Com. v. Kratzer, D. ( 2021 )


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  • J-A03019-21
    NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
    COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA               :   IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
    :        PENNSYLVANIA
    :
    v.                             :
    :
    :
    DOUGLAS A. KRATZER                         :
    :
    Appellant               :   No. 698 MDA 2020
    Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence Entered February 14, 2020,
    in the Court of Common Pleas of Snyder County,
    Criminal Division at No(s): CP-55-CR-0000392-2018.
    BEFORE: LAZARUS, J., KUNSELMAN, J., and MURRAY, J.
    MEMORANDUM BY KUNSELMAN, J.:                              FILED MAY 21, 2021
    Douglas A Kratzer appeals from the judgment of sentence imposed
    following his conviction of two counts of driving under the influence (“DUI”).1
    After careful consideration, we affirm.
    In the early morning hours of May 28, 2018, Kratzer, then aged seventy-
    two, drove through a police sobriety checkpoint.          Trooper Jordan Judson
    initiated contact with Kratzer and observed that his eyes were bloodshot and
    that he was wearing a wristband. Kratzer admitted to the trooper that he had
    a few drinks prior to driving.        When the trooper asked Kratzer to exit his
    vehicle, the trooper detected an odor of alcohol emanating from Kratzer’s
    person. At the trooper’s request, Krazter performed two field sobriety tests
    ____________________________________________
    1   See 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 3802(a)(1), (2).
    J-A03019-21
    (“FSTs”); namely, the walk-and-turn test and the one-leg-stand test. Kratzer
    told the trooper that he had a hip issue, but he did not explain the nature or
    extent of the issue.       When Kratzer performed the FSTs, Trooper Judson
    observed several signs or clues of impairment. He thereafter arrested Kratzer
    on suspicion of DUI.
    Upon receiving his Miranda and O’Connell warnings,2 Krazter
    consented to the chemical testing of his blood which revealed that his blood
    alcohol content (“BAC”) was .088%. Kratzer was charged with two counts of
    DUI (general impairment and BAC greater than .08% but less than .10%).
    Kratzer filed an omnibus pretrial motion to suppress the BAC results on the
    basis that, inter alia, the trooper lacked probable cause to suspect that he was
    sufficiently impaired, and the FST results were inadmissible.
    Following a suppression hearing, the trial court denied suppression and
    the matter immediately proceeded to a non-jury trial. The trial court found
    Krazter guilty of both counts of DUI. On February 14, 2019, the trial court
    imposed an aggregate sentence of six months of probation, plus fines and
    costs.    Kratzer filed a post-sentence motion challenging the weight of the
    ____________________________________________
    2 See Miranda v. Arizona, 
    384 U.S. 436
     (1966) (a Miranda warning informs
    a suspect that he has the right to remain silent, that anything he says can and
    will be used against him, that he has the right to speak with an attorney, and
    that if he cannot afford an attorney one will be appointed to represent him);
    and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, DOT v. O'Connell, 
    555 A.2d 873
    (Pa. 1989) (an O’Connell warning informs a motorist that his driving
    privileges will be suspended for one year if he refuses chemical testing).
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    evidence, which the trial court denied. Kratzer filed a timely notice of appeal,
    and both he and the trial court complied with Pa.R.A.P. 1925.
    Krazter raises the following issues for our review.
    1. Did the trial court err in denying Kratzer’s omnibus pre-trial
    motion as Trooper Judson lacked sufficient probable cause to
    arrest him where the facts and circumstances within his
    knowledge at the time of arrest were not sufficient to warrant
    a person of reasonable caution to believe Kratzer was incapable
    of safely operating a motor vehicle or that his blood alcohol
    content was above a .08%?
    2. Did the trial court err in finding Kratzer guilty of DUI: general
    impairment pursuant to 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 3802(a)(1), because
    the Commonwealth was unable to link any observations of
    impaired driving to Kratzer and the evidence did not establish
    that his mental and physical faculties were impaired such that
    he could not safely operate a motor vehicle?
    Kratzer’s Brief at 1 (unnecessary capitalization omitted).
    In his first issue, Kratzer challenges the trial court’s denial of his motion
    to suppress the BAC results. In reviewing an appeal from an order denying
    suppression, our standard of review is limited to determining:
    whether [the trial court’s] factual findings are supported by the
    record and whether [its] legal conclusions drawn from those facts
    are correct. When reviewing the rulings of a [trial] court, the
    appellate court considers only the evidence of the prosecution and
    so much of the evidence for the defense as remains
    uncontradicted when read in the context of the record as a whole.
