State v. Schmidbauer
2013 Ohio 530
Ohio Ct. App.2013Background
- Defendant Deborah Schmidbauer was convicted in Clermont County Municipal Court, Traffic Division, of operating a vehicle under the influence (OVI).
- A Kroger manager reported that Schmidbauer, while intoxicated, left the store, appeared impaired, and urinated herself; he described erratic driving and provided Schmidbauer’s license plate.
- Officer James McFarland located Schmidbauer’s car shortly after the dispatch and stopped/detained her when she displayed signs of intoxication at the scene.
- Schmidbauer admitted alcohol consumption but declined to quantify it; she refused field sobriety tests due to a claimed foot injury.
- A horizontal gaze nystagmus test indicated intoxication; Schmidbauer was arrested and later subjected to a breath test showing BAC of .277.
- Schmidbauer moved to suppress the stop and the breath-test results; the trial court denied both, and she pled no contest leading to sentencing
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the stop was unlawful and violated Fourth Amendment rights | Bishop’s dispatch tip created reasonable suspicion for a stop | Stop was unsupported by independent observed traffic violation | Stop valid under reasonable suspicion |
| Whether the breath-test result should have been suppressed for lacking a dry gas control | Dry gas control needed between samples per Administrative Code | Kormos held no dry gas control required between consecutive samples in a subject test | Breath test admission affirmed; no suppression |
Key Cases Cited
- United States v. Hensley, 469 U.S. 221 (1985) (probable cause/stop authority under Fourth Amendment)
- City of Maumee v. Weisner, 87 Ohio St.3d 295 (Ohio 1999) (informant reliability factors and reasonable suspicion analysis)
- United States v. Cortez, 449 U.S. 411 (1981) (totality of the circumstances in reasonable suspicion)
- Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213 (1983) (reliability of informant tips and totality of circumstances)
- Alabama v. White, 496 U.S. 325 (1990) (anonymous versus identified informants; reasonable suspicion standards)
- State v. Cochran, 2007-Ohio-3353 (12th Dist.) (mixed law-fact review of suppression rulings)
- State v. Abercrombie, 2002-Ohio-2414 (12th Dist.) (informant reliability and immediacy of report)