NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAII REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER
NO. 27336
IN
THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS
OF
THE STATE OF HAWAI`I
STATE OF HAWAI`I, Plaintiff-Appellee, v.
JERRY LEE, Defendant-Appellant
APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF
THE FIRST CIRCUIT
(HPD Traffic Nos. 004424211; 004424201;
HPD Criminal No. 04424348)
SUMMARY DISPOSITION ORDER
(By: Watanabe, Presiding J., Lim, and Nakamura, JJ.)
Defendant-Appellant
Jerry Lee (Lee) appeals from the judgments entered by the District
Court of the First Circuit (the
district court) (1) on May 4, 2005,
convicting and sentencing him for operating a vehicle under the
influence of an intoxicant
(DUI), in violation of Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS)
§ 291E-61(a)(1) (Supp. 2004), (2)
and leaving the scene of an accident
involving damage to vehicle or property (leaving the scene), in
violation of HRS § 291C-13 (1993). (3)
Lee contends that
the district court erred in denying his motions for judgment of
acquittal as to the DUI and leaving-the-scene offenses because: (1)
there was insufficient evidence to establish that (a) he was under the
influence of alcohol in an
amount sufficient to impair his normal mental faculties or the ability
to care for himself and guard against casualty, and (b)
he operated a vehicle on "a public way, street, road, or highway[,]" as
that term is defined in HRS § 291E-1 (Supp. 2004);
and (2) there was insufficient evidence to establish that he
"intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly [left] the scene of an
accident" because the testimony indicated he was not aware that he had
been involved in an accident.
Based on our
review of the record on appeal and the briefs submitted by the parties,
and having duly considered the
applicable statutes, case law, and rules of evidence, we disagree with
Lee. See Hawai`i
Rules of Evidence Rule 701; State
v. Toyomura, 80 Hawai`i 8, 25, 904 P.2d 893, 910 (1995); State v. Mitchell, 94
Hawai`i 388, 15 P.3d 314 (App. 2000);
State v. Souza, 72
Haw. 246, 249, 813 P.2d 1384, 1386 (1991); HRS § 702-230
(1993); and Commentary on HRS § 702-230.
Accordingly, we
affirm the judgments entered by the District Court of the First Circuit
on May 4, 2005, from which
Defendant-Appellant Jerry Lee appealed.
DATED: Honolulu,
Hawai`i, September 15, 2006.
On the briefs:
Nicole K. Gibby,
deputy public defender,
State of Hawai`i,
for defendant-appellant.
Anne K. Clarkin,
deputy prosecuting attorney,
City and County of Honolulu,
for plaintiff-appellee.
1. The Honorable William A.
Cardwell presided.
2. At the time
Defendant-Appellant Jerry Lee was arrested, Hawaii Revised Statutes
(HRS) § 291E-61 (Supp. 2004)
provided, in relevant part, as follows:
Operating a vehicle
under the influence of an intoxicant. (a) A person commits the
offense of operating a vehicle
under the influence of an intoxicant if the person operates or assumes
actual physical control of a vehicle:
(1)
While under the influence of alcohol in an amount
sufficient to impair the person's normal mental faculties or
ability to
care for the person and guard against casualty[.]
The word
"operate" was defined in HRS § 291E-1 (Supp. 2004), in relevant
part, as follows:
"Operate" means to drive or
assume actual physical control of a vehicle upon a public way, street,
road, or highway[.]
"Public
way, street, road, or highway" was defined as including:
(1) The
entire width, including berm or shoulder, of every road, alley, street,
way, right of way, lane, trail,
highway, or
bridge;
(2)
A parking lot, when any part thereof is open for use
by the public or to which the public is invited for
entertainment or
business purposes;
(3) Any
bicycle lane, bicycle path, bicycle route, bikeway, controlled-access
highway, laned roadway,
roadway, or street,
as
defined in section 291C-1; or
(4)
Any public highway, as defined in section 264-1.
3. HRS § 291C-13 (1993)
provides:
Accidents involving
damage to vehicle or property. The driver of any vehicle
involved in an accident resulting only in
damage to a vehicle or other property which is driven or attended by
any person shall immediately stop such vehicle at the
scene of the accident or as close thereto as possible, but shall
forthwith return to and in every event shall remain at the
scene of the accident until the driver has fulfilled the requirements
of section 291C-14. Every such stop shall be made
without obstructing traffic more than is necessary. Any
person failing to stop or to comply with the requirements of this
section under such circumstances shall be fined not more than $100 or
imprisoned not more than ten days for a first
conviction; fined not more than $200 or imprisoned not more than twenty
days, or both, for a second conviction within one
year of a first conviction; and fined not more than $500 or imprisoned
not more than six months, or both, for a third
conviction within one year of a first conviction.
HRS §
291C-14 (1993) states, in relevant part:
Duty to
give information and render aid. (a) The driver of any vehicle
involved
in an accident resulting in injury to or death of any person or damage
to any
vehicle or other property which is driven or attended by any person
shall give the
driver's name, address, and the registration number of the vehicle the
driver is
driving, and shall upon request and if available exhibit the driver's
license or
permit to drive to any person injured in the accident or to the driver
or occupant
of or person attending any vehicle or other property damaged in the
accident and
shall give such information and upon request exhibit such license or
permit to any
police officer at the scene of the accident or who is investigating the
accident
and shall render to any person injured in the accident reasonable
assistance,
including the carrying, or the making of arrangements for the carrying,
or the
making of arrangements for the carrying, of the person to a physician,
surgeon, or
hospital for medical or surgical treatment if it is apparent that such
treatment
is necessary, or if such carrying is requested by the injured person[.]