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State v. Cannell10/31/2005
{ } Defendant-appellant, Cody Cannell, appeals the decision of the Butler County Area I Court denying his motion to dismiss charges of driving while under the influence of alcohol ("DUI") and other charges.
{ } In the early hours of February 20, 2004, Miami University Police Officer Sharon Crouthers was traveling eastbound on Spring Street on the campus of Miami University while appellant was traveling westbound on Spring Street. Appellant went left of center, causing the officer to swerve to avoid being hit. The officer pulled appellant over. After failing field sobriety tests and exhibiting intoxication symptoms, appellant was arrested. He was charged with two counts of DUI in violation of R.C. 4511.19(A)(1) and (8), and one count each of marked lane violation, failure to wear a seatbelt, and underage possession of alcohol. It is undisputed that the arrest took place on the campus of the university.
{ } Appellant moved to dismiss the charges on the ground that the officer did not have territorial jurisdiction to stop and arrest him on Spring Street because while Spring Street transverses the university campus, it is owned by the city of Oxford and not by Miami University. Following a hearing on the motion, the trial court overruled appellant's motion to dismiss. Appellant subsequently pled no contest and was found guilty as charged and sentenced accordingly. This appeal follows.
{ } In a single assignment of error, appellant argues that the trial court erred by denying his motion to dismiss. Appellant argues that (1) because Spring Street is a street owned by the city of Oxford and not by Miami University, it is therefore not "within the limits of the university" for purposes of R.C. 2935.03(A)(1); (2) the officer arrested him in violation of a Law Enforcement Assistance Agreement entered between the city of Oxford and Miami University; and (3) the state's interest in making a "full custodial" extraterritorial arrest was "outweighed by the serious intrusion upon the liberty and privacy [arising] out of the arrest." For the following reasons, we affirm the trial court's decision.
{ } Appellant first argues that the officer did not have statutory territorial jurisdiction to arrest him because Spring Street, a street owned by the city of Oxford and not by Miami University, is not "within the limits of the university" for purposes of R.C. 2935.03(A)(1). For the reasons that follow, we find (and agree with the trial court) that ownership of Spring Street is irrelevant and that the officer had statutory territorial jurisdiction to arrest appellant.
{ } Miami University is a public university authorized to appoint university law enforcement officers under R.C. 3345.04(B). A state university's authority to maintain law and order on campus is governed by R.C. 3345.21 which states in part that: " he board of trustees of any college or university * shall regulate the use of the grounds, buildings, equipment, and facilities of such college or university and the conduct of students, staff, faculty, and visitors to the campus so that law and order are maintained[.] * The board of trustees shall provide for the administration and enforcement of its rules and may authorize the use of state university law enforcement officers * to assist in enforcing the rules and the law on the campus of the college or university." (Emphasis added.)
{ } R.C. 2935.03(A)(1), in turn, states that "a state university law enforcement officer appointed under [R.C.] 3345.04 * shall arrest and detain, until a warrant can be obtained, a person found violating, within the limits of the * university * in which the peace officer is appointed, employed, or elected, a
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