State v. FischerState v. Fischer
In this appeal, we must decide if a law enforcement officer can use a computer screen to make a “written request” to withdraw a bodily substance for testing from a driver suspected of operating while intoxicated. We conclude a computer screen satisfies the statutory requirement of a “written request.” We reverse the decision of the district court and remand the ease for further proceedings.
I. Background Pacts and Proceedings.
On October 6, 2008, at approximately 7:40 a.m., State Trooper Joseph Scott stopped a vehicle driven by Jeffrey Alan Fischer in Crystal Lake, Iowa, because Fischer was not wearing his seat belt. After coming into contact with Fischer, Trooper Scott made several observations leading him to conclude that Fischer had been drinking alcohol prior to driving. Trooper Scott placed Fischer under arrest and transported him to the Hancock County Sheriffs Office.
At the sheriffs office, Trooper Scott used the laptop from his car to complete the processing of the arrest using the Traffic and Criminal Software (TraCS) program.
1
The laptop monitor displayed the form Trooper Scott was completing, entitled “Request and Notice Under Iowa Code Chapter 321J/Section 321.208,” also referred to as “Form MOWI.” The laptop was also connected to the DataMaster breath test machine located at the sheriffs office. Trooper Scott sat in front of the computer screen while Fischer sat to Trooper Scott’s right approximately three to four feet from the computer screen. The computer screen faced Trooper Scott. He testified at the hearing that the screen was not hidden or shielded from Fischer as he implemented the implied-consent procedures. In implementing the procedures, Trooper Scott read Fischer the “Implied Consent Advisory” from the computer screen. He next read Fischer the “Request for Specimen,” also displayed on the computer screen. The request contained the following language: “Having read to you the appropriate implied consent advisory, I hereby request a specimen of your Breath for chemical testing to determine the alcohol or drug content.” The trooper had checked the box on the computer screen indicating he was requesting a breath sample rather than a blood or urine sample and had inputted the date and time. The trooper then prompted the
The pop-up window did not consume the entire computer screen and contained an enlargement of the text following the “Request for Specimen” language from the form the trooper was completing. The form remained in the background of the screen while the pop-up window was active. The text in the window read: “Having been read the Implied Consent Advisory, I ... to submit to the withdrawal of the specimen(s) requested.” Two boxes and a signature line also appeared in the window following the text. The first box was labeled “consent,” and the second box was labeled “refuse.” Using a stylus, Fischer checked the box marked “consent” on the touch screen laptop monitor and signed his name. After checking the box, the word “consent” appeared to fill in the textual space between “I” and “to submit.” Fischer’s decision to consent to a breath test and his signature were instantly recorded and appeared within the form after the pop-up window disappeared.
After Fischer checked the box next to “consent” and signed his name, Trooper Scott took a sample of Fischer’s breath using the DataMaster. The test reported a blood-alcohol level of .157. The trooper completed the form by signing and dating the form on the screen to certify the form’s truth and accuracy. Trooper Scott testified a driver is able to withdraw consent to a breath test prior to administration of the test, but after the breath test is complete the information entered in the form on the computer becomes permanent. Fischer was not given a printed version of the “Request for Specimen” before the breath test was administered.
Fischer was charged with operating while intoxicated, second offense. He filed a motion to suppress his breath-test results, alleging the TraCS system’s electronic version of the form containing the “Request for Specimen” did not meet the “written request” requirement of Iowa Code section 321J.6(1) (2007). The district court granted the motion to suppress Fischer’s breath-test results. The court determined Trooper Scott did not comply with the “written request” requirement because neither the computer screen he used to read the pertinent request nor a paper copy of the form was shown to Fischer prior to the administration of the test. The State sought, and we granted, discretionary review of the district court ruling.
II. Standard of Review.
The district court granted Fischer’s motion to suppress based on its interpretation of Iowa Code section 321J.6(1). We review a district court’s decision to grant a motion to suppress based on its interpretation of a statute for errors at law.
State v. Stratmeier,
III. Overview of Iowa Implied-Consent Law.
It has been a crime to operate a motor vehicle while intoxicated in Iowa since 1911.
