Court Opinion

ID: 9514886
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-06 22:52:20.523335+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:06:22.347676
License: Public Domain

[¶ 1.] Justice Robert A. Amundson delivers the majority opinion of the Court on Issue 1, which holds that the trial court erred in refusing to admit evidence on the decedent’s blood alcohol level.
[¶ 2.] Justice John K. Konenkamp delivers the majority opinion of the Court on Issues 2 and 3, holding the search of Lamont’s dwelling was reasonable under the Fourth Amendment and the circuit court did not err when it allowed evidence of a second blood test.
AMUNDSON, Justice,
writing for the majority on Issue 1.
[¶ 3.] Jerry Lamont appeals his conviction for vehicular homicide and felony hit and run. We affirm Issues 2 and 3, reverse on Issue 1, and remand for a new trial.
FACTS
[¶ 4.] On May 2, 1999, Ronald Dean Hall was killed while riding his motorcycle in Rapid City, South Dakota. Mr. Hall was discovered lying beside the road by a passer-by shortly before he died. Due to white paint found on the motorcycle, the accident scene indicated that a white vehicle hit the victim. A witness also observed a small white vehicle flee the accident area. Based on the initial accident investigation, the police believed that another vehicle involved ran the stop sign and collided with Hall’s motorcycle.
[¶ 5.] While the investigation of the accident scene was proceeding, Officer Rud and Olson were dispatched to the Horseshoe Motel on an unrelated matter. Prior to this, they had received an all-points bulletin regarding the hit-and-run accident. Upon their arrival, Officer Rud noticed a white Ford Escort matching the description of the car described in the all-points bulletin. The Escort had a dented left front quarter-panel, a smashed windshield, blood spots inside the car, and blood on the driver’s side door handle.
[¶ 6.] Upon these observations, Officer Rud requested the investigator at the accident to come to the motel with broken parts found at the accident scene. It was determined that these broken parts fit into the damaged area of the Ford Escort. Next, Officer Rud called in the Ford’s license plate number, which revealed the owner as Jerry Lamont whose address was the Horseshoe Motel, room # 15.
[¶ 7.] Officer Rud advised his supervisor of their findings and asked to enter room # 15. After receiving such permission, the officers knocked on the door with no response. The officers observed that the door was unlocked and entered the unoccupied premises (first search). After entering, the officers conducted a search of the bedroom, living room, and bathroom, where they noticed blood spots in the bathroom sink and a bloody pair of pants lying on the bedroom floor.
[¶ 8.] Officer Rud relayed the findings of the search to Sergeant Vlieger. Upon his arrival at the police station, Vlieger directed Rud to return to the motel and secure the area while he made arrangements to get a search warrant. Upon *607returning, the officers noticed that the door was locked and the lights were off. Again, Rud knocked on the motel room door with no answer. Officer Rud called the manager so that he could let them into the room. The manager unlocked the door and Officer Rud gained entrance to the room (second search). Lamont was found therein where he was observed with fresh cuts on his nose and head.
[¶ 9.] Lamont was asked to come to the police station where he was arrested for vehicular homicide, second-degree manslaughter, and hit and run. Upon receiving Miranda warnings, he was instructed to give two blood samples. Per police instruction, each sample was taken with an hour interval between the two tests.
[¶ 10.] Prior to trial, the court ruled that emergency circumstances did not exist,1 thus this facet of the “exigent circumstances” exception to the warrant requirement did not apply and suppressed all evidence relating to the first search. Despite police not having a warrant to search Lamont’s room, the court denied Lamont’s motion to suppress the second search of Lamont’s dwelling determining the search was justified to “effectuate a custodial interrogation.” The court also held Lamont’s blood tests were obtained incident to lawful arrest. The court granted the State’s motion in limine prohibiting defense counsel from eliciting testimony or commenting on the decedent’s apparent blood alcohol level at the time of the accident.
[¶ 11.] Lamont appeals raising three issues:
1) Whether the trial court abused its discretion by granting the State’s motion in limine to forbid the defense to question or comment on the decedent’s apparent blood alcohol level at the time of the accident.
2) Whether the trial court erred by upholding the second search of Lamont’s dwelling.
