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State v. Dominguez1/27/2005
ate v. House, 2001-NMCA-011, 20, 130 N.M. 418, 25 P.3d 257 (" he subject of punishment of vehicular homicide is the killing of another, not the unlawful operation of a motor vehicle."). This common legislative purpose between the two homicide statutes rebutted the presumption in favor of multiple punishments that had been created by an application of the Blockburger test. Santillanes, 2001-NMSC-018, 23. Contrary to this analysis, however, the statutes at issue in the present case do not contain this identity of purpose. As we have just explained, the crime of shooting at or from a motor vehicle has a different purpose than punishing the death of another; it "is more narrowly designed to protect the public from reckless shooting into a vehicle and the possible property damage and bodily injury that may result." Gonzales, 113 N.M. at 225, 824 P.2d at 1027; accord State v. Highfield, 113 N.M. 606, 608, 830 P.2d 158, 160 (Ct. App. 1992) (rejecting the argument that Section 30-3-8 is "addressed to bodily integrity" and stating that, " n enacting Section 30-3-8, we believe the egislature was concerned with conduct typically designed to terrorize or intimidate"). "While death may occur as a result of shooting into an occupied vehicle, we must strictly construe the social purpose protected by each statute." Gonzales, 113 N.M. at 225, 824 P.2d at 1027; accord Swafford, 112 N.M. at 14-15, 810 P.2d at 1234-35 (" are must be taken in describing the evils sought to be prevented_social evils can be elusive and subject to diverse interpretation. Accordingly, the social evils proscribed by different statutes must be construed narrowly . . . .") (footnote omitted). As a result, the crime of shooting at or from a motor vehicle cannot be construed as a homicide crime within the meaning of Santillanes. Voluntary manslaughter is the only homicide conviction Defendant received for Solisz's death, and thus, the double jeopardy principle from Santillanes is inapposite. Applying the one death/one homicide conviction rule from Santillanes to the conviction of shooting at or from a motor vehicle would frustrate the Legislature's intent to address a different social evil than homicide. We thus apply our holding in Gonzales and conclude that the Legislature intended to create separately punishable offenses in enacting these two statutes.
III. Aggravated Battery and Shooting at or from a Motor Vehicle
As with the convictions related to the death of Solisz, Defendant argues that his convictions of both aggravated battery and shooting at or from a motor vehicle for the unitary conduct of shooting Martinez violates double jeopardy. For reasons similar to those expressed above, we reject this argument.
Our analysis of this claim again focuses on legislative intent. Applying the Blockburger same elements test, we agree with Defendant's concession that each of these crimes contains an element that the other does not. Aggravated battery requires an intent to injure, which is not an element of shooting at or from a motor vehicle. The crime of shooting at or from a motor vehicle requires the discharge of a firearm at or from a motor vehicle, which is not an element of aggravated battery. Thus, there is a presumption that the Legislature intended to create separately punishable offenses.
Other indicia of legislative intent support this presumption. These two statutes have different social aims. "The aggravated battery statute is directed at preserving the integrity of a person's body against serious injury." State v. Vallejos, 2000-NMCA-075, 18, 129 N.M. 424, 9 P.3d 668. As noted above, the purpose of the shooting at or from a motor vehicle statute is not principally to protect bodily integrity, Hi
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