    When the record supports the findings of the [trial] court, we are
    bound by those facts and may reverse only if the legal conclusions
    drawn therefrom are in error.
    Commonwealth v. Griffin, 
    116 A.3d 1139
    , 1142 (Pa. Super. 2015). Our
    scope of review is limited to the evidence presented at the suppression
    hearing. In re interests of L.J., 
    79 A.3d 1073
    , 1088-89 (Pa. 2013).
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    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has explained the following with regard
    to sobriety checkpoints:
    Although the stopping of a motor vehicle at a sobriety
    checkpoint constitutes a seizure for constitutional purposes, such
    checkpoint stops are not per se unreasonable, and hence are not
    per se unconstitutional under either the Fourth Amendment to the
    United States Constitution or Article I, Section 8 of the
    Pennsylvania Constitution. . . . [T]he United States Supreme Court
    concluded that sobriety checkpoints do not offend the Fourth
    Amendment because they are a reasonable means of advancing a
    vital public interest, involving only a modest intrusion on the
    privacy and liberty of motorists. Similarly, we have held that
    systematic, non-discriminatory, non-arbitrary checkpoints do not
    offend the Pennsylvania Constitution.
    Commonwealth v. Worthy, 
    957 A.2d 720
    , 724 (Pa. 2008) (internal citations
    omitted).
    To be constitutionally valid, a warrantless arrest must be supported by
    probable cause. Commonwealth v. Evans, 
    685 A.2d 535
    , 537 (Pa. 1996).
    In the case of a DUI, a police officer has probable cause to make an arrest
    where the officer has knowledge of sufficient facts and circumstances to
    warrant a prudent person to believe that the driver has been driving under
    the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance. Commonwealth v. Hilliar,
    
    943 A.2d 984
    , 994 (Pa. Super. 2008). An officer must determine whether
    probable cause exists to justify a warrantless arrest using the “totality of the
    circumstances.” Commonwealth v. Williams, 
    941 A.2d 14
    , 27 (Pa. Super.
    2008) (en banc) (citation omitted).    Thus, “a police officer may utilize his
    experience and personal observations to render an opinion as to whether a
    person is intoxicated.” 
    Id.
     (citation omitted); see also Commonwealth v.
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    Wells, 
    916 A.2d 1192
    , 1195 (Pa. Super. 2007) (noting that trained police
    officers may draw commonsensical inferences from the facts).
    Importantly, “probable cause does not involve certainties, but rather the
    ‘factual and practical considerations of everyday life on which reasonable and
    prudent [persons] act.’” Williams, 
    941 A.2d at 27
     (citation omitted). While
    FSTs can be helpful for a police officer when determining whether probable
    cause exists for a DUI arrest, “reasonable grounds to arrest [for suspicion of
    DUI] does not require the failure of [FSTs].” Commonwealth v. Slonaker,
    
    795 A.2d 397
    , 402 (Pa. Super. 2002) (citation and footnote omitted).
    Moreover, “[p]robable cause exists when criminality is one reasonable
    inference; it need not be the only, or even the most likely, inference.”
    Commonwealth v. Quiles, 
    619 A.2d 291
    , 298 (Pa. Super. 1993) (en banc)
    (citations omitted); see also Commonwealth v. Thompson, 
    985 A.2d 928
    ,
    931 (Pa. 2009) (holding that probable cause is not a prima facie showing of
    criminal activity); Commonwealth v. Moss, 
    543 A.2d 514
    , 518 (Pa. 1988)
    (noting that the fact that other inferences could be drawn does not
    demonstrate that the inference that was drawn by police was unreasonable).
