The STATE of Idaho, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Roscoe A. KELLOGG, Defendant-Appellant.
No. 13096
Supreme Court of Idaho
Nov. 3, 1981
636 P.2d 750
Two points should be noted. First,
Although the paragraph addressing judicial review in
McFADDEN, J., concurs.
Stanley D. Crow and Conrad J. Aiken, Crow & Aiken, Boise, Roscoe A. Kellogg, pro se, for defendant-appellant.
David H. Leroy, Atty. Gen., Lynn E. Thomas, Sol. Gen., Boise, for plaintiff-respondent.
In Kellogg I1 we stated the issues there presented as follows:
“Defendant-respondent Roscoe A. Kellogg was charged with the offense of selling a prescription drug, prednisolonе, without legal authority to do so, in viola
tion of I.C. § 37-2210 . On defendant‘s motion, the district court dismissed the information, holding that the statutory procedure by which a drug is classified as a prescription drug constitutes an unconstitutional delegation of legislative authority in violation ofIdaho Constitution Art. 2, § 1 , andArt. 3, § 1 . The state appeals, arguing that there is no improper delegation. Defendant raises two additional issues on cross-appeal. Defendant contends that the state has failed to show that prednisolone is a prescription drug, and that because he is a naturopathic physician, he is entitled to dispense prescription drugs under the terms of the statute.” 98 Idaho at 542, 568 P.2d at 515.
We reversed and remanded, holding that
In Kellogg I we also answered Kellogg‘s contention there advanced that the prosecution had not established that dispensing prednisolone requires a prescription by noting that several of the stipulated reference works (which would be introduced at trial) denominated prednisolone as a prescription drug. Id. at 545, 568 P.2d at 518.
Following remand and upon trial it was established that tablets sold by Kellogg were subsequently identified as prednisolone. It was also established to the jury‘s satisfaction that Kellogg was not licensed as required by
After remand and prior to trial, Kellogg moved the trial court for a dismissal predicated upon the premise that the state had not produced an NDA (new drug application) order governing prednisolone as a prescription drug. Kellogg relied in part upon the contents of footnote 4 to Kellogg I which is for convenience set forth in the margin below.2
The state submitted eleven exhibits by which it contended that the prescription status of prednisolone was satisfactorily shown. The triаl court agreed with the state and ruled that such would not be an issue at trial. Kellogg challenges that determination, and others, on appeal.3
I.
Our decision in State v. Hobbs, 101 Idaho 262, 611 P.2d 1047 (1980), which was handed down after Kellogg‘s conviction, is dispositive of the first issue. Therein four members of the Court, responding to a contention that the judgment there “must be reversed because the state did not put in any evidence of phencyclidine‘s classifica
The only significant difference between that case and this is that phencyclidine was classifiеd by the legislature, and its delivery criminalized, whereas here the legislature committed classification of prescription drugs to the pharmacy board, criminalizing the sale thereof by unlicensed persons. That delegation of authority was upheld in Kellogg I.
As we stated in Hobbs, the trial court will judicially notice a drug‘s classification, and in this instance the trial court was doing no more. The proposition before the Court was not that it be proven that prednisolone was a prescription drug, but rather to judicially notice that it was. Therein it was aided by the various exhibits which sufficiently demonstrated that prednisolone was indeed recognized as a prescription drug by operation of federal law. Hence we here hold that the trial court committed no error in denying the motion to dismiss and allowing the case to go to trial.
II.
The second issue presented is whether the court erred in allowing the state‘s expert witness, Pamela Southcombe, to testify as to her opinion that the substance dispensed by Kellogg was, in fact, prednisolone. Kellogg argues that although Southcombe was admittedly an expert in the identification of drugs, she was not an expert in the identification of minerals, vitamins, enzymes or fatty acids. At trial Kellogg asserted, although he did not attempt to prove, that the substance was in fact a mineral or vitamin, and not a “drug” at all. Kellogg argues that the witness assumed the substance was a drug prior to testing, and that this assumption was impermissible. The witness testified that if her assumption that the substance was a drug was incorrect, she could not say that the substance was prednisolone. We agree. (If the substance was not a drug, by definition it would not be prednisolone, which is a drug.) However, Kellogg submitted no evidence suggesting that the substance was not a drug. While it is the state‘s burden initially to prove the nature of the substance which Kellogg dispensed, testimony of Pamela Southcombe was more than adequate to do so. The fact that she began her analysis with the assumption that the substance was a drug does not detract from the relevance of the tests she performed or the conclusions which she drew from the test results.5 Assuming a non-drug substance may theoretically give the same test results as prednisolone (something which Kellogg asserts but does not attempt to prove), the possibility of such an occurrence does not bar the jury from deciding that the evidence presented was convincing enough to persuade them, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the substance was prednisolone. As we stated in State v. Kellogg, 100 Idaho 483, 488-89, 600 P.2d 787, 792-93 (1979) (Kellogg II):
“Substance identification is an issue of fact to be decided by the jury.... Such a challenge [to the reliability оf testing procedures] goes only to the weight to be afforded Southcombe‘s testimony.... The credibility of witnesses and the weight to be afforded their testimony is for the jury. Where there is competent though conflicting evidence to sustain the verdict, this court cannot reweigh that evidence or disturb the verdict.”
III.
