Ocheltree

In a hearing for writ of mandate, the trial court did not independently weigh the evidence adduced at the administrative hearing. We reach this inescapable conclusion because the court made its decision without the administrative record of the hearing. It is one thing to put the cart before the horse. Here the trial court put the cart without the horse.

The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) suspended plaintiff Melissa Janice Ocheltree’s driver’s license because she was alleged to be driving while intoxicated. She appeals the superior court order denying her writ of mandate challenging the DMV’s decision.

We conclude the trial court erred by not issuing an alternative writ and by ruling on the merits of her petition without reviewing the administrative record. This is an abdication of the court’s obligation. We reverse and remand.

Facts

California Highway Patrol Officer John D. Williams received a dispatch call of a possible traffic collision involving a described vehicle. When he arrived at the reported location, the vehicle was not there. He drove two more miles before he found a vehicle matching the description. It was parked on the shoulder of the road with two…