See
1911 Iowa Acts ch. 72, § 24 (codified at
In 1953, New York became the first state in the nation to enact an implied-consent law.
2
Cafaro at 103 & n. 25 (referring to codified version of New York’s implied-consent law,
The procedures were subsequently introduced in the Senate and enacted by the General Assembly in 1963.
3
See
S.F. 437, 60th G.A., Reg. Sess. § 34 (Iowa 1963); 1963 Iowa Acts ch. 114, §§ 36-50 (codified at Iowa Code ch. 321B (1966)). The implied-consent procedures were originally enacted as a part of an overall administra-five effort to regulate the control, sale, and use of alcohol and were not included as an organic part of the 1966 criminal operating while intoxicated (OWI) laws.
See
1963 Iowa Acts ch. 114 (entitled “Liquor Control, Sale and Use”). The General Assembly declared its policy in enacting chapter 321B was “to control alcoholic beverages and aid the enforcement of laws prohibiting operation of a motor vehicle while in an intoxicated condition.”
Although the implied-consent law is based on the premise that all drivers consent to the withdrawal of a body substance for testing if suspected of driving while intoxicated, the law is tempered by giving drivers the right to withdraw this implied consent and refuse the test.
State v. Massengale,
Pursuant to the implied-consent procedure, an officer who has reasonable grounds to believe a driver is operating a vehicle while intoxicated must first make a written request to withdraw the driver’s blood, urine, or breath to determine the specific concentration of alcohol.
Our earlier decisions in
Gottschalk v. Sueppel,
If a driver refuses the chemical testing under the implied-consent procedure, the officer sends the department of transportation a certified, sworn report that the officer had reasonable grounds to believe the person was driving while intoxicated and that conditions existed to perform a chemical test under
IV. Interpretation of Written-Request Requirement.
The broad issue presented in this appeal is whether the use of a computer
In relevant part, the legislature’s rules of construction provide:
In the construction of the statutes, the following rules shall be observed, unless such construction would be inconsistent with the manifest intent of the general assembly, or repugnant to the context of the statute:
39. Written — in writing — signature. The words “written” and “in writing” may include any mode of representing words or letters in general use, and include an electronic record as defined in section 554D.103.
In turn, “electronic record” is defined as any record “created, generated, sent, communicated, received, or stored by electronic means.”
It is the intent of the general assembly in enacting this chapter to effectuate all of the following purposes:
3. Facilitate electronic filing of documents with state and local government agencies and promote efficient delivery of government services by means of reliable electronic records.
5. Promote public confidence in the integrity, reliability, and legality of electronic records....
2000 Iowa Acts ch. 1189, § 2 (codified at
Consequently, the statutory definition of the word “written” is an important consideration in our resolution of whether a computer screen can be used to satisfy the statutory “written request” requirement. Clearly, the word “written” means any mode of representing words and includes a record “communicated ... or stored by electronic means.”
The legislature did not specifically articulate a purpose for the “written request” requirement under the implied-consent law. We have, however, explored the role of the “written request” requirement within the Act as a whole in our prior cases.
See State v. Charlson,
We have found the written request requirement for the withdrawal of a bodily substance for testing to be “procedural, rather than substantive in character.”
Charlson,
In past cases, the purpose of the “written request” requirement in
Having identified the purpose of the “written request” requirement, we turn to consider whether the use of a computer screen as the writing would contravene the intent of the legislature in making the requirement a part of the implied-consent law. As a general proposition, we recognize our society is in the midst of a transformation to paperless commerce and interaction between people. This transformation is even observable in Iowa’s court system, which has begun the process of becoming a totally paperless system. Additionally, many of our rules have been modified to accommodate the use of computers to store and communicate information. The paper-laden world of yesterday will be much different tomorrow. This transformation is largely based on the ability of computers to maintain accurate and reliable records, perhaps better in many ways than paper.
In particular, the “TraCS system” used by Trooper Scott is “a sophisticated data collection and reporting tool for the public safety community to streamline and automate the capture of incident data in the field and transfer the data from the local agency to a statewide enterprise system.” Iowa Dep’t of Transp., TraCS,
Histoi"y of the National Model,
http://www.iowatracs. us/About/NationalModel.aspx (last visited July 16, 2010). Moreover, some of the cited benefits of recording data at the point of origination are improvements in accuracy, completeness, and timeliness, in part because the system eliminates the need for duplicate entries in local and state databases.
