Thomas v. State, CA

Decision Date17 February 1999
Docket NumberNo. CA,CA
Citation65 Ark.App. 134,985 S.W.2d 752
PartiesPhillip THOMAS, Appellant, v. STATE of Arkansas, Appellee. CR 98-752.
CourtArkansas Court of Appeals

L. David Stubbs, Dumas, for Appellant.

Winston Bryant, Attorney General, Kent G. Holt, Assistant Attorney General, Little Rock, for Appellee.

JOSEPHINE LINKER HART, Judge.

Phillip Thomas appeals his misdemeanor conviction for driving while intoxicated, first offense, contending that his detention by an officer acting outside his territorial jurisdiction is an illegal arrest and that evidence obtained as a result of such detention is subject to the exclusionary rule and should have been suppressed. We agree, and reverse and remand.

I. Background

On February 15, 1997, Trooper Barry Saffold of the Arkansas State Police was contacted on his radio by Chief McBride, the chief of police for the City of Gould, Arkansas. Chief McBride informed Trooper Saffold that he had received a report of a driver that was possibly intoxicated headed northbound on U.S. Highway 65. The officers surmised that the reported vehicle was somewhere between them. Trooper Saffold proceeded south from Grady while Chief McBride traveled north from Gould. Chief McBride was the first officer to make contact with the red passenger car driven by appellant. He stopped appellant's vehicle outside the city limits of Gould, approximately half-way between Gould and Grady. When Trooper Saffold arrived, Chief McBride had appellant outside his vehicle, and according to the testimony of Trooper Saffold, appellant was not free to leave.

Trooper Saffold stated that he detected the odor of intoxicants and administered numerous sobriety tests, which appellant failed. Appellant was transported to Gould where he registered .14 on a Breathalyzer test. He was subsequently charged with driving while intoxicated.

Trooper Saffold, the only witness the State called to testify, did not see appellant operating the vehicle nor did Chief McBride tell Trooper Saffold that he had seen appellant operating the vehicle. Trooper Saffold did not request assistance but, instead, responded to a call from Chief McBride.

II. Applicable Law

There are four instances where officers may arrest outside their territorial jurisdiction: (1) when the officer is in fresh pursuit; (2) when the officer has a warrant for arrest; (3) when a local law enforcement agency has a written policy regulating officers acting outside its territorial jurisdiction and when said officer is requested to come into the foreign jurisdiction; and (4) when a sheriff in a contiguous county requests an officer to come into his county to investigate and make arrests for violations of drug laws. Henderson v. State, 329 Ark. 526, 953 S.W.2d 26 (1997).

It has been held that an extraterritorial arrest may be valid when a request for assistance is made by a state trooper. White v. State, 41 Ark.App. 170, 850 S.W.2d 34 (1993). Also, if an officer witnesses a driver operating a vehicle outside his jurisdiction in an extremely hazardous manner, and there is in place an appropriate city resolution, an officer may go outside his jurisdiction to effect an arrest and hold the driver for officers having jurisdiction. Menard v. City of Carlisle, 309 Ark. 522, 834 S.W.2d 632 (1992). An officer may effect an arrest outside his jurisdiction if the officer witnesses a violation occurring within his jurisdiction and could have stopped the offender within his own jurisdiction. King v. State, 42 Ark.App. 97, 854 S.W.2d 362 (1993)....

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3 cases
  • Pickering v. State
    • United States
    • Arkansas Supreme Court
    • 21 Junio 2012
    ...Marran could be taken to Middletown for additional breathalyzer testing.” Id. at *10. Finally, appellant also cites Thomas v. State, 65 Ark.App. 134, 985 S.W.2d 752 (1999), which presented the following facts: On February 15, 1997, Trooper Barry Saffold of the Arkansas State Police was cont......
  • Frazer v. State
    • United States
    • Arkansas Court of Appeals
    • 23 Diciembre 2002
    ...county requests an officer to come into his county to investigate and make arrests for violations of drug laws. Thomas v. State, 65 Ark.App. 134, 985 S.W.2d 752 (1999) (citing Henderson v. State, 329 Ark. 526, 953 S.W.2d 26 The only exception possibly applicable in the present case is the f......
  • Renfroe v. State
    • United States
    • Arkansas Court of Appeals
    • 18 Junio 2003
    ...a violation occurring within his jurisdiction and could have stopped the offender within his own jurisdiction. Thomas v. State, 65 Ark. App. 134, 985 S.W.2d 752 (1999). Although Officer Wilson first noticed appellant's violation of the law while parked outside his jurisdiction, he neverthel......

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