3) Whether a second blood draw performed by the police was reasonable under the fourth amendment.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
[¶ 12.] Our review of a motion to suppress based on an alleged violation of a constitutionally protected right is a question of law examined de novo. See State v. Hirning, 1999 SD 53, ¶ 9, 592 N.W.2d 600, 603; Ornelas v. United States, 517 U.S. 690, 699, 116 S.Ct. 1657, 1663, 134 L.Ed.2d 911 (1996) (standard of review for questions under the Fourth Amendment); United States v. Khan, 993 F.2d 1368, 1375 (9thCir.1993). We review findings of fact under the clearly erroneous standard. See State v. Almond, 511 N.W.2d 572, 573-74 (S.D.1994). Once the facts have been determined, however, the application of a legal standard to those facts is a question of law reviewed de novo. Spenner v. City of Sioux Falls, 1998 SD 56, ¶ 13, 580 N.W.2d 606, 610. Whether police had a “lawful basis to conduct a warrantless search is reviewed as a question of law.” State v. Sleep, 1999 SD 19, *608¶ 6, 590 N.W.2d 235, 237 (citing State v. Krebs, 504 N.W.2d 580, 585 (S.D.1993) (citation omitted)). Thus, on the issue of whether an exception to the warrant requirement applies is reviewed de novo.
DECISION
Issue 1. Decedent’s Blood Alcohol Level
[¶ 13.] Prior to trial, the State argued that the decedent’s blood alcohol level was irrelevant to Lamont’s criminal culpability and sought an order to prohibit defense counsel from any mention of it. The trial court granted the State’s motion in limine. In its attempt to prove that Lamont failed to stop at a stop sign, the State put forth evidence that the reaction time for an average person was 1.6 seconds. At trial, the defense wanted to controvert the State’s expert on perception reaction time of the general motoring public. The defense asked the State’s accident reconstructionist whether his figures would be accurate if the victim was legally drunk. For this, defense counsel was fined for violating the terms of the motion in limine. On appeal, Lamont argues that the excessive speed and intoxication of the decedent was relevant to the issue of proximate cause.
[¶ 14.] One method traditionally taken by the defense is to attack the elements of the offense charged. Generally, the defense does this by putting on evidence that creates a reasonable doubt as to whether a particular element was satisfied. In question is the element of proximate cause. The jury instruction for vehicular homicide, in pertinent part, reads as follows: The state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt:
1.That the defendant at the time and place alleged in the Information operated or drove a motor vehicle in a negligent manner.
2. That the defendant at the time and place was under the influence of an alcoholic beverage.
3. That the negligent operation or driving was a proximate cause of the death of Ronald Hall.
4. That the defendant did so without a design to effect the death of Ronald Hall.
This instruction reflects a correct statement of law. State v. Two Bulls, 1996 SD 53, ¶ 14, 547 N.W.2d 764, 766. The State claims that our holding in Two Bulls, however, precludes the defense from raising a defense based on contributory negligence.
[¶ 15.] In Two Bulls, the victim was a passenger in the vehicle rather than a driver. Moreover, Two Bulls was not under the influence, nor did the prosecution open the door by proffering expert testimony as to causation. The thrust of the State’s argument is that the defense should not be able to use the decedent’s blood alcohol level in any way because the decedent’s contributory negligence is irrelevant. The issue at hand, however, is whether the defense should be allowed to put on a defense that includes the use of the decedent’s blood alcohol level where decedent was operating the other vehicle involved in the accident as to show that it constitutes an “independent intervening cause” and the “proximate cause of the death.” See Two Bulls, supra, at ¶ 13 (citing State v. Rotella, 196 Neb. 741, 246 N.W.2d 74, 76 (1976)). Our decision in Tico Bulls does not preclude Lamont from offering evidence in support of his defense.
[¶ 16.] When a defendant is denied the ability to respond to the State’s case against him, he is deprived of “his fundamental constitutional right to a fair opportunity to present a defense.” Crane v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 683, 687, 106 S.Ct. *6092142, 2145, 90 L.Ed.2d 636 (1986). We cited in State v. Iron Necklace, 430 N.W.2d 66, 75 (S.D.1988), notions of fundamental fairness require “that criminal defendants be afforded a meaningful opportunity to present a complete defense.” See also California v. Trombetta, 467 U.S. 479, 485, 104 S.Ct. 2528, 2532, 81 L.Ed.2d 413 (1984). It is only fair that a defendant in a criminal trial be allowed to present his theory of the case.
