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IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OF TENNESSEE AT KNOXVILLE
Assigned on Briefs January 25, 2005 STATE OF TENNESSEE v. SCOTT MCCLAIN
Direct Appeal from the Criminal Court for Washington County No. 28934 Lynn W. Brown, Judge

No. E2004-01182-CCA-R3-CD - Filed June 13, 2005

The appellant, Scott McClain, pled guilty in the Washington County Criminal Court to driving under the influence (DUI) with a blood alcohol content greater than .20. He received a sentence of eleven months and twenty-nine days incarceration in the Washington County Jail. As a condition of his plea, the appellant reserved certified questions of law concerning the suppression of the results of his blood alcohol test. Upon our review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. Tenn. R. App. P. 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgment of the Criminal Court is Affirmed. NORMA MCGEE OGLE, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which GARY R. WADE , P.J., and JAMES CURWOOD WITT , JR., J., joined. Scott Pratt, Johnson City, Tennessee, for the appellant, Scott McClain. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Michelle Chapman McIntire, Assistant Attorney General; Joe Crumley, District Attorney General; and Stan Widener and Janet Hardin, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. OPINION I. Factual Background The record reveals that at approximately 11:00 p.m. on March 21, 2003, Edwin N. Graybeal, III, a deputy sheriff with the Washington County Sheriff's office, was dispatched to the scene of a single car accident on East Mountain View Road in Washington County. Upon Deputy Greybeal's arrival, he observed that the appellant's vehicle had collided with a tree. The appellant, the driver of the vehicle, had been removed from the scene and taken by ambulance to Johnson City Medical Center for treatment. Police inventoried the vehicle and discovered, among other items, one unopened beer. Deputy Graybeal detected an odor of alcoholic beverage in the car.

Next, Deputy Graybeal went to Johnson City Medical Center to speak with the appellant. The appellant had been unconscious when he arrived at the hospital, but he had regained consciousness during treatment. While the appellant was unconscious and during the course of his treatment, hospital staff obtained a sample of his blood. When Deputy Graybeal arrived at the hospital, he learned that the appellant was in the emergency room and was "still on the back board" on which he had been transported to the hospital. The appellant told Deputy Graybeal that he had been alone in the vehicle when he "ran off the road." Additionally, the appellant admitted that he had consumed two beers prior to the accident. When the appellant was speaking, Deputy Graybeal detected "a strong odor of intoxicant on his breath, and his eyes were red and glazed." However, Deputy Graybeal noted that the appellant's speech "wasn't abnormal." Deputy Graybeal opined that the appellant was physically unable, due to his injuries, to perform field sobriety tests. Thereafter, the appellant was indicted for DUI, first offense. See Tenn. Code Ann.

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