Id.
The system also facilitates a greater electronic network within the State of Iowa: TraCS enables electronic filings with and data transfers 'to the courts.
Id.
Thus, the system used in this case is not only consistent with the legislature’s purpose for written requests in OWI cases, it also appears to affirmatively support it. Because using an electronic form of the written request for a breath sample does not conflict with the legislative purpose behind the requirement in
Notwithstanding, Fischer more specifically argues that the purpose of the “written request” requirement is broader than to merely maintain accurate and reliable records. He asserts the requirement also exists to allow a driver to view the request before making the decision to consent to give a sample or refuse to give a sample and that the manner in which the computer screen was used in this case, in conjunction with the way the program operated, did not allow him to view the entire “writ
The record in this case revealed the written request portion of the implied-consent procedures existed on the computer screen, but in small font and at an angle from Fischer. The form on the screen was a work in progress, requiring Fischer’s signature and selection of “consent” or “refuse” on the “Request for Specimen” section of the form, along with several unrelated inputs by the officer, before the form was “locked” in its final version. Yet, the only portion of the “Notice and Consent” form at issue in the case is the specific section requesting a specimen of the driver’s breath. The request itself is the only portion that is statutorily required to be in writing and signed by the driver prior to administration of the test. See Iowa Code ch. 321J. It is undisputed that the relevant request existed in writing on the computer screen at the time Fischer signed the form. Moreover, the purpose of the “written request” requirement is not as broad as claimed by Fischer. It is irrelevant that a driver does not see the entire “Request and Notice” form because the statute does not require the entire form to be given to or observed by a driver prior to the test. The only component of the overall form required to be “in writing,” as it pertains to a driver, is the “Request for Specimen.”
Fischer narrows his argument even further by asserting the statute required the law enforcement officer in this case to make an affirmative effort to draw his attention to the form that appeared on the computer screen, so he could have reviewed it for himself to provide a better opportunity for his decision making. However, the written-request requirement of
We do not read a requirement into a statutory scheme when none exists because “[i]t is not our province to write such a requirement into the [implied consent] statute.”
Gottschalk,
We also recognize that electronic forms may be altered until they are permanently saved. This is an improvement over the prior practice of discarding paper in mass quantities when a mistake or change of heart occurs in order to start over on a fresh page. The nature of computerized documents allows for changes in documents without the consequence of producing additional waste. This technological reality does not affect our decision that, although alterable on the same screen, documents on a computer constitute a “writing” for purposes of
V. Conclusion.
We have considered all the claims raised on appeal. We reverse the decision of the district court and remand the case for further proceedings.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
Notes
. TraCS is a program that is on the computers used in patrol cars in the state of Iowa. The program contains different types of forms necessary for patrol officers, including tickets, warnings, commercial motor vehicle inspections, and OWI paperwork. Trooper Scott testified that he received extensive training on the system and uses it every day. Trooper Scott also testified that the OWI report form on the TraCS system containing the request for specimen at issue in this case is the same as the printed forms.
. The concept of implied consent was conceived after prosecutors began using chemical-test evidence in the 1940s to convict impaired drivers and scientific instruments to measure blood alcohol content started to emerge as an alternative to the withdrawal of blood as a method to scientifically detect the presence of alcohol in the body. Cafaro at 102. The first stable instrument for measuring blood alcohol from a breath sample, the Drunkometer, was invented in 1938. Id. at 103 n. 24. The Breathalyzer brand was invented in 1954. Id.
. In 1967, the Secretary of Transportation began to issue national uniform standards for highway safety programs throughout the country. See Cafaro at 104. The programs were aimed at reducing traffic accidents due to persons driving while under the influence of alcohol and included an implied-consent law. Id. By 1992, implied-consent laws were enacted in all fifty states and the District of Columbia. Id.
. Fischer does not argue the officer failed to make a request for a breath test prior to administration of the test, a requirement that is implicit in the statute and made explicit in our prior cases.
See Richards,