[¶ 17.] Although Lamont argues on appeal that the decedent’s blood alcohol level is relevant to his defense in challenging proximate cause, his nebulous argument to the trial court does not address the independent-intervening cause aspect of the case.2 Since we are remanding this case, it is incumbent upon Lamont to present authority and clearly state why such questioning should be allowed. Lamont must show that the victim’s intoxication level is related to the issue of proximate cause, not contributory negligence. While this Court recognizes that this may be perceived as “a second bite at the apple,” we are mindful that a defendant in a criminal case should be afforded the opportunity to challenge any element of the crime charged and present a complete and valid defense.
[¶ 18.] We reverse on this issue and remand for a new trial.
[¶ 19.] MILLER, Chief Justice, and SABERS, KONENKAMP, and GILBERTSON, Justices, concur.
KONENKAMP, Justice,
writing for the majority on Issues 2 and 3.
Issue 2. Warrantless Entry into Lamont’s Dwelling
[¶ 20.] Lamont argues that the second search of his dwelling was accomplished in violation of the Fourth Amendment. The police entered his motel apartment without a warrant, claiming a medical emergency. The trial court expressly rejected this rationale. It ruled that the “health and well-*610being of the [defendant was not the [officers’] motivation.” Nevertheless, the court concluded that the warrantless entry was reasonable and that it was done to accomplish a homicide investigation and arrest. In his appellate brief, Lamont asks, “Do we want to rely on why the police say they entered or do we want to try to think of a reason to justify their actions after the fact?”
 [¶ 21.] It is important to keep in mind that we are not bound by the circuit court’s legal conclusions: we review legal questions anew. Hirning, 1999 SD 53, ¶ 9, 592 N.W.2d at 603. “Fact findings are reviewed for clear error, but ultimately, in reviewing decisions on motions to suppress for asserted constitutional violations our standard of review is de novo.” State v. Morato, 2000 SD 149, ¶ 10, 619 N.W.2d 655, 669 (citing Ornelas, 517 U.S. at 699, 116 S.Ct. at 1663, 134 L.Ed.2d at 920). Consequently, we are not constrained by the trial judge’s legal rationale for upholding the entry. Nor are we bound by the officers’ subjective justification. “[Subjective intentions play no role in ordinary, probable cause Fourth Amendment analysis.” Arkansas v. Sullivan, — U.S. -, -, 121 S.Ct. 1876, 1878, 149 L.Ed.2d 994, 997 (2001); Whren v. United States, 517 U.S. 806, 813, 116 S.Ct. 1769, 1774, 135 L.Ed.2d 89 (1996).
The fact that [an] officer does not have the state of mind which is hypothecated by the reasons which provide the legal justification for the officer’s action does not invalidate the action taken as long as the circumstances, viewed objectively, justify that action.
Scott v. United States, 436 U.S. 128, 138, 98 S.Ct. 1717, 1723, 56 L.Ed.2d 168 (1978). An objectively reasonable search based on probable cause will not be rendered invalid even when the motive for the search was pretextual. See Sullivan, — U.S. at -, 121 S.Ct. at 1878 (citations omitted). It is our duty to make our own legal assessment of the evidence to decide under the Fourth Amendment whether the officers’ actions were “objectively reasonable.” See Maryland v. Buie, 494 U.S. 325, 330, 110 S.Ct. 1093, 108 L.Ed.2d 276 (1990). Viewing the circumstances objectively, the police had exigent circumstances to justify entering the room and arresting the defendant for vehicular homicide and felony hit and run. Thus, the search and seizure did not violate Lamont’s Fourth Amendment rights.
[¶ 22.] The State bears the burden of justifying a warrantless entry into a constitutionally protected area. See Vale v. Louisiana, 399 U.S. 30, 34, 90 S.Ct. 1969, 1972, 26 L.Ed.2d 409 (1970) (citations omitted); State v. Meyer, 1998 SD 122, ¶ 20, 587 N.W.2d 719, 723 (citations omitted). Before entering a suspect’s residence to effect an arrest, an officer must possess an arrest warrant absent exigent circumstances. Payton v. New York, 445 U.S. 573, 602-03, 100 S.Ct. 1371, 1388, 63 L.Ed.2d 639 (1980). The exigency exception exists because some situations dictate immediate police response rather than delay to obtain a warrant from a judge. Exigency remains “within the narrow range of circumstances that present real danger to the police or the public or a real danger that evidence or a suspect might be lost.” United States v. Bulman, 667 F.2d 1374, 1384 (11th Cir.1982)(emphasis added). For example, in United States v. Roper, 681 F.2d 1354, 1357, n.1 (11th Cir.1982), the arrest of a suspect in his motel room without a warrant was justified by exigent circumstances where (1) there were simultaneous multiple arrests at the conclusion of a drug transaction, and (2) there was a legitimate fear that the defendant would escape. Police must show probable cause and exigent circumstances *611before making a warrantless entry into a person’s home for a felony arrest. Payton, 445 U.S. at 589, 100 S.Ct. at 1381, 63 L.Ed.2d 639 (citations omitted).
