dissenting.
I respectfully dissent.
“A person commits the crime of ‘driving while intoxicated’ if he operates a motor vehicle while in an intoxicated or drugged condition.” § 577.010.1, RSMo (1994) (emphasis in original). Section 577.001.1, RSMo (1994), defined “operates” as used in the statute to mean, “physically driving or operating or being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle.” In 1996, the Legislature amended the definition of “operates” in § 577.001.1 to read, “physically driving or operating a motor vehicle.” § 577.001.1, RSMo Cum.Supp. (1999). The amendment deleted the phrase “or being in actual physical control of’ the motor vehicle from the definition. Thus, it was incumbent on the state to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Cross (a) was “physically driving or operating a motor vehicle” and (b) that he did so “while in an intoxicated ... condition.”
When the Legislature amends a statute, it is presumed that the Legislature intended to effect some change in the existing law. Wollard v. City of Kansas City, 831 S.W.2d 200, 203 (Mo. banc 1992); Bennett v. Director of Revenue, 889 S.W.2d 166, 169 (Mo.App. W.D.1994). To amend a statute and accomplish nothing from the amendment would be a meaningless act. Kilbane v. Director of Dept. of Revenue, 544 S.W.2d 9, 11 (Mo. banc 1976). A statute should “never be construed in a manner which results in the mooting of the legislative changes since the legislature is *186never presumed to have committed a useless act.” State v. Harris, 705 S.W.2d 544, 548 (Mo.App. E.D.1986).
While the majority acknowledges that § 577.001.1 was amended in 1996 to delete being in “actual physical control” of a motor vehicle as a basis for a finding of driving while intoxicated, it then moots this specifically enacted legislative change by redefining “operates” to include being in actual physical control of a running automobile, thereby encompassing nearly every type of conduct previously included in the phrase “actual physical control.” In so doing, it necessarily distorts the legislature’s clear intent in amending the statute. Further, as discussed infra, its interpretation of § 577.001.1 is at odds with the teaching of Baptist v. Lohman, 971 S.W.2d 366 (Mo.App. E.D.1998), and the strong intimation of our Supreme Court in Lasley v. Director of Revenue, 954 S.W.2d 327 (Mo. banc 1997) that merely being in physical control of a running automobile is inadequate to constitute operating a motor vehicle. For all these reasons, I dissent.
In order to more fully understand the meaning and intent of the legislature’s deletion of the phrase “actual physical control” form the statute, it is helpful to review how the statute was interpreted prior to the amendment.
Missouri courts have defined “actual physical control” to mean a domination or regulation of a vehicle, and it exists as long as the person is keeping the vehicle restrained or is in the position to regulate its movements and the vehicle is running. State v. Hoyt, 922 S.W.2d 443, 447-48 (Mo.App. W.D.1996); State v. Dey, 798 S.W.2d 210, 212 (Mo.App. W.D.1990). “ ‘[Ajctual physical control’ of a vehicle simply means to be in a position to regulate the movements of a vehicle which has its engine running.” Dey, 798 S.W.2d at 212. Missouri courts have consistently upheld driving while intoxicated (DWI) convictions and license revocations and suspensions where the defendant or licensee is sitting in a motionless vehicle with the engine running solely under the theory that the person was in “actual physical control” of the vehicle as that phrase is used in § 577.001.1 RSMo (1994). Hoyt, 922 S.W.2d at 448; Chinnery v. Director of Revenue, 885 S.W.2d 50, 52-53 (Mo.App. W.D.1994); State v. Hollis, 800 S.W.2d 69, 71 (Mo.App. S.D.1990); See also Krienke v. Lohman, 963 S.W.2d 11, 12 (Mo.App. W.D.1998); Gleason v. Director of Revenue, 859 S.W.2d 189, 190-91 (Mo.App. W.D.1993). Moreover, our courts have repeatedly used the phrase “actual physical control” as used in § 577.001.1, RSMo (1994), to justify upholding DWI convictions or license suspensions and revocations when a person is found sleeping or passed out in the vehicle while the motor is running. State v. O’Toole, 673 S.W.2d 25, 27 (Mo. banc 1984); Hoyt, 922 S.W.2d at 448, Chinnery, 885 S.W.2d at 52, Stoltz v. Director of Revenue, 816 S.W.2d 711, 714 (Mo.App. W.D.1991); Dey, 798 S.W.2d at 212; State v. Nickerson, 763 S.W.2d 716, 717 (Mo.App. E.D.1989); Taylor v. McNeill, 714 S.W.2d 947, 948 (Mo.App. W.D.1986). Indeed, this court has gone so far as to uphold a license revocation on the theory of “actual physical control” where the defendant was found asleep or passed out in his car with the keys in the ignition even though the engine was not running. Wilcox v. Director of Revenue, 842 S.W.2d 240, 243-44 (Mo.App. W.D.1992).
