Daniel James Weems v. State
2014 Tex. App. LEXIS 5109
| Tex. App. | 2014Background
- Weems was charged with driving while intoxicated with a repeat felony offender enhancement.
- Officer Bustamante ordered a blood draw at the hospital without a warrant, claiming implied consent and a mandatory blood draw statute authorized it.
- Weems was taken to the hospital about 3 hours after the crash; the blood draw occurred there, not at a magistrate’s office.
- Weems refused a breath test at the scene; no field sobriety tests were performed due to injuries.
- BAC testing showed 0.18 g/dL at 2:30 a.m.; it was argued last drink was around 11:30 p.m., with potential ongoing impairment.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Texas implied consent/mandatory blood draw statutes are Fourth Amendment exceptions | Weems | State | Not applicable as an exception; not a valid Fourth Amendment exception |
| Whether McNeely forbids per se exigency and requires case-by-case analysis for warrantless blood draws | Weems | State | Court adopts McNeely’s case-by-case approach; per se rule rejected |
| Whether exigent circumstances justified the warrantless blood draw | Weems | State | Record lacks exigent circumstances; not justified |
| Whether the evidence admission was protected by good-faith reliance on statutes | Weems | State | Exclusionary rule applies; not good faith |
| Whether the error contributed to the conviction, requiring reversal | Weems | State | Cannot determine beyond a reasonable doubt that it did not contribute; reversal warranted |
Key Cases Cited
- McNeely v. Missouri, 133 S. Ct. 1552 (2013) (per se exigency rule rejected; totality of circumstances governs warrantless blood tests)
- Beeman v. State, 86 S.W.3d 613 (Tex. Crim. App. 2002) (implied consent expands search capabilities in absence of warrants (dicta))
- Schmerber v. California, 384 U.S. 757 (1966) (body-intrusive searches require warrants absent recognized exceptions)
- United States v. Robinson, 414 U.S. 218 (1973) (searches incident to arrest and warrant exceptions principles)
- Illinois v. Krull, 480 U.S. 340 (1987) (good-faith reliance limits under exclusionary rule)