Murray v. Texas (original by judge hervey)
Annotate this CaseAppellant Chad Murray was charged with misdemeanor driving while intoxicated and was convicted by a jury. He was sentenced to one-year confinement in the county jail and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine. His sentence of confinement was suspended, and Appellant was placed on community supervision for two years. On appeal, Appellant argued that there was insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that, for purposes of the DWI statute, he was operating a vehicle. The court of appeals agreed, reversed the judgment below, and rendered an acquittal. The State Prosecuting Attorney filed a petition for review. The sole question for the Court of Criminal Appeals' review was whether “a driver who is passed out behind the wheel of a running vehicle [is] ‘operating’ it for the purposes of DWI?” Disagreeing with the court of appeals' decision, the Court reversed and reinstated the trial court's judgment.
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