The Legislature is presumed to have acted with full awareness and complete knowledge of the present state of the law, including judicial and legislative precedent. State v. Rumble, 680 S.W.2d 939, 942 (Mo. banc 1984); Harris, 705 S.W.2d at 548. Thus, when § 577.001.1 was amended in 1996, the Legislature was aware that Missouri’s appellate courts were routinely affirming DWI convictions and license suspensions and revocations where the defendant or licensee was sitting in a motionless vehicle, in some instances even when the engine was not running, relying on the “actual physical control” language in § 577.001.1.
*187The legislative power of the State of Missouri is vested in the General Assembly. Mo. Const. Art. Ill, § 1. “And, unless otherwise restricted by the state constitution, this power ‘is unlimited and practically absolute.’ ” Opponents of Prison Site, Inc. v. Carnahan, 994 S.W.2d 573, 577 (Mo.App. W.D.1999) (quoting State ex rel. Farmers’ Elec. Coop., Inc. v. State Environmental Improvement Auth., 518 S.W.2d 68, 72 (Mo. banc 1975)). Accordingly, it is the right, and indeed the constitutional duty, of the General Assembly to determine what acts and conduct shall constitute crimes, or be otherwise sanctioned, such as by denial of driving privileges. By amending § 577.001.1 to exclude “actual physical control” from the definition of driving, it is crystal clear the General Assembly intended to, and did in fact, effect a change in the statute. It made a policy determination that a person could no longer be punished, either criminally or by denial of driving privileges, for simply being in control of a vehicle while in an intoxicated condition. The revision serves the legitimate purpose of encouraging individuals who are concerned that they might be impaired to get off the roadway and stop, thereby enhancing the safety of the driving public.
Moreover, our courts have acknowledged that the deletion of “actual physical control” from the statute changed the meaning of the statute. In Baptist v. Lohman, 971 S.W.2d 366 (Mo.App. E.D.1998), the Eastern District of this court declared that the amendment made in 1996 means that “a motorist may no longer be found to be driving while intoxicated merely because he is in ‘control’ of a running automobile...” Id. at 368. Also, our Supreme Court acknowledged the legislative amendment in Lasley v. Director of Revenue, 954 S.W.2d 327 (Mo. banc 1997), when it stated:
It is arguable that a different result might be reached had the suspension of respondent’s driver’s license been based on conduct occurring after August 28, 1996. The definition of “driving” in section 577.001 on which Hines [v. Director of Revenue, 916 S.W.2d 884 (Mo.App.1996)] and Chinnery relied has been changed. The statute was amended in 1996 to define “drive”, “driving”, “operates” or “operating” to mean “physically driving or operating a motor vehicle.” Section 577.001.1, RSMo Supp.1996. At the time respondent was arrested the section 577.001.1 definition was “physically driving or operating or being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle.”
Id. at 330, n. 3 (emphasis in original).
Based on the foregoing, it is abundantly clear that the Legislature intended to, and did in fact, effect a significant change in the law with the amendment of § 577.001.1 in 1996. Nonetheless, the majority rules otherwise by adopting an expansive definition of the term “operating” that effectively incorporates the concept of “actual physical control.”
“Some crude idea of the profusion of judicial views upon the general subject here involved may be drawn from the fact that 50 entries containing a definition of the phrase ‘operate a motor vehicle’ are listed in 29A Words and Phrases at 396-400 (1972).” Wombles v. General American Life Ins. Co., 541 S.W.2d 45, 47 (Mo.App. S.D.1976). “A frequent prelude to opinions attempting to define the phrase ‘operate a motor vehicle’ is the statement that the word ‘operate’ has varying meanings according to context which primarily determines its meaning.” Id. In the case at bar, the majority attempts to apply a definition of “operating” that cannot be deemed applicable to the context of § 577.010.