A.
[¶ 23.] The Supreme Court in Welsh v. Wisconsin, 466 U.S. 740, 104 S.Ct. 2091, 80 L.Ed.2d 732 (1984), examined whether the need to obtain the blood-alcohol level of a driver who had fled the scene of an accident would constitute an “exigent circumstance.” Id. at 742, 104 S.Ct. 2091. In Welsh, the driver lost control of his car and ended up in a field, causing no injury or damage. A witness who saw the driver wTalk away told the police that the driver was either inebriated or sick. The police went to the driver’s house and entered after the driver’s stepdaughter answered the door. They found the driver in bed, arrested him, and asked him to take an implied consent test. He declined. When his license was automatically suspended for refusing the blood test, he challenged the decision in court. Id. at 742-43, 104 S.Ct. 2091.
[¶ 24.] The United States Supreme Court held that neither exigent circumstances nor hot pursuit justified the entry into Welsh’s home. Welsh, 466 U.S. at 753-54, 104 S.Ct. at 2099-2100, 80 L.Ed.2d 732. The Court relied heavily on the nature of the offense, which in Wisconsin is a civil forfeiture traffic violation where no imprisonment was possible. See id. There, the exigencies were insufficient to overcome the warrant requirement in the context of an arrest for a civil traffic offense. Id. Nonetheless, the Court held that an important factor in determining whether an exigency exists is “the gravity of the underlying offense for which the arrest is being made.” Id. at 753, 104 S.Ct. 2091. Welsh stopped short of drawing a bright line between felonies and non-felonies, but the opinion states that circumstances are more clearly exigent when the offense is a “serious crime.” Id. at 752, 104 S.Ct. 2091. The reasoning in Welsh spawned a number of cases recognizing the proposition that blood alcohol dissipation may create a destruction of evidence exigency justifying a warrantless entry into a home. State v. Komoto, 40 Wash.App. 200, 697 P.2d 1025 (1985); People v. Keltie, 148 Cal.App.3d 773, 196 Cal.Rptr. 243, 247 (1983); Stark v. New York State Dept. of Motor Vehicles, 104 A.D.2d 194, 483 N.Y.S.2d 824 (1984).
B.
[¶ 25.] In a case with striking similarities to our own, the Minnesota Supreme Court, sitting en banc, upheld a warrant-less entry into a suspect’s home after a hit and run. See State v. Storvick, 428 N.W.2d 55, 59 (Minn.1988)(distinguishing Welsh and upholding warrantless entry). Because the circumstances in Storvick are critical to our analysis, it is necessary to detail the facts of that case. A seventeen-year-old girl and her friend were walking alongside the road at 9:00 p.m. A car hit her, sending her flying through the air for over 100 feet. The car did not brake or slow before impact. It continued to drive without stopping. An ambulance and the police were dispatched to the scene moments later. The victim’s friend told the officers what happened. She described the car as a brand new 1986 or 1987 model, white in color. Id. at 56.
[¶ 26.] The police investigation began immediately. Officers processing the scene found no skid or other tire marks. Id. Another officer went to the hospital and learned that the victim was unconscious with a severe head injury. In grave condition, she would be flown to Rochester in the hope that something could be done for her. An officer took several items of *612clothing worn by the victim, including her right tennis shoe, the left one being missing. Meanwhile, the sheriff obtained some crash debris from deputies at the scene and proceeded to the local car dealership. After studying them, a parts department employee explained that the debris fragments were from the right front side and probably came from a Ford car manufactured after March 1985. Officers canvassed the area in an attempt to locate witnesses and a newer model white Ford with right front-end damage. Id at 56-57.
