Starcher, J., concurring:
I concur with the Court's judgment. I write separately to point out that despite intimations to the contrary in some opinions, including the Court's opinion in the instant case, West Virginia law does not permit the admission of horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) evidence as substantive evidence of intoxication, without the reliability of the HGN evidence being shown.
This Court's leading case
on horizontal gaze nystagmus in connection with the proof of intoxication
(See footnote 1)
is State v. Barker, 179 W.Va. 194, 366 S.E.2d 642 (1988). The
following language from Barker is explanatory on the general subject
of HGN, and shows the concerns that this Court had in that case:
The HGN test is based on the
principle that consumption of alcohol causes nystagmus. Nystagmus is the rhythmic
oscillation of the eyes in a horizontal, vertical or rotary direction. ***
Nystagmus can be congenital or can be caused by a variety of conditions affecting
the brain, including ingestion of drugs such as alcohol or barbiturates. ***
In general, [i]n order for a scientific test to be initially admissible,
there must be general acceptance of the scientific principle which underlies
the test. There are some scientific tests, such as ballistics tests, fingerprint
identification, and blood tests, which are so generally accepted in the scientific
community that a trial court may take judicial notice of their reliability.
*** In the present case, the State offered no evidence to demonstrate the
reliability of either the HGN test or the scientific principle upon which
the HGN test is based, i.e., that alcohol consumption causes nystagmus. The
only testimony regarding the HGN test came from Officer Davis. Officer Davis
told the jury that the HGN test consists of the measurement of the horizontal
movement of the eye as it is affected by alcohol, and described how
he performed the test. He also described the reaction of a sober person's
eye to the test, and how that reaction is affected by consumption of alcohol.
He did not, however, address the scientific reliability of the test. We,
therefore, find that the lower court erred in admitting Officer Davis' testimony
concerning the HGN test.
One of the dangers inherent
in expert testimony in regard to scientific tests is that the jury may not
understand the exact nature of the test and the particular methodology of
the test procedure, and may accord an undue significance to the expert testimony.
It therefore seems reasonable to require, as we did in Clawson, some
in camera disclosure of the methodology, scientific reliability, and
results of the HGN test, as well as evidence of whether accepted test procedures
were followed by qualified personnel in a particular case. A demonstration
of reliability should include both testimony by expert witnesses and relevant
articles and scholarly publications. *** Even if the HGN test were found
to be reliable, and its results admissible, we would be left with the question
of whether estimates of blood alcohol content based on a driver's performance
of the HGN test are admissible. The HGN test is a field sobriety test. A police
officer's testimony as to a driver's performance on other field sobriety tests
like finger-to-nose or walking the line, is admissible at trial as evidence
that the driver was under the influence of alcohol. From the evidence presented,
we are not convinced that the HGN test should be entitled to any more evidentiary
value than other field sobriety tests. We note that unlike the blood, breath,
and urine tests, the HGN test has not been recognized by our state legislature
as a method for measuring blood alcohol content. We, therefore, find that
even if the reliability of the HGN test is demonstrated, an expert's testimony
as to a driver's performance on the test is admissible only as evidence that
the driver was under the influence. Estimates of blood alcohol content based
on the HGN test are inadmissible. Because the State did not introduce evidence
of the scientific reliability of the test in this case, we do not reach the
question of whether the HGN test is sufficiently reliable to be admissible.
179 W.Va. at 146-148, 366 S.E.2d at 644-646 (emphasis added, citations omitted).
This Court held in Barker
that HGN evidence is scientific evidence, and that there must be expert testimony
as to the evidence's reliability as evidence of intoxication. In Barker
we categorically refused to allow the HGN testimony of the police officer
to come in at all, because there was no evidence showing the HGN evidence's
scientific reliability as proof of intoxication.
Notably, in State v. Ferrell,
184 W.Va. 123, 138 n.4, 399 S.E.2d 834, 849 n.4 (1990), former Justice Thomas
Miller, one of our state's most learned writers in the area of scientific
and technical evidence, stated that in State v. Barker this Court had
rejected . . . the horizontal gaze nystagmus test[.] Id.
We also held in Syllabus Point
2 of Barker that if the HGN evidence were determined to be scientifically
reliable to show that a person is intoxicated, and therefore admissible, the
HGN evidence could not in any event be used to show a certain blood alcohol
level, but at best as a field sobriety test to circumstantially
show that a driver was probably intoxicated.
The great weight of authority
among courts is that HGN evidence is scientific evidence. See generally, United States v. Horn, 185 F.Supp.2d
530 (D.Md. 2002).
