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Second DUI trial has same result
By CARRIE JOHNSON, Times Staff Writer INVERNESS -- A jury on Wednesday found Vernon Hembree guilty of driving under the influence-manslaughter and related charges in the 1999 car wreck that killed 74-year-old Carl Weber and injured his wife, Dorothy. The jury deliberated about 1 hour and 40 minutes. After the verdict was announced, Hembree, 24, shook his head and began taking off his rings, which he would not be allowed to wear in jail. Hembree was convicted of the charge in May 2000, but that verdict was overturned by an appellate court after questions were raised about the handling and storage of blood drawn by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for blood-alcohol tests. After nearly three days of testimony, jurors began deliberating in the second trial Wednesday evening. Hembree chose not to testify Wednesday, but his words were still used in court. Prosecutors asked Circuit Judge Ric A. Howard to allow them to use a portion of Hembree's testimony from his first trial to contradict evidence introduced by the defense at his second trial. Over strenuous objections from Hembree's lawyer, Flem K. Whited III, Howard granted the request. Prosecutors argued that testimony from the first trial should be used to contradict the theory of a defense witness at the second trial, who testified that Hembree's Jeep had not rotated after colliding with the Webers' Dodge Intrepid. Florida Highway Patrol Cpl. Earl Frazier, who investigated the wreck, said he thought the Jeep had spun around after the crash. Apparently so did Hembree, according to his previous testimony. He said his Jeep "did a 180" after the collision. So moments after Hembree invoked his right not to testify, Howard allowed Assistant State Attorney Richard Buxman to read from the transcript, as long as jurors weren't told it was from a previous trial. The postcrash spin wasn't the only point of contention. Bruce Wiggins, a consultant with a doctorate in engineering from the University of Florida, said he thought the Webers' Dodge had crossed the double yellow line and caused the crash. As evidence, Wiggins pointed to a trail of brake fluid that began in the westbound lane, where Hembree was driving. "The physics of the accident just doesn't support what the trooper said," Wiggins said outside the courtroom Wednesday. Frazier testified that the crashed occurred in the eastbound lane, which means it was Hembree who crossed the yellow line. To back his theory, the prosecution introduced photographs of a gouge in the eastbound lane, which Frazier said was created when the two vehicles collided and a piece of the Jeep dug into the asphalt road. Whited also tried to discredit the prosecution's blood-alcohol test, which showed that Hembree had a blood-alcohol level of 0.103 the night of the crash. The level at which Florida law presumes impairment is 0.08. The test was taken about 10:40 p.m., more than two hours after the wreck. There was no evidence introduced as to what Hembree's blood-alcohol level was earlier that night, Whited noted. But Assistant State Attorney Donald McCathran said there was more than enough circumstantial evidence to suggest that Hembree was impaired at the time of the crash. Troopers and paramedics testified that his eyes were bloodshot and his speech was slurred. Several also said Hembree smelled of alcohol. "There's absolutely no way for the FHP or anyone else to jam a needle in his arm the minute he hits that car," he said. -- Crime reporter Carrie Johnson can be reached at 860-7309 or cjohnson@sptimes.com.
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