Opinion ID: 1983518
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: peterson's other contentions

Text: On appeal Peterson also contends that he did not receive a fair hearing before an impartial hearing examiner and was thus denied due process of law. A similar contention was raised in, and overruled by, this court in Matter of Campbell, S.D., 250 N.W.2d 280 (1977). Here Peterson appealed to the circuit court, which entered judgment reversing the decision of the hearing examiner. He [had] no cause for a complaint of lack of due process. Matter of Campbell, S.D., 250 N.W.2d 280, 282 (1977). Peterson also contends that the State on appeal may not challenge the sufficiency of the evidence to support the circuit court judgment. The State timely submitted proper proposed findings of fact to the trial court, but certain of the conclusions of law submitted at the same time expressly directed entry of judgment reversing the hearing examiner. The purpose of submitting proposed conclusions of law to the trial court, under SDCL 15-6-52(a), is to inform the trial court of the correct conclusions of law it should enter, in the view of the party submitting the proposed conclusions. Although Peterson requested and was entitled to a trial de novo in the circuit court, State, Dept. of Public Safety v. Cronin, S.D., 250 N.W.2d 690 (1977), the parties stipulated that the circuit court could render its decision without taking evidence, by considering only the transcript of the testimony given at the hearing before the hearing examiner. This was not a trial de novo, Howe v. Comm. of Motor Vehicles, 82 S.D. 496, 149 N.W.2d 324 (1967), but Peterson has no standing to complain, since he agreed to the procedure. The trial court here was in no better position to find facts from a written record of testimony than is this court on appeal. Clark & Son v. Nold et al., 85 S.D. 468, 185 N.W.2d 677 (1971), cert. denied, 404 U.S. 833, 92 S.Ct. 82, 30 L.Ed.2d 63 (1971). The legal issue before the trial court was simply whether Peterson's admitted conduct constituted a refusal of the requested test under our Implied Consent Law. Reading the proposed conclusions of law of the State in conjunction with the entire record then before the trial court, we conclude the legal issue was sufficiently presented to the trial court and is properly before the court on appeal.