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****************************************************** The ``officially released'' date that appears near the beginning of each opinion is the date the opinion will be published in the Connecticut Law Journal or the date it was released as a slip opinion. The operative date for the beginning of all time periods for filing postopinion motions and petitions for certification is the ``officially released'' date appearing in the opinion. In no event will any such motions be accepted before the ``officially released'' date. All opinions are subject to modification and technical correction prior to official publication in the Connecticut Reports and Connecticut Appellate Reports. In the event of discrepancies between the electronic version of an opinion and the print version appearing in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports, the latest print version is to be considered authoritative. The syllabus and procedural history accompanying the opinion as it appears on the Commission on Official Legal Publications Electronic Bulletin Board Service and in the Connecticut Law Journal and bound volumes of official reports are copyrighted by the Secretary of the State, State of Connecticut, and may not be reproduced and distributed without the express written permission of the Commission on Official Legal Publications, Judicial Branch, State of Connecticut. ****************************************************** VINCENT GRECO v. COMMISSIONER OF MOTOR VEHICLES (AC 19637)
Schaller, Zarella and Daly, Js. Argued September 20--officially released December 19, 2000 Counsel

Milo J. Altschuler, for the appellant (plaintiff). Priscilla J. Green, assistant attorney general, with whom, on the brief, was Richard Blumenthal, attorney general, for the appellee (defendant).
Opinion

DALY, J. The plaintiff, Vincent Greco, appeals from the judgment of the trial court dismissing his administrative appeal.1 The defendant, the commissioner of motor vehicles (commissioner), suspended the plaintiff's license to operate a motor vehicle and denied his petitions to reconsider and to reopen the hearing.2 The plaintiff appealed to the Superior Court, which dismissed his appeal. The dispositive issues on appeal are whether the trial court improperly concluded that (1) the commissioner's denial of his petitions were not appealable final administrative decisions and (2) the

petitions were not timely.3 We affirm judgment of the trial court. The facts in the record are undisputed. On September 21, 1998, at approximately 12:30 a.m., Officer Brian McGinnis of the Orange police department was driving his patrol car north on Grassy Hill Road when he saw a car traveling toward him in the south bound lane at a high rate of speed. The speed limit on Grassy Hill Road is forty miles per hour. The officer clocked the oncoming vehicle at a speed of eighty four miles per hour. The car slowed quickly upon approaching the officer's patrol car, but continued toward the south bound entrance to the Merritt Parkway. About one tenth of a mile past the entrance, the officer pulled the car over. The plaintiff was driving the car that the officer pulled over on the Merritt Parkway. The officer questioned the plaintiff and smelled alcohol on his breath. The plaintiff admitted that he had consumed alcohol that night. The officer conducted several field sobriety tests that, cumulatively, convinced him that the plaintiff was operating his motor vehicle while under the influence of liquor.4 The officer arrested the plaintiff and took him to police headquarters where he requested that the plaintiff submit to a chemical alcohol test (breath test). The plaintiff contacted an attorney and refused to submit to the breath test. The officer forwarded a written report of the plaintiff's arrest to the department of motor vehicles.5 The report specifically indicated that the plaintiff had refused to submit to the breath test. On September 28, 1998, the commissioner notified the plaintiff that his license to operate a motor vehicle would be suspended as a result of his failure to submit to the breath test. The plaintiff requested a hearing, which took place on October 13, 1998. On October 14, 1998, the commissioner issued a decision reciting his findings of fact and conclusions of law, including subordinate findings. The commissioner suspended the plaintiff's license to operate a motor vehicle for six months effective October 21, 1998.6 The commissioner made the following findings of fact and conclusions of law: (1) the officer had probable cause to arrest the plaintiff for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of liquor in violation of General Statutes

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Connecticut Law