(See footnote 2) The persuasive force of HGN evidence rests
almost entirely upon an assertion of scientific legitimacy rather than a basis
of common knowledge. People v. Williams, 3 Cal.App.4th 1326, 5 Cal.Rptr.2d
130 (5th Dist. 1992). In State v. Murphy, 953 S.W.2d 200 (Tenn. 1997),
the court stated that testimony linking HGN to intoxication is scientific,
technical, or other specialized knowledge and therefore must be offered
through an expert witness. See also State v. Duffy, 778 A.2d
415 (N.H.2001); State v. Doriguzzi, 334 N.J.Super. 530, 760 A.2d 336
(2000); State v. Torres, 127 N.M. 20, 976 P.2d 20 (1999); Duffy
v. Director of Revenue, 966 S.W.2d 372 (Mo.Ct.App.1998); State v. Helms,
348 N.C. 578, 504 S.E.2d 293 (1998); Young v. City of Brookhaven,
693 So.2d 1355 (Miss. 1997); Com. v. Sands, 424 Mass. 184, 675
N.E.2d 421 (1997); Com. v. Apollo, 412 Pa.Super. 453, 603 A.2d 1023
(1992); People v. Erickson, 156 A.D.2d 760, 549 N.Y.S.2d 182 (1989).
West Virginia Rule of Evidence
Rule 702 requires that scientific test results, in order to be admissible,
be relevant and reliable. Watson v. Inco Alloys Intern, Inc., 209 W.Va.
234, 239, 545 S.E.2d 294, 299 (2001). There is a category of evidence based
on scientific methodology that is so longstanding and generally recognized
that it may be judicially recognized, and, therefore, a trial court need not
separately ascertain the basis for its reliability. Syllabus Point 1, Wilt v. Buracker, 191 W.Va. 39,
443 S.E.2d 196 (1993).
(See footnote 3) In
State v. Witte, ___ Kan. ___, 836 P.2d 1110, 1119-1120 (1992), the
court discussed the mixed state of scientific opinion regarding the reliability
of HGN evidence. The court stated:
Our research indicates that
the reaction within the scientific community is mixed. Some articles endorse
the HGN testing and its accuracy. Other articles discuss concerns with the
HGN test. *** In addition to intoxication, many other factors can cause
nystagmus.
Nystagmus
can be caused by problems in an individual's inner ear labyrinth. In fact,
irrigating the ears with warm or cold water, not a far- fetched scenario under
particular weather conditions, is a source of error. Physiological problems
such as certain kinds of diseases may also result in gaze nystagmus. Influenza,
streptococcus infections, vertigo, measles, syphilis, arteriosclerosis, muscular
dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, Korsakof's Syndrome, brain hemorrhage, epilepsy,
and other psychogenic disorders all have been shown to cause nystagmus. Furthermore,
conditions such as hypertension, motion sickness, sunstroke, eyestrain, eye
muscle fatigue, glaucoma, and changes in atmospheric pressure may result in
gaze nystagmus. The consumption of common substances such as caffeine, nicotine,
or aspirin also lead to nystagmus almost identical to that caused by alcohol consumption.
Temporary nystagmus can occur
when lighting conditions are poor.
An individual's circadian
rhythms (biorhythms) can affect nystagmus readings-- the body reacts differently
to alcohol at different times of the day. One researcher has suggested that
because of this, the angle of onset should be decreased five degrees between
midnight and 5 a.m. A number of driving under the influence arrests occur
after midnight, which would seem to indicate that sensitivity of HGN
to alcohol is enhanced during the hours of the day when the greatest number
of drunk driving arrests occur.
A prosecution-oriented group
in California conducted its own research:
The
study measured the correlation of police officer estimations of the angle
of onset of nystagmus against chemical tests involving breath and blood samples.
The data in the study revealed that there was virtually no correlation between
the actual value of blood alcohol concentration and the predicted value based
upon the angle of onset of nystagmus.
.
. . This study points out the fact that horizontal gaze nystagmus tests should
never be intended as a substitute for actual blood or breath alcohol testing.
The purpose of the procedure, if any is strictly a field screening function,
like other presumptive tests.
836 P.2d at 1119-1120 (citations omitted). The court concluded in State
v. Witte that the State had not established the scientific reliability
of the HGN evidence, and that the police officer's testimony about his observations
could not establish that reliability. Accord, State v. Chastain,
256 Kan. 16, 22, 960 P.2d 756, 761 (1992).
In Young v. City of Brookhaven,
693 So.2d 1355 (Miss. 1997), the Supreme Court of Mississippi held that the only allowable use of HGN evidence is
to establish probable cause to arrest and administer breath or blood tests.
The court delivered a stern warning concerning using the HGN test for
reasons other than to establish probable cause. The State cannot use the results
of the HGN test merely as an indicator to show that the defendant was 'under
the influence of intoxicating liquor' . . . . 693 So.2d at 1361. In
accord, Richbourg v. State, 744 So.2d 352, 354 (Miss. Ct. App.
