Commonwealth, Department of Transportation, Bureau of Driver Licensing v. Bird

PALLADINO, Judge.

The Department of Transportation, Bureau of Driver Licensing (DOT), appeals from an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County (trial court) which sustained the appeal of James F. Bird (Bird) from a one-year license suspension under Section 1547(b) of the Vehicle Code, 75 Pa. C.S. § 1547(b) (refusal to submit to chemical testing). We reverse.

On May 8, 1989, Officer Kathleen Murphy (Murphy), of the Pittsburgh Police Department, responded to a call reporting that a man was slumped over the steering wheel, racing his engine and possibly attempting suicide. Murphy…