Minnesota DWI Lawyer F. T. Sessoms Blogs on Minnesota DWI: This Week's Featured Minnesota DWI Case

The Minnesota DWI Case Of The Week is State v. Prigge (Decided July 31, 2017, Minnesota Court of Appeals, Published) which stands for the proposition that a driver, arrested for DWI, is not guilty of carrying a pistol while under the influence of alcohol if the weapon is not, "on or about the person's clothes or person".

In Prigge, the Defendant was arrested in Maple Grove, Minnesota for DWI and during an "inventory search" of Mr. Prigge's vehicle, the police found a a loaded handgun in the bottom of the vehicle's center console compartment.  

The state charged appellant with several offenses, including carrying a pistol while under the influence of alcohol in violation of Minnesota Statutes section 624.7142, subdivision 1, subsection 4. Prigge moved to dismiss the charge for lack of probable cause. The district court granted the motion, reasoning that the facts were insufficient to support probable cause because Prigge was not carrying the pistol on or about his clothes or his person, and the statute's prohibited conduct did not extend to a pistol in the center console compartment of a vehicle.

The State appealed the District Court's ruling but the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court noting:

"Minnesota Statutes section 624.7142, subdivision 1, subsection 4, provides that '[a] person may not carry a pistol on or about the person's clothes or person in a public place' while under the influence of alcohol. The question presented is whether having a loaded pistol in the center console compartment of a vehicle constitutes 'carrying a pistol on or about the person's clothes or person.'"

"In State v. Larson, this court considered the definition of the term "carry" in the context of the same statute. 895 N.W.2d 655 (Minn. App. 2017). Larson, relying on standard dictionary definitions, held that a plain reading of the word 'carry' includes transporting or conveying a pistol on one's person, even if the pistol is unloaded and in a case. Larson held that section 624.7142, subdivision 1, subsection 4, prohibits carrying a pistol in a public place while under the influence of alcohol when the pistol is unloaded and hand-carried in an enclosed and secure gun case."

"Neither the dictionary definition nor our decision in Larson answers the precise question in this case: whether the term 'carry' includes situations in which there is no physical nexus between a person or the person's clothes and the pistol. We answer this question by reading section 624.7142 in conjunction with its companion statute, Minnesota Statutes section 624.714 (2016)."

Section 624. 714 states:

"A person . . . who carries, holds, or possesses a pistol in a motor vehicle ... or on or about the person's clothes or the person, or otherwise in possession or control in a public place . . . without first having obtained a permit to carry the pistol is guilty of a gross misdemeanor. A person who is convicted a second or subsequent time is guilty of a felony."

"By its plain language, section 624.714 prohibits a person from carrying, holding, or possessing a pistol in a motor vehicle, or on or about the person or the person's clothes, or otherwise possessing or controlling the pistol in a public place. By contrast, section 624.7142 prohibits only carrying a pistol on or about the person's clothes or person, and does not include carrying, holding, or possessing a pistol in a vehicle. Moreover, unlike section 624.714, section 624.7142 does not broadly prohibit other "possession or control."2 Because section 624.7124 uses different language than section 624.714, we must assume that the legislature intended them to apply to different conduct. The plain statutory language of section 624.714 prohibits a much broader range of conduct than section 624.7124. If the legislature intended the prohibition under section 624.7124 to extend to carrying, holding, or possessing a pistol in a motor vehicle or otherwise possessing or controlling the pistol, it could have done so by using the language it selected for section 624.714. It did not. And it is not the prerogative of this court to add language that is not present in the statute or supply what the legislature purposely omits or inadvertently overlooks."

"Given the plain language of the statute, we conclude that the phrase to 'carry a pistol on or about the person's clothes or person' in Minnesota Statutes section 624.7142, subdivision 1, subsection 4, requires a physical nexus between the person or the person's clothes and the pistol. It is undisputed that there was no physical nexus between Prigge's person or clothes and the pistol found in the vehicle's center console.  Accordingly, the district court did not err in dismissing the charge for lack of probable cause.

Moral Of The Story: If you are packing, don't be drinking!

If you or a loved one have been arrested for a Minnesota DWI, feel free to contact Minnesota DWI Lawyer, F. T. Sessoms at (612) 344-1505 for answers to all of your Minnesota DWI questions.