1999). See also Graves v. State, 761 So.2d 950, 953 (Miss. Ct. App.
2000) (an officer could testify about doing an HGN evaluation only to show
probable cause to arrest a defendant and administer a breathalyzer, rather
than for the impermissible purpose of indicating that HGN evidence was scientific
evidence proving intoxication or impairment).
(See footnote 4)
Recently, in State v. Doriguzzi,
___ N.J. App. ___, 760 A.2d 336 (2000), the court held that HGN evidence is
scientific evidence that must be shown to meet a reliability standard before
it may be admitted. The court specifically declined to take judicial notice
of the reliability of HGN evidence, holding that a survey of the relevant
decisions did not provide the court with the level of certainty to generally
approve of the admission of HGN evidence in future cases. The Doriguzzi
court stated:
We emphasize that what is being sought here by the State is admission of HGN testing as an element of proof to permit the factfinder to conclude that failure of the HGN test, in combination with the failure of coordination tests, sufficiently proves defendant's guilt of driving under the influence of alcohol. *** We note a recurrent theme in the decisions from other jurisdictions that a jury may be inappropriately influenced by the apparent scientific precision of HGN testing or otherwise fail to properly understand it.
In U.S. v. Horn, supra,
the court held that while a police officer trained in observing nystagmus could
testify to the officer's observation of exaggerated nystagmus,
(See footnote 5) the officer could not testify
to the significance of the nystagmus. The officer could not, without stepping
outside the bounds of permissible non-scientific testimony, call HGN evidence
a test, could not say that the person failed, and could
not say that the observed nystagmus was a clue or signof
intoxication. 185 F.Supp.2d at 561.
The court in U.S. v. Horn
held that evidence as to any significance that might be given to factually
established exaggerated nystagmus in a given case must come from either judicial
notice of scientific facts, from case-specific testimony by expert witnesses,
or from learned treatises and recognized scientific studies relating to nystagmus
and intoxication. Because of a lack of such evidence in the U.S. v. Horn
case, including a lack of persuasive independent scientific studies in the
record showing the reliability of HGN evidence (and the record in Horn was
extremely well developed in this area), the court in Horn declined to take judicial notice of the scientific reliability
of exaggerated HGN as a reliable indicator of intoxication. 185 F.Supp.2d
at 557. I believe that the court in U.S. v. Horn was entirely correct
in not taking judicial notice of the reliability of HGN evidence, based on
the current state of scientific research, as comprehensively discussed in
the court's opinion.
(See footnote 6)
This Court has discussed HGN
evidence in several cases since Barker was decided. In Boley v.
Cline, 193 W.Va. 311, 314, 456 S.E.2d 38, 41 (1995) (per curiam),
we upheld a driver's license revocation that was based on evidence of erratic
driving, the smell of alcohol on the driver's breath, and HGN in one eye.
Former Justice Cleckley concurred in Boley, indicating that he believed
the evidence may have been insufficient to prove intoxication, even under
a preponderance standard. 193 W.Va. at 315, 464 S.E.2d at 42. In Dean
v. W.Va. D.M.V., 195 W.Va. 70, 464 S.E.2d 589 (1995), we also upheld a
license suspension that was based in part on HGN evidence. In both Dean
and Boley, there was apparently no specific challenge to the admissibility of HGN evidence based
on a lack of expert testimony regarding its reliability as evidence of intoxication;
in both cases we assumed that it was admissible for that purpose.
In Muscatell v. Cline,
196 W.Va. 588, 595, 474 S.E.2d 518, 525 (1996), we upheld a DUI conviction
where there was a challenge to HGN evidence on the grounds that there had
been no expert evidence to establish the scientific reliability of the HGN
evidence. We said in Muscatell that the trial court was wrong in reading
Barker to require such expert evidence. 196 W.Va. at 595, 474 S.E.2d
at 525. However, as shown in the foregoing- quoted excerpt from Barker,
although the holding was not set forth in a syllabus point, Barker required
an expert showing of the scientific reliability of HGN evidence before such
evidence could be found to be admissible on the issue of intoxication.
The Court's opinion in Muscatell, which primarily focused on a separate
issue, simply misread Barker.
In two other cases, Cunningham
v. Bechtold, 186 W.Va. 474, 413 S.E.2d 129 (1991), and State v. Davis,
195 W.Va. 79, 464 S.E.2d 598 (1995), we upheld the use of HGN evidence for
the limited purpose that the HGN evaluation was designed to be used, to-wit:
to provide a basis for police officers in deciding whether they have probable
cause to make an arrest.
