[No. 80752-3. En Banc.]
Argued October 14, 2008. Decided December 31, 2008
Huyen Bich Nguyen, pro se.
Daniel T. Satterberg, Prosecuting Attorney, and Andrea R. Vitalich, Deputy, for respondent.
Author: Justice Barbara A. Madsen. WE CONCUR: Chief Justice Gerry L. Alexander, Justice Charles W. Johnson, Justice Richard B. Sanders, Justice Tom Chambers, Justice Susan Owens, Justice Mary E. Fairhurst, Justice James M. Johnson, Justice Debra L. Stephens.
En Banc
¶1 MADSEN, J. -- At issue is whether physical control of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs is an included offense of driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. We conclude that it is and accordingly affirm the Court of Appeals.
FACTS
¶2 At about 2:40 a.m. on February 15, 2003, Washington State Patrol Trooper Christopher F. Magallon noticed a vehicle partially pulled onto the gore point of the Howell Street on-ramp to Interstate 5. ¶3 Trooper Magallon asked Nguyen to move her car, after which he had her perform field sobriety tests. She performed poorly on the tests and her behavior was erratic. Magallon suspected she was under the influence of stimulants as well as alcohol and placed her under arrest. When Magallon searched the vehicle incident to Nguyen's arrest, he found cocaine in the center console. Blood analysis disclosed that Nguyen had both alcohol and cocaine in her system. ¶4 Ms. Nguyen was charged with possession of cocaine and driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug (DUI), RCW 46.61.502. At her bench trial, the State argued that if the court did not find her guilty of DUI, it should convict her of the "lesser included" offense of being in physical control of a vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug (hereafter physical control while under the influence), RCW 46.61.504. The State proposed this alternative in anticipation that the court might rule certain evidence of DUI inadmissible. ¶5 The trial court found Ms. Nguyen not guilty of DUI but guilty of physical control while under the influence. The court determined that the "safely off the roadway" defense did not apply because Ms. Nguyen had not pulled out of the traffic lane, she was behind the wheel, and she told Magallon that she intended to continue driving. The court also found Nguyen guilty of possession of cocaine. The court imposed a standard range sentence on the possession offense and the mandatory minimum sentence on the offense of physical control while under the influence, to be served concurrently. ¶6 Nguyen appealed. The Court of Appeals affirmed her convictions in an unpublished opinion. State v. Huyen Bich Nguyen, noted at 140 Wn. App. 1020, 2007 WL 2411680, 2007 Wash. App. LEXIS 2527, review granted, 163 Wn.2d 1039 (2008). ¶7 Nguyen's petition for review was granted solely on the included offense issue. She is acting pro se on this discretionary review, after counsel's motion to withdraw was granted. ANALYSIS ¶8 Ms. Nguyen contends that physical control while under the influence is not a "lesser included" offense of DUI because both offenses are gross misdemeanors subject to the same penalties. The State first contends that review is barred under the invited error doctrine and claims that error was invited because Ms. Nguyen acquiesced in consideration of physical control while under the influence as an included offense. On the merits, the State contends that under Washington law physical control while under the influence is an included offense of DUI, as the Court of Appeals held. [1-3] ¶9 Because we conclude that physical control while under the influence is an included offense of DUI, no error occurred and the invited error doctrine does not apply. But the State's claim that Ms. Nguyen "acquiesced" in consideration of the lesser included offense theory is also a claim that review is barred because Ms. Nguyen failed to object to consideration of the included offense theory when the State proposed it as an alternative. [4, 5] ¶10 If, as Ms. Nguyen contends, physical control while under the influence is not an included offense of DUI, then she was unconstitutionally convicted of a crime. Under article I, section 22 of the Washington State Constitution, it is error to try and convict a defendant of a crime that is not charged. State v. Irizarry, 111 Wn.2d 591, 592, 763 P.2d 432 (1988); State v. Markle, 118 Wn.2d 424, 432, 823 P.2d 1101 (1992); State v. Carr, 97 Wn.2d 436, 439, 645 P.2d 1098 (1982); State v. Olds, 39 Wn.2d 258, 260-61, 235 P.2d 165 (1951); see, e.g., State v. Smith, 2 Wn.2d 118, 98 P.2d 647 (1939) (individual charged with larceny could not be convicted of embezzlement). The error, if it occurred, would constitute manifest error affecting a constitutional right, and due to the nature of this error the prejudice is clear. Thus, we will review Ms. Nguyen's claim of error. [6-10] ¶11 Ms. Nguyen argues that physical control while under the influence is not an included offense of DUI because the two crimes are both gross misdemeanors subject to the same penalties. See RCW 46.61.502(5), .504(5), .5055. RCW 10.61.006 provides in relevant part that "the defendant may be found guilty of an offense the commission of which is necessarily included within that with which he is charged in the indictment or information." Although the statute does not use the word "lesser," state courts have used the phrase "lesser included" to describe the offenses falling within its scope. ¶12 Under Washington law, the Workman test applies to determine whether an offense is a "lesser included" (or, more properly, an "included") offense. State v. Workman, 90 Wn.2d 443, 584 P.2d 382 (1978). "[A] defendant is entitled to an instruction on a lesser included offense if two conditions are met. First, each of the elements of the lesser offense must be a necessary element of the offense charged. Second, the evidence in the case must support an inference that the lesser crime was committed." Id. at 447-48 (citations