[¶27.] At 11:15 p.m., an officer spotted a white 1986 Ford Tempo with damage to its right front. The car was at an intersection approximately a half-mile from the scene of the accident. When the officer approached the vehicle, the driver, who was married to the defendant’s sister, got out, saying, “Are you looking for this?” Id. at 57. The trooper said yes and asked the driver what he was doing. The driver explained that he had gotten off work a short time earlier and that the defendant’s wife was at his mother’s place looking for him. The driver found the defendant at home asleep in his bed and took the car keys from the bedroom and left. Id. The witness who was with the victim at the time of the accident was brought to the scene, and she positively identified the car as the one that hit the victim. The police determined that pieces of debris from the accident scene fit perfectly on the car. They checked and learned that the car belonged to the local Ford dealership, where the defendant was an employee. Id.
[¶ 28.] The officers decided to go immediately to the defendant Brandt Stor-vick’s house. They arrived at 11:28 p.m., 2 ½ hours after the accident. As they approached the house, one officer found the victim’s missing tennis shoe in the driveway. The residence was dark. The sheriff and a deputy rang the doorbell and pounded on the door. There was no response, but one of them heard a “thump.” Id. They entered the attached garage through the open garage door and pounded on the door that led from the garage to the house. Still they got no response. The sheriff then opened the unlocked door into the family room, stepped inside, and announced that it was the sheriffs department. He asked if anybody was home, and yelled, “Brandt can you hear me? Anybody home? Hello, Brandt.” Id. (Bracketed information omitted). Finally, the defendant said something from upstairs, and the sheriff replied, “This is Don Nolander from the Sheriffs Department. Brandt, we need to talk to you. Do you want to come downstairs or do you want us to come upstairs and talk to you?” Id. The defendant said he would be down.
[¶ 29.] When the defendant came down, the sheriff, who had learned that the victim was “brain dead,” said, “Brandt, we are investigating a serious accident that is probably going to end up being a fatality, and we need to talk to you about that.” Id. The defendant Storvick was in a stupor and responded, “I am too scared, I can’t talk about anything” and “What are you doing in my house?” Id. The defendant was arrested for the felony offense of leaving the scene of a personal injury accident. Id. at 58. When the defendant was getting dressed, one of the officers noticed the odor of liquor on him. The officers told Storvick that they would be taking him to the hospital for a blood test with or without his consent. The defendant responded, “I drank after I got home.” Id. When the officers checked the house to see if there was any evidence that the defendant had drunk liquor after he got home, they found none. The test later showed his BAC to be .19. The defendant was charged with several felonies, including vehicular homicide.
*613[¶ 30.] Using a' de novo standard of review, the Minnesota Supreme Court reasoned: (1) The officers had strong probable cause to believe that Storvick had committed the very serious felony offense of either criminal vehicular operation or criminal vehicular operation resulting in death. To obtain a conviction for either offense, the prosecution had to show “grossly negligent driving” or “negligent driving by one who either was under the influence of alcohol or had a blood alcohol concentration of .10 or more.” Id. at 59. (2) The “field investigation” began at 9:07 p.m., immediately after the accident, and it was ongoing and continuous up to the arrest. (3) The officers acted cautiously and with due regard for the rights and sensibilities of the people involved. They checked to match the damaged car with the pieces found at the scene. They also checked and found that the car belonged to the defendant’s employer. When they went to the defendant’s house 2 ½ hours after the accident they were satisfied that the defendant had been driving the car. After arriving at the scene, their certainty only increased on finding the victim’s missing shoe in defendant’s driveway. Id. at BO-GO. (4) The defendant did not respond to the officers’ repeated knocking and doorbell ringing, but the officers heard a “thump.” They entered the attached garage through an open garage door and pounded on the door that led from the garage into the residence. Still there was no response. At that point the sheriff had a decision to make: attempt to obtain a warrant or proceed to enter the house without a warrant. Id.
[¶ 31.] The court concluded that the officers acted properly in entering the house without a warrant “because they had every reason to believe that defendant had been drinking and they needed to act as quickly as possible to precisely ascertain defendant’s blood alcohol level before the evidence dissipated.” Id. at 60. It is important to note, however, that the facts do not indicate that the officers had any direct evidence that the defendant had been drinking before they entered his home. Nor did they give as their reason for entry the need to get a blood sample. Yet the court stated:
Here, by fleeing the scene of the accident, defendant prevented the police from observing him and basing a probable cause assessment on their observations. However, there nonetheless was an objective basis for believing that it was necessary to scientifically ascertain defendant’s blood alcohol level: (a) at a minimum, the police had strong evidence of negligently inattentive driving on defendant’s part, the sort of inattention that often is explained by the defendant’s being under the influence of alcohol; (b) it was the time of day that, when an accident such as this occurs, drinking is often found to be involved; (c) the fact that defendant not only did not slow down but fled the scene tended to suggest that he had been drinking, intoxication being a common reason people flee accidents; (d) [a family member’s] statement to the police that defendant was asleep and that he got the keys from defendant’s bedroom certainly fits in with the view that defendant was intoxicated or under the influence and had gone home and passed out; (e) the fact that defendant left the victim’s shoe in the driveway perhaps tended to suggest that he was intoxicated or at least under the influence; and (f) the fact that defendant did not respond to the repeated loud knocking and doorbell ringing further suggested that defendant either had passed out or that he heard the police-and was not going to answer because he had something to hide, most likely that he had been drinking. Con*614sidered together, these facts provided an objective basis for believing that it was necessary to ascertain defendant’s blood alcohol level.
