442 N.E.2d 784 | Ohio Ct. App. | 1981
The defendant seeks reversal of his conviction for the misdemeanor of driving while under the influence of alcohol (R.C.
At the suppression hearing, an officer of the Springfield Township Police Department testified that he responded to a radio broadcast of an automobile accident on Hamilton Avenue, arriving at the scene in approximately two minutes. He observed an automobile in the front yard of a private residence with the defendant standing twenty-five to thirty feet away from the vehicle. The defendant admitted that he owned the auto and that he had been driving. His speech was slurred and he had difficulty in walking. The officer placed the defendant under arrest, and a breathalyzer test was administered which indicated .23 percent alcohol in the blood. The defendant then testified, denied driving the car, and claimed that a man whom he could only identify as "Jim" had driven the vehicle into the yard. The court overruled the motion and the defendant submitted the case on the evidence presented. The defendant was found guilty and sentenced as appears of record.
We affirm the defendant's conviction on two grounds, holding that under the facts adduced the arrest was legal and that even if illegal the evidence need not be suppressed.
As a general rule, Ohio statutory law provides that a misdemeanor must be committed in the presence of a law enforcement officer before he may make a warrantless arrest. R.C.
Even if we were to conclude that because the offense was not committed in the presence of the officer the arrest was contrary to R.C.
In determining whether the defendant's arrest was unconstitutional, we note that an arrest without a warrant is *443 constitutionally invalid unless the arresting officer had probable cause to make it at the time. According to the officer's testimony, the defendant appeared visibly intoxicated, admitted ownership of the vehicle and admitted driving it. We hold that the officer had probable cause to reasonably believe that a crime had been committed and that it had been committed by the defendant. The suppression of evidence is not warranted. The assignment of error is overruled.
We affirm.
Judgment affirmed.
BLACK, P.J., KEEFE and DOAN, JJ., concur.
"No person who is under the influence of alcohol or any drug of abuse, or the combined influence of alcohol and any drug of abuse, shall operate any vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley within this state."
"(A) A sheriff, deputy sheriff, marshal, deputy marshal, police officer, or state university law enforcement officer appointed under section
"(B) When there is reasonable ground to believe that an offense of violence, the offense of domestic violence as defined in section