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State v. Hendrickson6/10/1997
e of alcohol. The Eureka police officer proceeded to arrest McDole, take him to the police department and give him a breath test. McDole, 734 P.2d at 684-85. In McDole, this Court held that a police officer outside his or her jurisdiction has not lost his or her status as a citizen. McDole, 734 P.2d at 685. This Court explained "if an arrest by a private citizen would be lawful under the existing circumstances, the arrest by an officer out of his jurisdiction would be lawful." McDole, 734 P.2d at 685. As in McDole, Woodland was clearly outside his jurisdiction when he stopped Hendrickson. When Woodland stopped Hendrickson and observed behavior indicative of intoxication, he was acting as a private citizen under the authority of § 46-6-502, MCA.
Woodland's actions following arrival of Officers Keim and McManis
Section 46-6-502(2), MCA, requires a private citizen to immediately notify local authorities and relinquish custody to the officer or agency with jurisdiction. In support of its argument that Woodland acted within his authority in conducting field sobriety tests, effecting an arrest and requesting a breathalyzer, the State relies on our decision in Maney v. State (1992), 255 Mont. 270, 842 P.2d 704, in which we affirmed an arrest where a Chinook City police officer, after observing Maney driving erratically in town, followed him out of town (outside the officer's jurisdiction) where he observed further erratic driving. He then stopped Maney and conducted field sobriety tests in the presence of a sheriff's deputy who had arrived on the scene. Maney, 842 P.2d at 705. The Chinook city police officer then transported Maney to the Blaine County Sheriff's Office in Chinook where he requested that Maney take a breathalyzer. Maney refused. His license was suspended as a result. Maney, 842 P.2d at 705. On appeal, Maney relied on § 46-6-502(2), MCA, for his contention that the officer's arrest and request for breathalyzer were illegal due to failure of the police officer to relinquish custody of Maney to the sheriff's deputy who had jurisdiction outside the city limits. Maney, 842 P.2d at 706. We determined that the officer making the arrest was still a peace officer for purposes of the implied consent statute even though he made the arrest as a private citizen. Maney, 842 P.2d at 707. We noted that the police officer immediately notified the Blaine County Sheriff's Office and promptly transported Maney to the sheriff's office for booking. "As soon as Officer Gomke entered the Chinook city limits he was within his jurisdiction and it would make no sense to require Officer Gomke to transfer his prisoner to another officer who also had jurisdiction." Maney, 842 P.2d at 706.
The Maney decision does not specifically address the question of whether Officer Gomke's authority as a private citizen ceased upon the arrival of the sheriff's deputy, although the decision, by necessary implication, certainly suggests that his authority did not cease. Rather, Officer Gomke was allowed to continue with the field sobriety tests in the presence of the sheriff's deputy, to then transport Maney to the City of Chinook where Gomke had jurisdiction, and then to request a breathalyzer. Maney, 842 P.2d at 706. We now conclude that this Court's holding in Maney is too broad in the scope of authority that it grants to a citizen's arrest pursuant to § 46-6-502, MCA. Absent any exigent circumstances, when a citizen or out-of-jurisdiction peace officer, acting as a citizen, makes a stop or arrest, his or her authority to proceed ceases once a peace officer with jurisdiction arrives at the scene.
Woodland exceeded his authority as a citizen when, after the arrival of the B
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