State of Tennessee v. Ronnie Wayne Blair

A Williamson County jury convicted the Defendant, Ronnie Wayne Blair, of Driving Under the Influence (“DUI”), first offense. The trial court sentenced him to eleven months and twenty-nine days, all of which was suspended after the service of four days. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court improperly limited his cross-examination of the arresting officer by preventing use of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) manual and that the trial court improperly commented on the evidence. The State counters that this appeal should be dismissed because the Defendant failed to timely file his notice of appeal. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we conclude that the interests of justice require waiver of the Defendant’s untimely filing of his notice of appeal. However, upon our consideration of the merits of the Defendant’s issues, we conclude the Defendant is not entitled to relief. The judgment of the trial court is, therefore, affirmed.