The opinion of the court was delivered by
KOBLITZ, J.A.D.
Defendant Thomas J. Wolfe appeals from the Law Division judgment of August 17, 2012 finding him guilty de novo, based only on defendant's blood alcohol content (BAC), of a per se violation of the prohibition against driving while intoxicated (DWI), N.J.S.A. 39:4-50.
In the early morning hours of May 19, 2010, the police stopped defendant's truck for speeding in Hamilton Township shortly after he left the Cavallino Nero Bar and Restaurant's parking lot.
Within a week of the arrest, defense counsel requested complete discovery, warning in his letter that he would later move to preclude any additional materials not provided initially. The State provided partial discovery and referred counsel to a website
After an unsuccessful motion to suppress the arrest, which was decided more than fourteen months earlier,
On appeal defendant raises the following issues:
We review the legal decisions of the Law Division and municipal court anew. Manalapan Realty, L.P. v. Twp. Comm. of Manalapan, 140 N.J. 366, 378, 658 A.2d 1230 (1995). A trial court's ruling on the admissibility of evidence, however, is evaluated
We agree with defendant's position articulated in Point II of his brief, that because he was only guilty of the per se portion of N.J.S.A. 39:4-50, not the observational portion of the statute, if the AIR was improperly admitted, his DWI conviction should be vacated.
Defendant argues in his remaining points that the AIR was improperly admitted because his counsel was forced to supply information to the State regarding the fatal weakness in its case and the State was then allowed to cure the deficiency. In Point III, he argues that his motions prior to and during trial to preclude the State from providing additional evidence should have been granted.
It is indisputable that defense counsel in his lengthy form letter seeking discovery sought the names of all potential witnesses, as well as "[a]ny and all documents with respect to the administration of any breath test, including but not limited to, all materials required pursuant to State v. Chun, 194 N.J. 54, 943 A.2d 114, [cert. denied, 555 U.S. 825, 129 S.Ct. 158, 172 L.Ed.2d 41 (2008)]...." Defense counsel was aware of the omissions in the State's discovery and candidly admits he sought an order precluding further discovery to secure an acquittal for his client based on his view of his responsibility to his client.
Defendant argues that the judge's reliance on Rule 7:7-7(h), which notes that there is a continuing duty to provide discovery, to deny his motion in limine was an abuse of discretion. Defendant points to no legal authority requiring a court to exclude evidence based on the State's failure to present it timely after requested. Such a blanket order would preclude further discovery without a showing of prejudice to the defense or the reason for the State's delay. Here, the grant of such an order would have precluded the admission of the AIR for failure on the State's part to provide a foundational document, as well as the name of the police officer called to authenticate the document. We agree with the Law Division judge that the municipal court acted within its discretion in denying defendant's motion to preclude further discovery.
In Point IV, defendant maintains that when defense counsel objected to the admission of the AIR, the municipal court should not have required counsel to specify what foundational documents required by State v. Chun, supra, 194 N.J. at 145, 943 A.2d 114, were lacking. Defendant argues that this violated his Fifth Amendment rights, as well as N.J.S.A. 2A:84A-17 and N.J.R.E. 501, 502 and 503. He cites no case that holds that requiring an attorney to specify his objection to the admissibility of evidence violates any of these provisions.
We perceive defendant's true grievance to be that the State was permitted to cure the deficiencies in its evidence establishing the foundation for admission of the AIR in the middle of trial after not providing the documents or witness to defendant in discovery. Defendant argues that such errors required his attorney to assist the State in its case against him by specifying the lack of foundational evidence. He asserts that this error was compounded when the municipal court allowed the prosecutor to provide the missing document required by Chun, the "Certificate of Analysis 0.10 Percent Solution used in New Solution Report," which had not been previously provided in discovery. The prosecutor indicated that she thought this document was available online, but apparently
In State v. Utsch, 184 N.J.Super. 575, 580, 446 A.2d 1236 (App.Div.1982), we applied what is now Rule 7:7-7(h) to allow the court in a municipal matter wide discretion in granting a continuance in order for the State to provide discovery. In Utsch, we affirmed such an adjournment where no discovery had been provided. Unlike in Utsch, here the laboratory certificate had been supplied and only one supporting document and the name of the foundational witness were lacking. Thus, an accommodation was even more reasonable under these circumstances.
We have previously noted that "[a] trial court has broad discretion in determining what sanctions, if any, to impose when a party fails to comply with discovery obligations." State v. Toro, 229 N.J.Super. 215, 223, 551 A.2d 170 (App. Div.1988), certif. denied, 118 N.J. 216, 570 A.2d 973 (1989), overruled on other grounds, State v. Velez, 119 N.J. 185, 574 A.2d 445 (1990) (citations omitted) (affirming the defendant's conviction after an expert not previously provided to the defendant was allowed to testify that possession of over a pound of cocaine with a purity of 65% is inconsistent with personal use, because the court reasoned that even if the defendant had been aware timely, he would not have been able to locate an expert to offer a contrary opinion).
We have determined in the context of surprise expert testimony that:
It is evident here that the prosecutor did not intend to mislead defendant. She thought the document in question was on the website and apparently overlooked the need to have a witness to authenticate the documents. Defendant does not argue that the State intended to mislead him by not providing all of the discovery timely. He also makes no significant argument of prejudice. Accordingly, we determine that the Law Division judge did not abuse his discretion in allowing the officer to testify nor by admitting the late-supplied document into evidence.
Affirmed.