State Of Washington v. Docie Burch

¶ 1 Docie Burch appeals her convictions for vehicular homicide and vehicular assault stemming from a drunk driving accident. She argues that the trial court erred by giving the jury to-convict instructions for both crimes that allowed the jury to find her guilty without finding that the State proved ordinary negligence. We hold that to convict a defendant of vehicular homicide or vehicular assault, the State need not prove that a driver acted with ordinary negligence in the operation of a motor vehicle if it proves that the driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs while driving that…