Id. at 60-61 (emphasis added). Finally, the court emphasized that the police were investigating the “extremely serious” offense of felony vehicular homicide, implying that the result might have been different “if the offense being investigated had been a less serious offense.” Id. at 61. See also United States v. Clement, 854 F.2d 1116, 1119-20 (8thCir.1988)(citing Welsh, noting the necessity of looking to the gravity of the offense, and characterizing cocaine trafficking as “a serious offense” that justified entry into hotel room).
C.
[¶ 32.] Now, we examine the facts of our case. (1) The officers had strong probable cause to believe that the serious felony offenses of vehicular homicide and hit and run with injury had been committed. The victim died at the scene. To obtain a conviction for vehicular homicide under South Dakota law, the State had to show negligent driving by one who either was under the influence of alcohol or had a blood alcohol concentration of .10 or more. SDCL 22-16-41 (maximum penalty fifteen years). To obtain a conviction for felony hit and run, the State had to prove that the driver was involved in an accident resulting in injury or death to a person, that the driver failed to immediately stop and give his name and address, and that the driver failed to render the person injured reasonable assistance, including carrying such person to medical treatment if such treatment was necessary or was requested by the injured person. SDCL 32-34-3 (maximum penalty two years); (2) The “field investigation” began at 2:00 a.m., immediately after the accident, was ongoing at the time the defendant’s car was spotted at the Horseshoe Motel at 4:00 a.m., and continued up to the arrest, which occurred between 5:00 and 6:00 a.m. The defendant’s blood was drawn at 7:40 a.m. and again at 8:40 a.m. (3) The officers acted cautiously and with due regard for the rights and sensibilities of the people involved. They did not simply discover the damaged car and immediately seek entry into the motel room. They checked the registration of the car and found that it was registered to Lamont. Then they checked the registration at the motel and discovered that he was registered as living in Room 15. The damaged car was parked in front of that room. They checked to match the damaged car with the pieces found at the scene. Indeed, Officer Ron-feldt brought a piece found at the scene and put it next to a missing piece on the car. It fit perfectly. Furthermore, there was blood on the outside and the inside of the car, strongly indicating that both the driver and someone else outside the car had been injured. Thus, the officers could be reasonably satisfied that the person inside the room was the person who had been involved in the accident. Although a suspect living in a motel room does not of itself create an exigent circumstance allowing departure from the warrant requirement, the temporary nature of a rented room should certainly be a factor in deciding whether the requirement for a warrant is excused by exigency. (4) The defendant did not respond to the officers’ repeated knocking for over five minutes. They then entered the unlocked room. The defendant was not present, but the TV and all the lights were on. There were bloody items in the room, only further confirming that the person in the room had been in the accident. (5) With nobody in the room, the officers decided to return to the station to relay the information to their supervisor. They were directed to go back to the room and secure it until a search *615warrant could be obtained. However, when they returned they now found that the room was locked and the TV and lights were all turned off. The officers could get no response from anyone inside.
[¶ 33.] At that point, the police had a difficult decision to make: continue waiting outside until a search warrant could be obtained or proceed to enter the room without a warrant. The door that had been open before was now locked. Was the suspect in the room? If he had been drinking, the blood alcohol evidence was dissipating. Was he injured or unconscious? Or did he lock the door and flee? Were they guarding an empty room while waiting for a search warrant? Or was evidence being destroyed in the room, making a later obtained search warrant a useless exercise? Deciding to act, the officers had the motel manager open the room with the master key. They found the defendant inside and he made an incriminating comment when the officers came in. Some of the bloody items were gone, but the officers were able to secure a piece of clothing with blood on it.