The majority uses a definition of “operating” found in Teters v. Kansas City Public Service Co., 300 S.W.2d 511 (Mo.1957). Teters was a tort case dealing with the application of § 304.010 which generally provides that every person operating a motor vehicle on the highways shall exercise the highest degree of care. In that *188case, the owner of a truck parked on the street went out to his truck to retrieve some merchandise from the back of the truck. While he was opening the doors of the back compartment, a bus ran into his truck. The Teters Court used an expansive definition of the term to hold that, in the context of § 304.010, the truck owner was “operating” his truck at the time of the collision and was obligated to exercise the highest degree of care in the course of this operation. Id. at 516.
The Teters Court specifically noted that cases interpreting “operating” or “driving” in the context of other statutory traffic regulations were not applicable to interpreting its meaning under § 304.010. Id. at 517. Thus, the Court acknowledged that the terms “driving” and “operating” have different meanings when used in other statutes, thereby confirming that it was confining its broad definition of those terms to § 304.010 and that it did not intend for this definition to be applied in the interpretation of other statutes.
Furthermore, Gibbs v. National General Ins. Co., 938 S.W.2d 600 (Mo.App. S.D.1997), which the majority relies on for the proposition that Missouri courts “have repeatedly construed ‘operator’ broadly” under Chapters 304 and 577, examines numerous different definitions for “operating” which have been provided for under various statutory chapters. Id. at 603-604.1 After reviewing the various definitions applied under the different chapters, Gibbs concluded that “the key to operation of a motor vehicle in Missouri is actual physical control.” Id. at 604. However, the Legislature specifically amended § 577.001.1 so that “actual physical control,” the “key” to the definitions considered in Gibbs, no longer constitutes “operating” under Chapter 577. Accordingly, this change to the statute has rendered the definitions examined in Gibbs inapplicable to the current statute. While I agree that being in actual physical control is a presrequisite to operating a motor vehicle, I do not agree that these two terms overlap so much as to be, in practical effect, synonymous. The majority purports to recognize that these terms have different meanings and that operating is merely a subset of actual physical control, as is driving. But in fact it then defines operating as actual physical control was previously defined, by stating that one can be found to be operating a vehicle if one is found in actual physical control of a running vehicle. This is, of course, exactly what is required in order to show actual physical control by most cases, since if a vehicle is not running then whether those in it are intoxicated is irrelevant.
This is evident when the majority states that it has “no difficulty concluding ... that the state presented sufficient evidence to establish [Cross’] guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” Maj. Op. at 180. In reaching this conclusion, the majority relies on two separate theories: 1) that the state’s circumstantial evidence was sufficient to prove that Cross operated the vehicle, and 2) that the direct evidence establishes that Cross operated the car by turning off the car’s engine and headlights.
The majority points to the following circumstantial evidence to support its conclusion: (1) Cross was “in the driver seat lying across the front seats with the engine running;” and (2) “[n]o one else was in the vehicle.” Id. The majority contends that *189this circumstantial evidence “was sufficient for a fact finder reasonably to conclude that he had turned on the car’s engine.” Maj. Op. at 180. I submit that such evidence is wholly inadequate to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Cross turned on the car’s engine and that he was intoxicated at the time. While there was no one else in the car when the officers arrived, there was no evidence whatsoever regarding whether other people were near the car or in the vicinity. There was no evidence as to who owned the car, or how long it had sat at the location. While someone obviously had to drive the car to its location, and while a fact finder might draw the inference that it was Cross, there is no evidence as to whether he was intoxicated when it was driven there. There was evidence of the presence of beer cans in the car, indicating that some alcohol may have been consumed after the vehicle was stopped by the side of the road. I respectfully suggest that the majority’s assertion that the circumstantial evidence was sufficient to permit a reasonable juror to find that Cross turned on the car’s engine while in an intoxicated condition is flawed logic (going from a to d without regard to b and c) and erroneous as a matter of law. Moreover, if there is to be any distinction between operating a vehicle and being in actual physical control of it, the mere act of being in control of a running car would not be sufficient to constitute “operating” the car under the current statutory language and the applicable case law.
