Cottrell v. State

The trial court did not abuse its discretion in limiting the defendant's request for full information to the material, which the state conceded to be discoverable.

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A Clayton County jury found William M. Cottrell guilty of driving under the influence and making an improper turn at an intersection. On appeal, Cottrell claims that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress the blood test evidence because the state failed to provide the full information he requested to show that the interferents reported in his breath test did not affect his blood test. Cottrell also claims that the trial court erred in failing to suppress the blood test results because he never had the opportunity to confront one of the testers. We disagree and affirm. Evidence adduced at the motion hearing and at trial shows that on October 9, 2005, a Clayton County police officer was dispatched to the scene of an accident. He spoke to the driver, Cottrell, who explained that he was making a turn when his brakes locked up, causing the car to skid across the pavement and hit the curb. The officer noticed that Cottrell had red, glassy eyes and that his breath smelled strongly of alcoholic beverages. Cottrell admitted to drinking four twelve-ounce Budweiser beers and two mixed drinks within the past two and a half hours. After Cottrell submitted to a field sobriety test, the officer concluded that Cottrell was less safe to drive and placed him under arrest for DUI.

The officer then read the implied consent notice to Cottrell, who agreed to a breath test. The three attempts at obtaining a reading from the Intoxilyzer 5000 were unsuccessful. The first and third samples were shown to be invalid because an interferent was detected. According to the officer, the second sample was invalid because Cottrell failed to blow properly into the machine.

Cottrell v. State

The trial court did not abuse its discretion in limiting the defendant's request for full information to the material, which the state conceded to be discoverable.

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