By Catherine Woodward
On Wednesday, May 29, Department 1 heard Mr. Gerardo Cesena’s preliminary hearing. Represented by Deputy Public Defender Dave Muller, Mr. Cesena is charged with driving under the influence of drugs, as well as possession of a controlled substance: methamphetamine.
Deputy District Attorney Crystal Junge’s first and only witness was Officer Mike Simpson, who is with the California Highway Patrol, Woodland office. A certified drug recognition expert, he has been a CHP officer for over ten years. On March 14 of this year, Officer Simpson was driving northbound on I-5 in Woodland. He noticed a vehicle that had tinted windows and subsequently performed a traffic enforcement stop.
The driver, Mr. Cesena, explained that he had just bought the vehicle a few days prior. Officer Simpson noticed that the defendant was sweating profusely. Additionally, when Mr. Cesena wiped his forehead with a handkerchief, his hand was shaking uncontrollably. At this point, Officer Simpson suspected that Mr. Cesena was under the influence, but the defendant denied having ingesting any controlled substances.
Officer Simpson had Mr. Cesena exit the vehicle in order to evaluate his sobriety. The defendant was still sweating profusely, and he kept putting his hands in his pockets to steady them, despite Officer Simpson’s orders. Mr. Cesena’s speech was jumbled, and he seemed unable to stand still. Officer Simpson performed the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, which tests how well the eyes are able to track a stimulus, in this case the officer’s finger. Since Mr. Cesena’s eyes “bounced,” he failed his test. Additionally, Officer Simpson noticed that the defendant’s pupils were very constricted.
Next, Officer Simpson performed the Romberg test, which is intended to determine whether or not an individual’s internal clock is out of whack. Mr. Cesena was instructed to stand with his heels and toes together, tilt his head back with his hands at his sides, close his eyes, and estimate 30 seconds. First of all, the defendant began the test before he was instructed to do so. Officer Simpson could see him counting silently, which was also against the instructions. During the test, Officer Simpson noticed that the pulse in Mr. Cesena’s carotid artery was very rapid – an indication of being under the influence of a controlled substance. The defendant failed the test, estimating 30 seconds when in fact only 17 seconds had elapsed. This was outside the acceptable range of 20-40 seconds.
Lastly, Officer Simpson took Mr. Cesena’s pulse from his left wrist, which was 132 beats per minute. The normal range for a pulse in a sober adult is between 60 and 90 beats per minute. Based on his training and experience as a drug recognition expert, Officer Simpson came to the conclusion that Mr. Cesena had been driving under the influence of a controlled substance and was therefore unable to safely operate a motor vehicle.
After his arrest, Mr. Cesena admitted that there was a meth pipe in the vehicle’s center console. Officer Simpson also found a small plastic baggie containing white crystal residue, which he believed to be methamphetamine. Further testing revealed that the residue was in fact 0.4 net grams of meth, which is a usable quantity of the controlled substance.
In his cross-examination, Mr. Muller questioned Officer Simpson about why he initially pulled the vehicle over. Mr. Cesena had not been driving unsafely or otherwise drawing attention to himself, other than having tinted windows. Mr. Muller argued that, even though Mr. Cesena was under the influence, he was still able to safely operate the vehicle and was not too impaired to drive. He had not been driving erratically or speeding, and was presumably operating the vehicle in the same manner as a sober person.
An arraignment will take place on June 13 in Department 1.
