer stopped Ambrozy after observing that her vehicle's headlights and taillights were not illuminated. The officer observed slurred speech, red and glossy eyes, and an odor of alcohol; Ambrozy reported drinking four beers and failed to produce valid results on her first two breath-test attempts because she started and stopped blowing. A third DataMaster breath sample registered a blood-alcohol concentration of .137, and the State charged her under R.C. 4511.19(A)(1)(d).
Procedural history
The Ottawa County Municipal Court granted the State's oral motion in limine before trial and excluded the memorandum. Following a jury trial, Ambrozy was found guilty under R.C. 4511.19(A)(1)(d) and sentenced to 120 days in jail, with 90 days suspended, plus an alcohol dependency evaluation and a six-day driver intervention program. The Sixth District affirmed the trial court's judgment.