120 N.E.3d 253
Ind. Ct. App.2019Background
- On Nov. 12, 2015, Jordan B. Wadle struck Charles Woodward with his car in a bar parking lot after an on‑site altercation; Woodward suffered severe injuries requiring surgery and long hospitalization.
- Police later stopped Wadle miles away; he exhibited signs of intoxication and a blood draw showed BAC 0.14.
- The State charged Wadle with aggravated battery (acquitted), leaving the scene (elevated to Level 3 felony because it followed OWI causing serious bodily injury), OWI causing serious bodily injury (elevated to Level 5 for prior OWI), OWI endangering a person (Level 6), and operating with ACE ≥ 0.08 (misdemeanor / enhancement alleged).
- Jury convicted on leaving the scene (Level 3), OWI causing serious bodily injury, OWI endangering, and operating with ACE ≥ 0.08; Wadle admitted the prior that elevated counts in phase two.
- Trial court sentenced concurrent terms, with the leaving the scene count receiving 16 years (2 suspended).
- On appeal, Wadle argued that his convictions for leaving the scene and the various OWI counts violate double jeopardy under Indiana law.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Wadle) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether convictions for leaving the scene (elevated for OWI causing serious bodily injury) and OWI causing serious bodily injury violate Indiana constitutional double jeopardy under the Richardson actual‑evidence test | The crimes arise from distinct acts/times (OWI in the parking lot; leaving later), so the jury could have relied on different facts | The same evidentiary facts (the act of driving while intoxicated that struck Woodward) were used both to elevate leaving the scene and to prove OWI causing serious bodily injury, creating a reasonable possibility the jury relied on the same facts for both convictions | Actual‑evidence test met: convictions violate Article I, §14 where elevation evidence duplicates elements of another conviction; convictions vacated as to OWI counts but leaving the scene conviction remains |
| Whether convictions also offend common‑law (Guyton) rules against multiple convictions when an enhancement duplicates punishment for the same behavior/harm | The elevation reflects a separate statutory harm (duty to stop) and different temporal act; thus convictions may stand | Elevation punished the same conduct/harm as the OWI convictions; common‑law rule bars convicting and punishing both the base/elevated count and the separate OWI counts that rest on identical behavior | Court applies Guyton common‑law rule and finds duplicative punishment; OWI convictions vacated to avoid double punishment |
| Remedy when double jeopardy found between elevated leaving‑the‑scene and OWI convictions | (Implicit) remedy should avoid upsetting trial court sentencing discretion | Wadle seeks vacatur of the duplicative OWI convictions | Court reverses and vacates OWI causing serious bodily injury, OWI endangering, and operating with ACE ≥ 0.08; leaves Level 3 leaving‑the‑scene conviction and its 16‑year sentence intact |
| Whether other OWI counts (endangering; ACE ≥ 0.08) separately survive double jeopardy analysis | State argued counts derive from distinct conduct or are separately punishable | Wadle argued all OWI convictions arose from the same single act of driving while intoxicated that struck Woodward | Court finds all three OWI convictions based on the same act and vacates them under common‑law and actual‑evidence reasoning |
Key Cases Cited
- Richardson v. State, 717 N.E.2d 32 (Ind. 1999) (establishes statutory‑elements and actual‑evidence double jeopardy tests)
- Guyton v. State, 771 N.E.2d 1141 (Ind. 2002) (adopts Justice Sullivan's common‑law categories limiting multiple convictions/enhancements)
- Wieland v. State, 736 N.E.2d 1198 (Ind. 2000) (holds elevated and underlying convictions may violate double jeopardy when same injury/evidence used twice)
- Spivey v. State, 761 N.E.2d 831 (Ind. 2002) (discusses reasonable‑possibility standard for actual‑evidence test)
- Cross v. State, 15 N.E.3d 569 (Ind. 2014) (applies Guyton common‑law rule to vacate duplicative convictions/enhancements)