    In the instant matter, Kratzer argues that Trooper Judson did not have
    sufficient probable cause to arrest him on suspicion of DUI. Kratzer maintains
    that, under the totality of the circumstances, the trooper could not have
    formed a reasonable probability that Kratzer was under the influence of
    alcohol such that it impaired his ability to drive safely or that his BAC was at
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    least .08%. In making this argument, Kratzer evaluates, in isolation, certain
    factors supporting Trooper Judson’s probable cause determination. He insists
    that bloodshot eyes and an odor of alcohol do not necessarily indicate alcohol
    impairment or a BAC over .08%. Krazter posits that while some individuals
    may exhibit bloodshot eyes after one drink, other may not exhibit bloodshot
    eyes until several drinks are consumed. Similarly, Kratzer argues that some
    individuals may emit an odor of alcohol with a low BAC, whereas others may
    not present an odor of alcohol until reaching a much higher BAC. Kratzer
    maintains that the fact he was wearing a wristband is of no consequence and
    bears no weight in this matter.3
    Krazter points out that, even though Trooper Judson observed two
    impairment clues when Kratzer performed the walk-and-turn test, the trooper
    did not make the decision to arrest Kratzer for DUI at that point, but
    considered the clues as part of the totality of the circumstances. Kratzer also
    points out that, even though Trooper Judson observed three clues of
    impairment when Kratzer performed the one-leg-stand test, the trooper
    conceded that it could not be confirmed whether Kratzer was having issues
    due to his age or something else.
    ____________________________________________
    3 We note, with disapproval, that in making his suppression arguments,
    Krazter points to information not included in the suppression record. As we
    may only review the suppression record in addressing Kratzer’s suppression
    challenge, we do not consider any information not contained therein. See In
    re interests of L.J., 79 A.3d at 1088-89.
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    Krazter maintains that Pennsylvania is not a zero-tolerance state, and
    that it was lawful for him to drink and drive so long as he was not impaired
    above the legal limit.4 While Krazter acknowledges that the trial court found
    that Trooper Judson had probable cause to arrest Kratzer on suspicion of DUI
    based on his bloodshot eyes, odor of alcohol, admission of drinking, wristband,
    and the trooper’s training and experience, Kratzer claims that “there is nothing
    trustworthy and reliable about the information Trooper Judson took into
    account with Kratzer’s arrest.”         Kratzer’s Brief at 30-31.   Kratzer further
    argues that “[f]actors such as bloodshot eyes, odor of alcohol and a wristband,
    which only confirm that alcohol may have been drank, cannot be suggestive
    of criminal activity.” Id. at 33. According to Kratzer, no weight should be
    afforded to his performance on the FSTs due to his age. Finally, Kratzer claims
    that the opinion of Trooper Judson was not reasonable based on his training
    ____________________________________________
    4 In making this argument, Krazter relies on Commonwealth v. Hicks, 
    208 A.3d 916
     (Pa. 2019), wherein our Supreme Court held that police officers may
    not infer criminal activity merely from an individual’s possession of a
    concealed firearm in public, since a firearm may lawfully be carried and, alone,
    is not suggestive of criminal activity. The Hicks Court further explained that,
    while the possession of a firearm “certainly can be suspicious,” it is but one
    factor to be considered under the totality of the circumstances presented. 
    Id. at 939-40
    . Importantly, Hicks did not involve a probable cause determination
    for suspected DUI. Moreover, unlike in Hicks, Trooper Judson’s probable
    cause determination was not based a single factor (i.e., that Krazter admitted
    he had been drinking before driving through the DUI checkpoint). Instead, in
    the instant matter, the trooper’s probable cause determination was based on
    several factors indicating impairment. Thus, we find Hicks to be factually and
    legally distinguishable.
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    and experience as a police officer as well as the facts known to him at the
    time of the arrest.5
    The trial court determined that, based on the totality of the
    circumstances presented, Trooper Judson had sufficient probable cause to
    arrest Krazter on suspicion of DUI. The trial court reasoned:
    In this case the arresting officer had probable cause to
    arrest [Kratzer] on suspicion of a DUI offense because: (1)
    [Kratzer] had an odor of alcohol about him; (2) his eyes were
    bloodshot; (3) he was wearing a wristband, suggestive of his
    having left a location where alcohol was served; (4) he admitted
    to drinking alcohol before driving his vehicle; (5) he failed the
    “walk-and[-]turn” and “one[-]leg[-]stand” field sobriety tests; (6)
    the officer had significant training and experience with regard to
    detecting a driver impaired by the consumption of alcohol, and in
    his opinion [Kratzer] was incapable of safely operating a motor
    vehicle.
    Trial Court Opinion, 12/4/19, at 7 (unnecessary capitalization omitted).
    Our review of the suppression record reflects the following.     Trooper
    Judson testified that he completed his police training at the Pennsylvania State
    Police Academy, and has been employed by the Pennsylvania State Police for
    two and one-half years. N.T., 11/25/19, at 6. While at the police academy,
    he received training on identifying impaired drivers who are under the
    ____________________________________________
    5 Kratzer makes much of the fact that there was no evidence that he drove
    erratically, had slurred speech, or trouble communicating with the trooper.