In apparent recognition of this problem, the majority latches onto the fact that Cross turned off the engine and headlights and contends that this is sufficient direct evidence to constitute “operating the car.”2 Id. I reject the notion that such conduct, which occurred solely in response to the police presence, amounts to “physically driving or operating a motor vehicle,” § 577.001.1, RSMo Cum.Supp. (1999), even under the view adopted by the Southern District of this court in State v. Wiles, 26 S.W.3d 436 (Mo.App. S.D.2000), on which the majority also relies. In doing so, the majority asserts that the change in § 577.001.1 should not prohibit it “from giving full meaning to the terms ‘driving’ and ‘operating’ that remain in the statute.” Maj. Op. at 180. Accordingly, it is appropriate to review Wiles in some detail.
In Wiles, a Webb City Police Officer responded to a report of a loud vehicle idling in a residential area. Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 438. When he arrived at the scene, he found a pick-up truck parked at an angle facing a dumpster with the engine running at a fast idle. Id. The vehicle’s headlights, taillights and brake lights were all on. Id. The officer then observed the defendant inside the truck, slumped over the steering wheel, with his left foot on the brake pedal, right foot on the accelerator and the vehicle in park. Id. After defendant failed to respond to the officer’s knock on the window, the officer opened the driver’s side door whereupon, after almost falling out of the vehicle, the defendant had to be assisted back into an upright position. Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 438. The officer smelled a strong odor of intoxicants and observed an open container of whiskey, an open container of beer and several unopened containers of beer. Id. at 438-39. The defendant failed three sobriety tests and was arrested for driving *190while intoxicated. Id. at 439. He was subsequently charged with Class D felony driving while intoxicated and was found guilty by a jury. Id.
On appeal, the defendant argued that the state failed to prove that he was “physically driving or operating” a motor vehicle while intoxicated as required by § 577.001.1. Id. The defendant conceded that under the prior version of the statute, the evidence would have been sufficient to convict him of driving while intoxicated because he was “in actual physical control of a motor vehicle” but contended that since the 1996 amendment of the statute, this was no longer sufficient. Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 439.
In analyzing defendant’s contention, the Southern District noted that, prior to the statute’s amendment, cases held that there was sufficient evidence to support a conviction for driving while intoxicated where a defendant was found asleep behind the wheel with the engine running and the lights on, even though the vehicle was in park, on the theory that the defendant was in a position to regulate the vehicle’s movement. Id. The court suggested that these cases did not explain what actions might constitute “operating” a motor vehicle because it was sufficient that the defendant had “actual physical control.” Id. The court further asserted that those cases finding a lack of “actual physical control” did not identify what constituted operating because “the most obvious manifestation that a vehicle was ‘operating’ was missing as the vehicle was not running.” Id. at 440. Therefore, the court went on to construe the statute, holding that the terms “driving” and “operating” have distinct meanings. Id. at 440-41.
In doing so, the Southern District reviewed State v. Ducatt, 22 Conn.App. 88, 575 A.2d 708 (1990), Flournoy v. State, 106 Ga.App. 756, 128 S.E.2d 528 (1962), and Commonwealth v. Plowman, 28 Mass.App.Ct. 230, 548 N.E.2d 1278 (1990), each of which defined “operates” or “operating.”3 Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 440-41. It is fair to say they generally defined “operating” a motor vehicle very broadly, as when a person is in a vehicle and in a position to control its movements and intentionally performs acts that, alone or in combination, will set in motion the motive power of the vehicle. Id. After discussing these cases, the Wiles court then held that the defendant’s actions in that case did not constitute “physically driving” because the vehicle was not in motion, but “they did fall under the broader term of ‘operating’ as defined in the aforementioned authorities.” Id. at 441.
In my view, the Wiles opinion is somewhat troubling in that it appears to adopt the rationale found in the non-Missouri cases it cites, which have no separate concept of actual physical control.4 But that *191issue need not be addressed here because Cross’ conduct would not come within the definitions utilized in those cases anyway.
