(Download) "State Texas v. Charles Lee Wagner" by Fifth District, Dallas Court of Appeals of Texas ~ Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: State Texas v. Charles Lee Wagner
- Author : Fifth District, Dallas Court of Appeals of Texas
- Release Date : January 14, 1991
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 61 KB
Description
The State of Texas appeals the ruling of the trial court granting a motion to suppress. On original submission, the State presented one point of error contending that: (1) sobriety checkpoints are constitutional; (2) the trial court erred in holding that the DWI checkpoint violated the fourth amendment to the United States Constitution and Article 1, section 9 of the Texas Constitution; and (3) the trial court erred in granting the motion to suppress. This Court overruled the point and remanded the case for trial. The Court of Criminal Appeals remanded this sobriety checkpoint case for us to reconsider our holding in light of Michigan Department of State Police v. Sitz, 496 U.S. 444, 110 S.Ct. 2481, 110 L. Ed. 2d 412 (1990). State v. Wagner, 810 S.W.2d 207 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991). In our original opinion we affirmed the trial courts exclusion of evidence obtained at a sobriety checkpoint stop. State v. Wagner, 791 S.W.2d 573, 574 (Tex. App.--Dallas 1990). We upheld the courts action and held that obtaining evidence in this manner violates the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. In reaching that conclusion we relied upon Higbie v. State, 780 S.W.2d 228 (Tex. Crim. App. 1989). Wagner, 791 S.W.2d at 576. The Court of Criminal Appeals has since determined that Higbie was overruled by Sitz. King v. State, 800 S.W.2d 528, 529 (Tex. Crim. App. 1990). To the extent to which we relied on Higbie our opinion was reversed. State v. Wagner, 810 S.W.2d 207 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991). In our original opinion we considered the States argument that roadblocks are permissible within the administrative scheme which allows drivers license and insurance checkpoints. What distinguishes sobriety checkpoint roadblocks from regulatory inspections is that there is no regulatory agency to enforce the drunk driving prohibition other than the police and the criminal courts. Wagner, 791 S.W.2d at 576. Texas has no administrative scheme providing authority for the police to engage in the collection of evidence at sobriety checkpoints. In his concurring opinion, Justice Miller, along with five other justices, distills the issue for us to resolve as whether Texas has an administrative scheme permitting DWI roadblocks consistent with the safeguards embodied in Sitz. Wagner, No. 724-90, slip op. at 3 (Tex. Crim. App. May 29, 1991). On remand, we conclude that, because Texas has no such administrative scheme, this roadblock violated Wagners rights under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. We affirm the ruling of the trial court and remand the cause for trial.
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