    However, evidence of erratic driving, slurred speech, or other specific factors
    is not a necessary precursor to a finding of DUI. See Salter, 121 A.3d at 995
    (noting that for probable cause we do not employ a mechanical consideration
    of specific factors, but rather look to the totality of the circumstances
    presented).
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    influence of alcohol.      Id. at 7.6      Trooper Judson explained that signs of
    impairment include, inter alia, bloodshot eyes, odor of alcoholic beverages on
    or about the individual, and slurred speech. Id. An additional cue is provided
    when a driver is wearing a wristband from an establishment that serves
    alcohol.   Id. at 9.     While at the police academy, Trooper Judson received
    training on FSTs prescribed by the National Highway and Traffic Safety
    Administration (“NHTSA”).           Id.    He estimates that he has conducted
    approximately thirty traffic stops where he eventually suspected that the
    individual was driving while impaired and arrested them.          Id. at 10.   The
    trooper estimated that he had administered the walk-and-turn and one-leg-
    stand FSTs on twenty-five occasions prior to his encounter with Kratzer. Id.
    Trooper Judson testified that, on the night of May 27, 2018 and
    extending into the early morning hours of May 28, 2018, he was working at a
    DUI checkpoint in Snyder County. Id. at 10-11. All cars were required to
    pass through the checkpoint, and as they did so, the troopers interacted with
    drivers and looked for signs of impairment. Id. at 12. Shortly after midnight,
    he encountered Kratzer, who was driving a silver sedan and wearing a
    wristband. Id. Kratzer told Trooper Judson that he was driving home after
    watching races at the Port Royal Speedway. Id. at 13. Kratzer also told the
    trooper that he had consumed alcohol, consisting of a “couple” or a “few”
    ____________________________________________
    6Following the arrest in this case, Trooper Judson completed ARIDE training,
    which is advanced recognition of impaired drivers. N.T., 11/25/19, at 7-8.
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    drinks, prior to driving home. Id. at 14, 39. Trooper Judson observed certain
    signs of impairment, including bloodshot eyes and a moderate odor of alcohol
    on Kratzer’s person. Id. Trooper Judson asked Kratzer to exit his vehicle and
    directed him to an area in front of a marked police vehicle equipped with a
    video recording device.   Id. at 17.    Kratzer provided the trooper with his
    driver’s license and vehicle registration, from which the trooper was able to
    ascertain that Krazter was 72 years old. Id. at 19-20. The trooper was trained
    to take age into consideration when administering FSTs to individuals over
    sixty-five years of age. Id. at 20.
    Trooper Judson then asked Kratzer to performed certain FSTs, including
    the walk-and-turn test and the one-leg-stand test. Id. at 18. The trooper
    instructed Krazter verbally, and physically demonstrated to him how the walk-
    and-turn test was to be performed. Id. at 20, 21-22. Trooper Judson asked
    Kratzer if there was anything that would limit his ability to perform the test,
    and Krazter indicated that he had an issue with one hip. Id. at 21, 47. Krazter
    did not explain the extent of his hip issue but indicated that he would try to
    complete the test.    Id. at 21. Trooper Judson took the hip issue into
    consideration when he evaluated Kratzer’s performance of the walk-and-turn
    test. Id. The trooper explained that there are eight clues of impairment to
    look for with that test, and that Krazter exhibited two of them. Id. at 19, 23.
    Specifically, Kratzer used his arms to balance himself, and he stepped off the
    line. Id. at 23. When the trooper asked Kratzer to perform the one-leg-stand
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    test, Kratzer did not mention the hip issue.      Id. at 25.    Trooper Judson
    explained that there are four clues of impairment to look for in administering
    the one-leg-stand test, and Krazter exhibited three of them; namely, he
    swayed, used his arms for balance, and put his foot down. Id. at 25-26.
    Trooper Judson testified that the FSTs are not administered on a
    pass/fails basis; rather, any clues of impairment exhibited when performing
    FSTs are considered as part of the totality of circumstances indicating
    impairment.    Id. at 23   Based on his education, training, experience with
    suspected impaired drivers, and his observations of Kratzer, Trooper Judson
    did not think that Kratzer could safely drive his vehicle and placed him under
    arrest on suspicion of DUI. Id. at 26-27.
    Based on our review of the suppression record, and considering only the
    evidence of the prosecution and so much of the evidence for the defense as
    remains uncontradicted when read in the context of the record as a whole, we
    conclude that the trial court’s factual findings are supported by the record.
