Appellate Court Sides With Tribal Officer

While lacking the authority to enforce laws against drunken driving on the Nez Perce Indian Reservation, a tribal officer’s traffic stop of a motorist was allowable, the Idaho Court of Appeals has ruled.

The appellate court remanded the case to the magistrate level.

In 1993, Bureau of Indian Affairs officer Ed Crowe was traveling on U.S. 12 when he noticed a pickup ahead driving erratically. He contacted the Nez Perce County Sheriff’s Department, then stopped the vehicle, believing the driver might hit someone else.

Driver Gary Benefiel admitted to having a few drinks and Crowe detected the odor of alcohol. He asked him to perform a field sobriety test, and, in Crowe’s opinion, failed two times. An Idaho State Police officer arrived; after informing him of his observations, Crowe left.

The trooper tested Benefiel and arrested him.

The magistrate found that although Crowe had no authority to make a traffic stop as an officer, he did as a private citizen.

The district court disagreed, saying Crowe employed his patrol vehicle and uniform. It also ruled Crowe’s stop had developed into an arrest and the trooper did not read him his rights before asking questions or conducting the tests.

The state appealed, arguing the magistrate resolved the issues properly.

The Appeals Court concluded that although Crowe could not as a private citizen make an investigative stop, it was constitutionally sound and evidence gleaned cannot be excluded.