The final issue presented is whether the trial court erred in refusing to allow Kel
Kellоgg advances two contentions relative to the provisions of
As to Smith, that case addressed the question of whether naturopaths could be enjoined from practicing naturopathy at all on the basis of
“The important difference between Smith and the instant case is that in Smith the court was confronted with an attempt to enjoin Smith from holding himself out and advertising that he was a naturopathic physician.... In that case, there were no specific practices involved which might encroach upon the practices proscribed in
I.C. § 54-1802 ....“While naturopathy in the abstract, as defined in Smith, may pose no significant threat to the public safety, specific procedures employed by a naturopathic physician may be very dangerous.... What one does, and not what one calls himself, determines whether he is practicing medicine.”
Kellogg‘s argument that Maxfield overruled Smith, thus creating a different rule of law than was in effect at the time that Kellogg dispensed these pills, is incorrect. Smith cannot be read as sanctioning the dispensation of prescription drugs by naturopaths. Maxfield did not overrule Smith, it simply clarified the limits of Smith‘s holding.
Similarly unconvincing is Kellogg‘s argument that he should have been allowed to present evidence that the State Medical Board arbitrarily refuses to grant licenses to practice medicine to naturopaths. Initially, it must be noted that the court, not a jury, must be the determinor of the constitutionality of any statute or regulation.
We begin our analysis by noting that it is the legislature, not the State Board, which has determined that a degree from a medical school is a necessary prerequisite to obtaining a license to practice medicine in Idaho.
“An ‘acceptable school of medicine’ means a medical school located within the United States or Canada and designated as an approved medical school by the Liaison Committee for Medical Education Council on Medical Education, or a school of osteopathy located within the United States and designated as an approved school of osteopathy by the American Osteopathic Association, or a medical school acceptable to the board.” Idaho State Board of Medicine Rules and Regulations § 1.1.3.
While this interpretation is not binding on this Court, we deem it to be a reasonable construction of
We understand Kellogg‘s arguments as to the constitutionality of requiring a diploma from an accredited medical school to be founded upon the Due Process clauses of the United States Constitution,
The interest of the state in setting minimum educational standards as a prerequisite to applying for a license to practice medicine seems too obvious for dispute, and indeed Kellogg does not challenge this as a legitimate object of legislative concern. Kellogg‘s objection goes to the means which the legislature has chosen to meet its statutory goals; he wishes to present evidence that there is no rational basis for allowing persons from accredited medical schools to apply for licenses but refusing to allow graduates of naturopаthic colleges to apply for the same license.9 We believe that requiring accreditation is a rational means of insuring that persons applying for licenses to practice medicine meet minimum standards of competency; the possibility that some otherwise qualified persons may thereby be excluded does not make the statute irrational.10
We have reviewed Kellogg‘s other assignments of error and find them to be without merit.
Affirmed.
McFADDEN, DONALDSON and SHEPARD, JJ., concur.
BAKES, Chief Justice, dissenting:
I must dissent from the majority‘s decision on two grounds. First, I continue to adhere to my dissent in State v. Kellogg, 98 Idaho 541, 546, 568 P.2d 514, 519 (1977) (Kellogg I), that
The requirements of
“There is apparently no comprehensive list in existence which contains a complete rendition of federally designated prescription drugs. Instead, new drug application orders are kept on file at the Food & Drug Administration in Washington, D. C., and to establish conclusively that a drug has officially been designated a prescription drug, the state must obtain a certified copy of the relevant new drug application order for prednisolone.” 98 Idaho at 545, n. 4, 568 P.2d at 572, n. 4. (Emphasis added.)
The majority notes this statement in footnote 2 of its opinion, but curiously omits any application, explanation or treatment of it. The majority states that various exhibits, not even identified by the majority, sufficiently demonstrated that prednisolone is reсognized as a prescription drug; however, those exhibits, or any other exhibits other than a certified copy of a new drug application approval,4 are clearly insufficient under
Particular objection must also be made to the use of the affidavit by Jerome Halperin, erroneously admitted as an exhibit, to help prove the prescription status of prednisolone. Without so much as a comment concerning the hearsay rule or the defendant‘s right to confrontation under the sixth and fourteenth amendments, the majority accepts the affidavit of Jerome Halperin as admissible evidence. As far as the hearsay rule is concerned, it has long been the well accepted rule that absent statutory exceptions, an affidavit is inadmissible as evidence for the lack of the opportunity to cross examine the affiant. VI Wigmore on Evidence §§ 1709, 1710 (Chadbourn Ed. 1976); 3 Am.Jur.2d, Affidavits § 29 (1962). While there are some exceptions in Idaho which permit the use of affidavits in civil cases, e. g.,
Of even greater importance is the defendant‘s constitutional right to confront the witnesses against him.7 One of the primаry objectives of the confrontation clause was to prevent the use of ex parte affidavits, such as are sometimes used in civil cases, from being used against a defendant in lieu of a personal appearance by the witness and an opportunity by the defendant to cross examine and test the witness. California v. Green, 399 U.S. 149, 157-58, 90 S.Ct. 1930, 1934-1935, 26 L.Ed.2d 489 (1970); Mattox v. United States, 156 U.S. 237, 242-43, 15 S.Ct. 337, 339-340, 39 L.Ed. 409 (1895); State v. Mee, 102 Idaho 474, 478, 632 P.2d 663, 667 (1981). Yet, the majority has permitted exactly that, proof by affidavit which deprives the defendant of his right to cross examine the witness.
Consequently, for the above stated reasons I must dissent.