As noted, the cases discussed in WSes generally require a person (a) to be within a vehicle and able to control its movements, and that such person (b) perform acts that, alone or in combination, will set in motion the motive power of the vehicle. In this case, Cross was only half in the vehicle and would not have been able to utilize the accelerator or brake, so it is at least arguable that he was not within the vehicle and able to control its movements. More importantly, however, in thinking about the evil the General Assembly was trying to address when it enacted our statutes relating to driving while intoxicated, it is clear that it was trying to prevent people from driving on our highways in an intoxicated condition, and to punish those who do. With this in mind, even if we accept the broad definition of Wiles, the manipulation of the ignition key to turn off the engine is not performing an act that, alone or in combination, will, set in motion the motive power of the vehicle.
Contrary to the assertion of the majority, an individual does not “engage” the engine of an automobile by turning it off, and in fact, such an individual is doing exactly the opposite. If turning off the engine were sufficient to constitute “operating” the motor vehicle, it would of necessity mean that turning on the electrical system to listen to the radio is also “operating” the vehicle. A passenger might well do that while waiting in a car for the driver and, if intoxicated, under the majority’s theory, could be found guilty of driving while intoxicated. It is totally illogical and inconsistent with the intent of the Legislature to suggest that the manipulation of a device on a vehicle for the purpose of preventing it from being driven, or for a purpose other than to engage the motive power of the vehicle, constitutes driving while intoxicated in violation of § 577.010. Clearly such is not the type of conduct the Legislature intended to punish. Rather, the purpose of the legislation is to prevent drunk driving, and that purpose must be borne in mind in determining what is meant by the term “operates.”
The majority in this case, while claiming just the opposite, effectively incorporates “actual physical control” into its definition of “operating.” It holds that turning off the engine and headlights, when awakened by three uniformed police officers shouting loud verbal commands and using “physical stimulation,” when not fully within the vehicle, is now “operating” a vehicle sufficiently to permit a conviction pursuant to § 577.010. This goes far beyond the facts in Wiles, where there was evidence that the defendant was seated in the driver’s seat, his entire body within the vehicle, slumped over the wheel, with his right foot on the accelerator causing the engine to run at a fast idle, and his left foot was on the brake pedal, resulting in the illumination of the brake lights. Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 438. Unlike the present case, these circumstances existed when the officer first observed Wiles and did not occur as a result of his arrival. Moreover, not only did this evidence exist in Wiles, the court specifically relied on it in holding that there was sufficient evidence to permit a reasonable juror to find the defendant guilty. The court stated: “Under this set of facts, the trial court did not err in overruling Defendant’s motion for judgment of acquittal and in sentencing him for ‘operating’ a motor vehicle while intoxicated in violation of § 577.010....” Id. at 441 (emphasis added).
The Judiciary’s duty is not to write or re-write statutes. Rather, our function and duty when interpreting new statutory language is to give effect to the intent of the Legislature. Harris, 705 S.W.2d at 548. We ascertain that intent from the language used in the statute. Baumruk v. Belt, 964 S.W.2d 443, 446 (Mo. banc 1998); State v. Moriarty, 914 S.W.2d 416, 422-23 *192(Mo.App. W.D.1996). The Legislature is presumed to have acted with a full awareness and complete knowledge of the present state of the law, including judicial and legislative precedent. Rumble, 680 S.W.2d at 942; Harris, 705 S.W.2d at 548. Finally, a statute should “never be construed in a manner which results in the mooting of the legislative changes since the legislature is never presumed to have committed a useless act.” Harris, 705 S.W.2d at 548.
The majority disregards the foregoing rules, and others, and erroneously holds that when the Legislature amends a statute by deleting a phrase there is no change in the application of the statute. When the Legislature amends a statute, it is presumed that the Legislature intended to effect some change in the existing law. Wollard, 831 S.W.2d at 203; Bennett, 889 S.W.2d at 169. To amend a statute and accomplish nothing from the amendment would be a meaningless act. Kilbane, 544 S.W.2d at 11. The Legislature had no reason to amend § 577.001.1 if it did not intend to change the application of the statute. Moreover, the majority does not and cannot explain why the Legislature would delete a phrase from the statute if it intended to allow courts to analyze cases as if that definitional phrase was still part of the statute.