    Accordingly, we are bound by those facts and may reverse only if the legal
    conclusions drawn therefrom are in error. See Griffin, 
    supra.
    In this regard, we discern no error in the trial court’s legal conclusions.
    As explained above, probable cause is not a prima facie showing of criminal
    activity.   Thompson, 985 A.2d at 931.         Thus, Trooper Judson was not
    required to “have had in hand evidence which would suffice to convict, as it is
    only the probability, and not a prima facie showing of criminal activity, that is
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    the standard for justifying arrest.” See Salter, 121 A.3d at 996. Instead,
    Trooper Judson was only required to determine that the totality of the
    circumstances presented indicated that DUI was one reasonable inference.
    See Quiles, 
    619 A.2d at 298
     (holding that criminality need not be the only,
    or even the most likely, inference). Further, the fact that other inferences
    could be drawn for some of the factors considered by Trooper Judson (i.e.,
    bloodshot eyes, the wearing of a wristband, odor of alcohol, poor performance
    on FSTs) does not render Trooper Judson’s inference of impairment
    unreasonable. See Moss, 543 A.2d at 518.7
    With respect to Kratzer’s challenge to the admission of FSTs, he
    seemingly ignores that our caselaw recognizes that FSTs, such as those
    administered in this case, are grounded in theories which link an individual’s
    lack of coordination and loss of concentration, with intoxication. See Salter,
    121 A.3d at 996. This inter-relationship is also recognized in what is generally
    accepted as the common indicia of intoxication, within the understanding and
    experience of ordinary people.          Id.    Importantly, FSTs are not meant to
    ascertain with certainty a driver’s specific BAC, as Kratzer suggests, but only
    ____________________________________________
    7 Kratzer devotes a significant portion of his argument to a discussion of the
    things he was able to do without incident, such as traveling at an appropriate
    speed when entering the DUI checkpoint, being able to stop his vehicle when
    directed to do so, his ability to communicate, retrieve his license and vehicle
    information, and to exit his vehicle. Kratzer points us to no authority which
    required the trial court to view the evidence in Kratzer’s favor, or to consider
    irrelevant or neutral factors.
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    to provide the officer with information useful to determine whether the driver
    is impaired. Id.
    We are mindful that Trooper Judson indicated that he was trained to
    take age into consideration when administering FSTs to individuals over sixty-
    five years of age. However, we find it significant that the trooper testified that
    he was aware of Kratzer’s age of seventy-two, and that he relied upon his
    training when reaching his probable cause determination. N.T., 11/25/19, at
    19-20, 26-27. Thus, the trial court could reasonably infer that, based on the
    trooper’s training, he took Kratzer’s advanced age into account when
    considering his poor performance on the FSTs.8         See Commonwealth v.
    Wells, 
    916 A.2d 1192
    , 1195 (Pa. Super. 2007) (holding that, in determining
    whether an officer has probable cause, courts look to the totality of the
    circumstances “as viewed through the eyes of a prudent, reasonable, cautious
    police officer guided by experience and training”).
    Importantly, Kratzer presented no evidence or testimony that the
    NHTSA guidelines prohibit the administration of FSTs to individuals over the
    age of sixty-five, or mandate that the results of such tests have no value
    when the individual performing them is over sixty-five-years old. Moreover,
    even if Kratzer had successfully performed the FSTs, it would not have
    ____________________________________________
    8Trooper Judson indicated that he took Kratzer’s hip issue into account when
    evaluating his performance of the walk-and-turn test. See N.T., 11/25/19, at
    21.
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    precluded Trooper Judson from potentially developing probable cause, since
    reasonable grounds to arrest for suspicion of DUI does not require the failure
    of FSTs. See Slonaker, 
    795 A.2d at 402
    ; see also Salter, 121 A.3d at 997
    (holding that failing FSTs is not a requirement for a determination of probable
    cause to arrest on suspicion of DUI). Accordingly, we conclude that the trial
    court had ample evidence upon which to find that Trooper Judson had probable
    cause to arrest Kratzer for DUI, and that the trial court did not err by declining
    to grant Kratzer’s motion to suppress. Thus, Kratzer’s first issue warrants no
    relief.