In most DUI cases, the prosecution
(or the motor vehicle commissioner in a driver's license case), in addition
to such evidence as erratic driving, odor of alcohol, performance on non-HGN
field sobriety tests, consumption of alcohol, etc., has presumptively admissible scientific evidence to support the charge, in the
form of breathalyzer machine results showing a person's blood alcohol level.
The state-approved protocols for the use of such machines are designed to
create scientifically reliable results, and are established by state agencies
that are not in the business of prosecuting cases. The breathalyzer machine
results are objective, and appear to be accepted by every jurisdiction as
scientifically reliable and presumptively admissible if properly performed.
Therefore, our courts allow a witness who does not understand in detail how
and why the machines actually work to testify to their results as evidence
of a person's blood alcohol level.
HGN evidence, however, as
demonstrated hereinabove, is not objective. HGN observation and evaluation
relies entirely on a brief, subjective observation of transitory phenomena
by a non-scientist, under field conditions that are ordinarily distracting
and stressful. There is a high level of controversy as to the reliability
of HGN evidence to prove intoxication, with many jurisdictions firmly rejecting
the suggestion that HGN evidence be accepted as a standard, generally accepted,
and presumptively admissible indicium of intoxication that may be presented
to a fact-finder as such without independent expert testimony showing the
scientific reliability of such evidence in a given case.
While some jurisdictions have
concluded that HGN evidence is reliable and presumptively admissible to show
intoxication without a showing of the scientific reliability of the evidence
for that purpose in a given case, see, e.g., State v. O'Key,
321 Or. 285, 899 P.2d 663 (1995), the majority of courts have taken the approach
that we took in State v. Barker, supra. See, e.g., Horn, Young,
and Doriguzzi, supra. See generally, Unreliability of
the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test, 4 Am.Jur. Proof of Facts 439; Horizontal
Gaze Nystagmus Test: Use in Impaired Driving Prosecution, 60 A.L.R.4th
1129; Can Your Eyes Be Used Against You? The Use of the Horizontal Gaze
Nystagmus Test in the Courtroom, 84 Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology
203 (1993).
As the previous discussion
indicates, the areas of potential scientific weakness and unreliability with
respect to HGN evidence are numerous. For example, many conditions other than
alcohol consumption can cause nystagmus -- and apparently many people have
nystagmus naturally. It also appears that alcohol-related nystagmus can persist
for hours after blood alcohol level declines to zero. The court in Horn
noted that while there is little dispute that exaggerated nystagmus is caused
by the consumption of alcohol (and other conditions), 185 F.Supp.2d
at 555, proof of the consumption of alcohol is not the same thing as proof
of intoxication. Another example of HGN evidence's unreliability is shown
by one reported study where, under controlled conditions, double-blind evaluations
of intoxication based on HGN evidence and similar non-invasive sobriety tests
were no better than chance. See Williams v. State, supra, 710
So.2d at 43.)
Of course, it may be argued
that these are the sorts of weaknesses in HGN evidence that a defense lawyer
can bring out in cross-examination. But ordinarily, as in the instant case,
the testifying witness, a police officer, knows little or nothing one way
or another about these scientific issues. No matter how knowledgeable and
incisive a defense lawyer may be regarding the potential for errors in HGN evidence, if the
testifying officer simply and truthfully says, I don't know anything
about 'natural nystagmus' or any of those other areas; I simply perform the
test and draw the conclusions about intoxication as I was taught to
-- then even the best cross-examination cannot get much traction, and will
not go very far to impeach the officer's testimony. The prosecution or commissioner
will point out that the officer properly administered a scientific test;
and a fact-finder will be inclined to accept the results, particularly without
expert evidence to the contrary. See Young, supra, 693
So.2d at 1360.
As Justice Davis reiterated
in a recent opinion, State v. Leep, ___ W.Va. ___, ___, ___ S.E.2d
___, ___, No. 30018, June 19, 2002, slip op. at ___, [o]ne of the dangers
inherent in expert testimony in regard to scientific tests is that the jury
may not understand the exact nature of the test and the particular methodology
of the test procedure and accord an undue significance to the expert testimony.
(quoting State v. Clawson, 165 W. Va. 588, 621, 270 S.E.2d 659,
678 (1980).)
In this regard, it must be
recognized that thousands of West Virginians are criminally and civilly prosecuted
for DUI each year; and most of them are of modest means. Some do not have
lawyers, and even if they do, the vast majority of accused drivers cannot
afford scientific experts to challenge HGN evidence of intoxication presented
by police officers who are in good faith merely repeating what they have been
taught about that evidence. Under these conditions, where liberty and valuable
property interests are at stake, our legal system has a particularly strong basic fairness obligation
to see that the evidence that is regularly used by the State in these proceedings,
where most defenses must necessarily be limited in time and cost, meets a
threshold of well-established scientific reliability.
(See footnote 7) HGN evidence simply does
not meet that test.
(See footnote 8)