[¶ 34.] All the relevant circumstances suggesting that the accident was alcohol related in Storvick also existed here: strong evidence of negligent, .inattentive driving, with apparent failure to stop at a stop sign; the late hour (2:00 a.m.) when drinking is often involved in accidents; flight from the scene of the accident, indicating that the driver perhaps did not want to confront the police because of the possibility of intoxication; no response to repeated knocking, suggesting that the “defendant either had passed out or that he heard the police and was not going to answer because he had something to hide, most likely that he had been drinking.” See Storvick, 428 N.W.2d at 60. As the Minnesota Supreme Court concluded, the facts in their totality “provided an objective basis for believing that it was necessary to ascertain defendant’s blood alcohol level.” Id. at 60-61 (emphasis added). The court found that “[t]he additional fact that ‘the percentage of alcohol in the blood begins to diminish shortly after drinking stops, as the body functions to eliminate it from the system,’ meant that ‘[t]here was no time to seek out a magistrate and secure a warrant.’ ” Id. at 61 (quoting Schmerber v. California, 384 U.S. 757, 770-71, 86 S.Ct. 1826, 1835-36, 16 L.Ed.2d 908 (1966)).
[¶ 35.] Indeed, although the officers did not give it as a reason for their decision to enter the room, Judge Tice in his oral findings remarked that as a basis for entering the room, the officers here needed to act quickly to preserve blood alcohol evidence: “[B]ecause of the nature of the fatality and time of day, there are possibilities, at least, of alcohol being involved.” Judge Tice found that there were “reasons to believe that evidence might be diminished if the arrest [could not] be effected in a timely fashion.”
[¶ 36.] With Fourth Amendment analysis, we generally avoid bright-line rules. See e.g. Ohio v. Robinette, 519 U.S. 33, 39, 117 S.Ct. 417, 421, 136 L.Ed.2d 347 (1996). The “endless variations in the facts and circumstances” involving the Fourth Amendment make per se rules difficult to apply. Florida v. Royer, 460 U.S. 491, 506, 103 S.Ct. 1319, 1329, 75 L.Ed.2d 229 (1983). Thus, like the Minnesota Supreme Court in Storvick, which limited its holding to the grave circumstances in that case, we need not decide whether the result would be the same if, for example, the offense under investigation had been less serious. Storvick, 428 N.W.2d at 61. But here an extremely serious offense occurred, and an objectively reasonable basis existed to enter the defendant’s room.
*616D.
[¶ 37.] In discussing transitory evidence cases, Professor LaFave stresses the distinction between “planned” arrests and those made in the course of an ongoing “field investigation.” 2 Wayne R. La-Fave, Search and Seizure § 6.1(f), at 271-73 (3d ed. 1995). The Connecticut Supreme Court used LaFave’s analysis in State v. Guertin, 190 Conn.440, 461 A.2d 963 (1983). In explaining this approach, the court stated:
[LaFave] defines a “planned” arrest as “one which is made after a criminal investigation has been fully completed at another location and the police make a deliberate decision to go to a certain place, either the arrestee’s home or some other premises where he [or she] is believed to be, in order to take him [or her] into custody.” In the “planned” arrest situation he suggests that any claimed exigent circumstances which may arise thereafter are foreseeable and therefore would not justify a warrantless entry unless the exigent circumstances are present before the police go into the field to make the arrest. On the other hand, he would not fault the police for not having an arrest warrant when the occasion for an arrest arises while the police are already out in the field investigating the prior or ongoing conduct which is the basis for the arrest.
Id. at 969. The Guertin court concluded that while the facts arguably presented a planned arrest, because there was no evidence that the police created the later emergency, their belief that the suspect might flee unless they moved quickly was reasonable. Id. at 969-70. Here, the officers went back to the motel, not planning to arrest the defendant, but intending to sit and wait for a search warrant. Yet when they arrived the circumstances had changed significantly. The evidence was no longer going to remain static in an empty motel room.
[¶ 38.] The spirit of the Fourth Amendment is reasonableness. Sitting in the sanctuary of our chambers with the advantage of hindsight, we may well analyze positions with exhaustive and clinical precision. But the officers acting in the wee hours of the night in the midst of their field investigation, with events changing and unfolding, had to use their best judgment in the moment. They were confronted with a difficult choice. Time became critical. Their subjective reason for acting quickly may not satisfy the Fourth Amendment, but nonetheless their actions in these circumstances were objectively reasonable. We therefore sustain the trial court’s ruling.