    In his second issue, Kratzer contends that the verdict of guilt was
    against the weight of the evidence. The following legal principles apply when
    a challenge to the weight of the evidence supporting a conviction is presented
    to the trial court:
    A motion for new trial on the grounds that the verdict is
    contrary to the weight of the evidence, concedes that there is
    sufficient evidence to sustain the verdict. Thus, the trial court is
    under no obligation to view the evidence in the light most
    favorable to the verdict winner. An allegation that the verdict is
    against the weight of the evidence is addressed to the discretion
    of the trial court. A new trial should not be granted because of a
    mere conflict in the testimony or because the judge on the same
    facts would have arrived at a different conclusion. A trial judge
    must do more than reassess the credibility of the witnesses and
    allege that he would not have assented to the verdict if he were a
    juror. Trial judges, in reviewing a claim that the verdict is against
    the weight of the evidence do not sit as the thirteenth juror.
    Rather, the role of the trial judge is to determine that
    notwithstanding all the facts, certain facts are so clearly of greater
    weight that to ignore them or to give them equal weight with all
    the facts is to deny justice.
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    Commonwealth v. Widmer, 
    744 A.2d 745
    , 751-52 (Pa. 2000) (citations,
    footnotes and quotation marks omitted).       Thus, to allow an appellant “to
    prevail on a challenge to the weight of the evidence, the evidence must be so
    tenuous, vague and uncertain that the verdict shocks the conscience of the
    [trial] court.” Commonwealth v. Talbert, 
    129 A.3d 536
    , 545 (Pa. Super.
    2016) (internal citation omitted).
    An appellate court’s standard of review when presented with a weight
    of the evidence claim is distinct from the standard of review applied by the
    trial court:
    Appellate review of a weight claim is a review of the exercise
    of discretion, not of the underlying question of whether the verdict
    is against the weight of the evidence. Because the trial judge has
    had the opportunity to hear and see the evidence presented, an
    appellate court will give the gravest consideration to the findings
    and reasons advanced by the trial judge when reviewing a trial
    court’s determination that the verdict is against the weight of the
    evidence. One of the least assailable reasons for granting or
    denying a new trial is the lower court’s conviction that the verdict
    was or was not against the weight of the evidence and that a new
    trial should be granted in the interest of justice.
    Commonwealth v. Clay, 
    64 A.3d 1049
    , 1055 (Pa. 2013) (emphasis in
    original).
    Kratzer contends that the verdict was contrary to the weight of the
    evidence because the Commonwealth failed to establish that his mental and
    physical faculties were impaired such that he could not safely operate a motor
    vehicle. In making this argument, Kratzer once again relies primarily on the
    various things he was able to do without incident. Specifically, he points out
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    that he drove into the DUI checkpoint without issue, conversed with Trooper
    Judson, provided the requested vehicle information, and exited his vehicle
    without difficulty.   While Kratzer acknowledges that the trooper observed
    bloodshot eyes and a moderate odor of alcohol, he claims that these factors
    are not dispositive of impairment or that his BAC was above .08%.           With
    respect to the FSTs, Krazter acknowledges that he performed them poorly.
    However, he argues that the clues that Trooper Judson observed when Kratzer
    performed these tests were not indicative of impairment or that his blood
    alcohol content was above a .08.
    Here, the trial court determined that the elements for each DUI
    conviction were supported by the record that there was nothing about the
    verdicts that would “shock one’s sense of justice.”      Trial Court Opinion,
    4/15/20, at 7. The trial court observed that, while Kratzer referred to the
    various factors considered by Trooper Judson in making his probable cause
    determination, Kratzer did not evaluate them in their totality. Id. at 4. As
    the trial court explained:
    [Kratzer] seems to forget that the events must be analyzed
    in terms of a “totality of the circumstances” – [nothing] says that
    a DUI arrest necessitates a specific observation by the officer of
    impaired driving; nor that there be direct evidence that a
    defendant’s mental and physical faculties were visibly impaired;
    nor that a specific time must be assigned to an admission by a
    defendant that he or she has consumed alcohol; nor that the
    existence of glassy bloodshot eyes or odor of alcohol about a
    defendant’s person is irrelevant to the probable cause
    determination.     . . . It is the sum total of these various
    observations that furnish the requisite probable cause.
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    Id. at 3-4.
    We discern no abuse of discretion by the trial court in arriving at its
    determination that the verdict of guilt did not shock the conscious.
    Accordingly, Kratzer’s second issue entitles him to no relief.
    Judgment of sentence affirmed.
    Judgment Entered.
    Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
    Prothonotary
    Date: 05/21/2021
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