MassPrivateIMA – The National Park Service has threatened to arrest visitors to monuments and national parks during the partial government shutdown that began October 1. On the last day before the shutdown took effect, the US Court of Appeals clarified that rangers can also arrest motorists outside of any national park or monument, even though they lack statutory authorization to do so.
A three-judge panel of the First Circuit upheld the August 31, 2007 arrest of Kevin Ryan, who was convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) outside the Charlestown Navy Yard, which is part of the Boston National Historic Park in Massachusetts. Park Ranger David LeMere saw Ryan’s vehicle cross the center line while it was still in the park, so he followed. By the time the ranger activated his patrol car lights, they were no longer on federal property.
Ryan refused to take a breathalyzer test, so he was booked on three federal charges related to DUI. Ryan argued that a park ranger had no jurisdiction to make such an arrest outside his jurisdiction. A magistrate judge and a district court judge each agreed Ranger LaMere lacked jurisdiction, but they declined to suppress the evidence against Ryan. The Court of Appeals upheld their decision.
The court applied the reasoning of a 2008 US Supreme Court decision, Virginia v. Moore, which held that the Fourth Amendment did not require excluding evidence when police illegally arrested a motorist for driving on a suspended license, which is not an arrestable offense in Virginia. The appellate court noted that the case here involved federal law and the power of arrest, not the type of offense committed.
“Neither distinction provides a reason to suppress the evidence against Ryan,” Judge Jeffrey R. Howard wrote for the court. “Although much of the discussion in Moore focused on issues specific to state law, the court repeatedly stated that an arrest supported by probable cause is constitutionally reasonable, without implying an exception for an arrest in violation of a federal statute… As to the territorial limit on LaMere’s jurisdiction, Moore again implies that an extraterritorial arrest is not a per se violation of the Fourth Amendment.”
The Supreme Court noted that the Fourth Amendment was intended to protect against searches and seizures conducted in an extraordinary manner that are harmful to privacy or physically threatening.
“For an officer to arrest an obviously intoxicated driver just outside that officer’s territorial jurisdiction, after a lawful traffic stop, is not remotely akin to the invasions of privacy that might call for the exclusion of evidence,” Judge Howard concluded.
http://thenewspaper.com/news/42/4231.asp
U.S. v. Ryan ruling: http://thenewspaper.com/rlc/docs/2013/us-rangerdui.pdf
http://massprivatei.blogspot.com/2013/10/court-allows-park-rangers-to-arrest.html
The more we allow it, the worse it’s going to get.
Wouldn`t a park ranger be out of his jurisdiction to arrest someone outside of a national park just like when those guys said when they said that they were out of their jurisdiction at that Naval Yard shooting a few weeks ago.
Is there any doubt now…..do you still think that we are a free people? Do you think that “we the people” own these parks and that Obama is pushing his limits? Do you think that this B.S. will stop?? (It will stop ONLY when WE say it stops).
The biggest cancer in America lives in The White House. We need to do some chemo-therapy.
Hey All ,did you miss this?
As I said before in other comments, people should come to San Antonio. They have Park Police riding around the city with no parks anywhere and they hound you like regular police. This is nothing new to me and I’m sure they would arrest you or pull you over as well. I had one following me for awhile when I was traveling there once. They’re bastards there.
As I said before, San Antonio is the king of Texas in terms of Police State. They got military police, surveillance cameras and every police you can think of roaming around there. They have their own boat police on the river walk area in the city for cryin’ out loud. The river is so damn narrow, you can almost jump across and they have police boats going through. It’s pathetic.