Following a bench trial, the State Court of Henry County found Matthew Thomas guilty of driving while under the influence of alcohol to the extent it was less safe to drive, OCGA § 40-6-391 a 1; failure to maintain a lane, OCGA § 40-6-48; and improper passing on the right, OCGA § 40-6-43 b. Thomas appeals, contending that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress. Finding no error, we affirm.Because the trial court sits as the trier of fact when ruling on a motion to suppress or a motion in limine, its findings based upon conflicting evidence are analogous to a jury verdict and should not be disturbed by a reviewing court if there is any evidence to support them. When we review a trial court’s decision on such motions to exclude evidence, we construe the evidence most favorably to uphold the findings and judgment, and we adopt the trial court’s findings on disputed facts and credibility unless they are clearly erroneous.Citations and punctuation omitted. State v. Tousley , 271 Ga. App. 874 611 SE2d 139 2005. Viewed in the light most favorable to the trial court’s findings, the record shows the following facts. At approximately 11:30 p.m. on December 14, 2007, a police officer with the City of Hampton Police Department observed a pickup truck ahead of him, weaving back and forth between the lanes and crossing the fog line. Because the officer was already transporting a suspect in his patrol car, he did not want to initiate a traffic stop, so he attempted to call a dispatcher to report the truck, but his radio did not transmit properly. While he kept trying to alert the dispatcher, the officer suddenly saw the truck “slow way down . . . well below the speed limit,” and the officer drove past the truck. Another motorist approached the officer from behind and flashed his headlights to get the officer’s attention. The officer stopped on the left side of the road and turned on his emergency lights, and the motorist told him that he had seen the pickup truck swerving and was concerned that the driver would kill someone. While they were talking, the pickup truck sped by on the right-hand shoulder of the road. The officer followed the truck and saw it swerving between lanes. The officer was able to reach a dispatcher, who advised him that a county officer was on the way.
The officer following the truck saw the driver make a wide, looping right turn at an intersection, and he decided to initiate a traffic stop. When he approached the truck, he noticed a very strong odor of alcohol coming from the driver, Matthew Thomas. The officer asked Thomas to turn off the truck, step out of the vehicle, hand over his keys and license, and walk to the back of the truck to wait for the Henry County police officer to arrive. As Thomas walked, he had to support himself by holding onto the sides of the truck. While they waited, the officer and Thomas talked; the officer did not handcuff Thomas or place him in the patrol car.