omitted). As a threshold determination apart from the Workman test, the included offense must arise from the same act or transaction supporting the greater offense that is charged. State v. Porter, 150 Wn.2d 732, 738-40, 82 P.3d 234 (2004). ¶13 Ms. Nguyen correctly concedes that all of the elements of RCW 46.61.504 (physical control while under the influence) fall within the elements of RCW 46.61.502 (DUI), thus satisfying the legal prong of the Workman test. She also agrees that because there was no proof that she drove, the factual prong also is satisfied. ¶14 Although some other states require that a "lesser included" offense have a lesser penalty, Other states have expressly rejected the argument that the penalty must be lesser than the offense charged for the offense to be a lesser included offense. E.g., Nicholson v. State, 656 P.2d 1209, 1212 (Alaska Ct. App. 1982) ("lesser" refers to the relation between the elements of the offense, not the relation between their penalties); State v. Chabolla-Hinojosa, 192 Ariz. 360, 363, 965 P.2d 94 (Ct. App. 1998) (lesser included offense can have the same as or a lesser penalty than the greater offense); Sanders v. State, 944 So. 2d 203 (Fla. 2006); State v. Habhab, 209 N.W.2d 73 (Iowa 1973) (noting that the state's definition of "included offenses" had never referred to a requirement of a lesser penalty and its prior holdings negative any inference that the possible penalty was material to the determination); State v. Gresham, 276 Neb. 187, 194-95, 752 N.W.2d 571 (2008) (relative penalties are not a factor in identifying lesser included offense under the statutory elements test); State v. Young, 305 N.C. 391, 393, 289 S.E.2d 374 (1982); see also Suppl. Br. of Resp't at 15-17 (citing additional cases).» ¶15 Additionally, Ms. Nguyen does not explain why a lesser penalty should be a requirement for an included offense. Inquiring into potential penalties has no bearing on whether the elements of the offense are necessarily included in the greater offense--the legal inquiry under the elements test used in Washington, nor does it disclose anything about whether the evidence supports the inference that the lesser crime was committed--the factual inquiry under the Washington test. ¶16 Most importantly, the question of what constitutes an included offense is a matter of what is required by RCW 10.61.006. RCW 10.61.006 forecloses consideration of the penalty because it limits an included offense to one "the commission of which is necessarily included" in the charged offense, establishing that the sole inquiry is whether the included offense is necessarily committed when the greater offense is committed. (Emphasis added.) The statutory language does not suggest in any way that the potential penalties are relevant to the determination. The word "lesser" does not even appear in the statute. ¶17 Ms. Nguyen also contends that State v. Weber, 159 Wn.2d 252, 149 P.3d 646 (2006), supports her argument in principle. In Weber, we addressed the issue of which of two convictions must be vacated where conviction of both would violate the double jeopardy proscription. We determined that the conviction for the offense with the lesser penalty is the appropriate conviction to vacate. Nguyen maintains that Weber "stands for the rule that the magnitude of the penalty is critical to determining whether one offense is a lesser included offense of another." Pet. for Review at 11. We disagree. ¶18 Double jeopardy inquiries are distinct from the question whether an offense is an included offense. The included offense doctrine is relevant to the questions whether a defendant has been charged with an offense of which he or she can be convicted, as well as whether he or she has had notice of the offenses with which charged. The double jeopardy question, as it arose in Weber, concerned the principle that multiple punishments cannot be imposed for the same offense. Because these are distinct questions, the answers are distinct as well. ¶19 In addition, we did not consider included offense cases when deciding Weber, and we expressly rejected the defendant's argument that the proper remedy was to vacate the conviction for the offense that formed part of the proof of the other conviction. Weber, 159 Wn.2d at 266-67. Finally, the reasons for our decision in Weber do not apply to the question of how to define "included offense." First, the severity of sentences is critical in determining which sentence to vacate because the legislature would not have intended the double jeopardy doctrine to operate so as to allow the defendant to receive the lesser sentence. Id. at 267. The same intent cannot be attributed to the legislature in the present context. Second, "retaining the offense that carries the greater sentence is the commonsense approach." Id. at 269. What makes the most sense in the area of double-jeopardy-proscribed multiple punishments for the same offense does not help in construing RCW 10.61.006. ¶20 Weber and its reasoning do not support Ms. Nguyen's argument. ¶21 The existing Washington test for deciding what constitutes an included offense is consistent with those of many states, as well as with the approach used by the federal courts. ¶22 We hold, in accord with our analysis in this opinion, that there is no requirement that an included offense must have a lesser penalty than the charged offense. CONCLUSION ¶23 There is no requirement under Washington law that an offense carry a potential penalty that is less than the charged crime in order to be an included offense for which a defendant may be convicted, even if not charged. We hold that being in physical control of a vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug in violation of RCW 46.61.504 is an included offense of DUI. We affirm the Court of Appeals and uphold Ms. Nguyen's conviction for this crime. ALEXANDER, C.J., and C. JOHNSON, SANDERS, CHAMBERS, OWENS, FAIRHURST, J.M. JOHNSON, and STEPHENS, JJ., concur.