As noted previously, the Legislature made a policy determination when it amended § 577.001.1 that a person could no longer be punished, either criminally or by denial of driving privileges, for simply being within a vehicle, with or without the engine running, in an intoxicated condition. The revision serves legitimate public purposes. Thus, the Legislature was not engaging in a useless and meaningless act when it amended § 577.001.1 as the majority holds. It intended to, and did in fact, change the law. In doing so, it was exercising the constitutionally mandated Legislative prerogative of changing the law embodied in a statute, a prerogative not granted to the Judiciary.
In the instant case, Cross was found partially within a vehicle, with its headlights on and the engine running. The driver’s side door was open. Cross was asleep, with his feet on the ground, his legs outside the vehicle, and his torso lying across the front seat. There was no one else inside the car but there was no evidence as to whether other persons were near the vehicle. While these facts would justify a finding of “actual physical control” of the vehicle under the old definition of “operates” and the case law construing it, they do not establish he was “physically driving or operating a motor vehicle” under the amended version of § 577.001.1.
For the foregoing reasons, I would reverse the trial court’s judgment.
LAURA DENYIR STITH, HOWARD, NEWTON, and HOLLIGER, JJ., concur in the dissenting opinion.
. Gibbs relied largely on Hay v. Ham, 364 S.W.2d 118 (Mo.App.1962), in analyzing what constitutes operating a motor vehicle under Chapters 304. Hay addressed the fact that multiple definitions of the term "operate” have been utilized in various cases and treatises. Id. at 122. Hay involved a passenger in a vehicle that was parked and left running outside a store. Id. at 120. When the passenger scooted over to allow another passenger to get into the car, the passenger accidentally touched the accelerator, causing the vehicle to move forward and crash into the store. Id. The court concluded that the passenger's act of touching the accelerator was an act necessary to be performed in the movement of the vehicle from one place to another and placed her in actual physical control of the vehicle, rendering her the "operator” of the vehicle. Id. at 122-23.
. This evidence must also be put in perspective. Cross was asleep in the vehicle. Officer Bowzer’s testimony was the only evidence regarding this conduct. He testified, on direct examination, as follows: "[Cross] awoke to loud verbal commands from Officer Toal and also physical stimulation. [He] was alarmed by a presence. And [he] then shut off the headlights to the vehicle, turned off the ignition and removed the keys from the ignition.” (Emphasis added). Later, but still on direct examination, in prefacing his testimony that Officer Toal advised Cross to remain in the vehicle and took the keys from him, Officer Bowzer again testified that Cross “was alarmed by our presence.” Thus, Cross was awakened by “loud verbal commands” and "physical stimulation.” He was startled and alarmed to see three police officers standing over him.
. "[A]n individual 'operates a motor vehicle ... when ... in the vehicle and in a position to control its movements, he manipulates, for any purpose, the machinery of the motor or any other machinery manipulable from the driver’s position that affects or could affect the vehicle’s movement, whether [the individual] moves the vehicle or not.’ ” Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 440 (quoting State v. Ducatt, 22 Conn.App. 88, 575 A.2d 708-710 (1990)). “[T]he word 'operate' has a broader meaning so as to include not only the motion of the vehicle but also acts which engage the machinery of the vehicle that, alone or in sequence, will set in motion the motive power of the vehicle.” Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 441 (quoting Flournoy v. State, 106 Ga.App. 756, 128 S.E.2d 528, 530 (1962)). '' '[A] person operates a motor vehicle ... when, in the vehicle, he intentionally does any act or makes use of any mechanical or electrical agency which alone or in sequence will set in motion the motive power of that vehicle.’ ” Wiles, 26 S.W.3d at 441 (quoting Commonwealth v. Plowman, 28 Mass.App.Ct. 230, 548 N.E.2d 1278, 1280 (1990) (quoting Commonwealth v. Uski, 263 Mass. 22, 160 N.E. 305 (1928))).
. The Connecticut, Georgia and Massachusetts courts did not have the statutory and judicial histoiy of “actual physical control” being part and parcel of driving while intoxicated cases, as we do in Missouri. Moreover, the Wiles court and the majority here both seemingly overlook the fact that the 1996 amendment to § 577.001.1 removes the "actual physical control” language from the deft-*191nition of "operating” as well as the definition of "driving” as that section defines both.