City of Eugene v. Silva

Defendant appeals his conviction for driving under the influence of intoxicants (DUII). He assigns error to the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress evidence. We reverse and remand with instructions to permit defendant to withdraw his plea.

At about 9:00 p.m. on August 26, 2001, Officers Fellman and Lawnicki of the Eugene Police Department were dispatched separately to investigate a damaged fire hydrant. Officer Fellman was the first to find the hydrant. A vehicle had run into it and sheared it from its base. Fellman concluded from the position of the hydrant that a vehicle had left…