Issue 3. Second Blood Draw
[¶ 39.] Lamont does not challenge the evidence obtained from an initial blood draw taken by the police. Nonetheless, he asserts that the circuit court erred when it refused to suppress evidence obtained from the second blood draw taken within an hour of the first. The State’s right to require, within constitutional limits, an individual to submit to a test of body fluids, including blood, is well established. State v. Nguyen, 1997 SD 47, ¶ 10, 563 N.W.2d 120, 122. Such an intrusion does not transgress the reasonableness requirements of the Fourth Amendment. Schmerber, 384 U.S. at 772, 86 S.Ct. at 1836, 16 L.Ed.2d 908 (1966). A blood draw is reasonable if it is accomplished incident to a lawful arrest, by a reliable and accepted method, in a medically approved manner, and with probable cause to believe the evidence sought exists. Nguyen, 1997 SD 47, ¶ 10, 563 N.W.2d at 122-23 (citations omitted).
[¶ 40.] Lamont sees no constitutional infirmity in taking the first blood sample, *617and we can see little reason to fault taking the second, especially as they were taken an hour apart. With two blood samples the laboratory could more accurately extrapolate Lamont’s BAC at the time of the accident. Indeed, a second draw in some instances may elicit exculpatory evidence for those who consume alcohol after an accident occurs. As previously stated, bright line rules are generally undesirable in Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. Robinette, 519 U.S. at 39, 117 S.Ct. at 421, 136 L.Ed.2d 347. Courts must be allowed to consider the facts and circumstances in each case. Considering the totality of circumstances in this case, a second blood draw was reasonable.
[¶ 41.] Affirmed on Issues 2 and 3, reversed on Issue 1, and remanded for a new trial.
[¶ 42.] MILLER, Chief Justice and GILBERTSON, Justice, concur.
[¶ 43.] SABERS, Justice, concurs in part and dissents in part.
[¶44.] AMUNDSON, Justice, dissents.

. This determination made by the trial court was based on the facts that the time elapsed upon observing the blood and actually entering the motel room of Lamont was over an hour; that blood alone is not indicative of a crime and could possibly be explained through alternative means; and that testimony of the on-the-scene officers did not treat it as an emergency: no rubber gloves were used, they did not call for an ambulance nor did they bring their medical kit along to provide assistance if someone was actually injured inside Lamont’s motel room. The court found that based on these facts, the purpose of entering the room was to investigate a possible crime, and not to provide medical assistance.

. It is true that a defendant in a criminal case can be convicted of a crime when his or her conduct is one of many causes for the resulting death. See Two Bulls, supra; State v. Theuring, 46 Ohio App.3d 152, 546 N.E.2d 436 (1988); State v. William, 231 Neb. 84, 435 N.W,2d 174 (1989). There may be, however, circumstances where the actions of someone other than the defendant are the proximate cause. As stated in Two Bulls, "the negligence or unlawful acts of another driver which proximately contributed to the death, as distinguished from an independent intervening cause thereof, [are] not a defense[.]” Supra, at ¶ 13 (emphasis supplied). Examples of where courts have drawn a distinction between an independent intervening cause and contributory negligence are: Pagotto v. State, 127 Md.App. 271, 732 A.2d 920, 966 (1999) ("It is possible for negligence of the deceased or another to intervene between his conduct and the fatal result in such a manner as to constitute a superceding cause, completely eliminating the defendant from the field of proximate causation”); People v. Schmies, 44 Cal.App.4th 38, 51 Cal.Rptr.2d 185, 192 (1996) ("An independent intervening act may be so disconnected and unforeseeable as to be the superceding cause; in such a case the defendant's act will be remote, and not the proximate cause”); State v. Dionne, 442 A.2d 876, 887 (R.I.1982) ("The deceased's negligence is irrelevant absent evidence that would support a finding that the deceased's conduct amounted to an independent intervening cause.... Before the trial judge is obligated to charge the jury regarding the consideration that may be given to the deceased's conduct in the case ... evidence must have been introduced which would indicate that the deceased's conduct was the sole cause of her death and that the defendant's conduct had nothing to do with the fatality.”); People v. Dunhill, 40 Colo.App. 137, 570 P.2d 1097, 1098 (1977) ("Absent proof that it was an independent intervening cause the contributory negligence of the victim is not a defense in a prosecution for vehicular homicide”). As such, a defendant should not be foreclosed from putting forth evidence of independent-intervening causes.