NM: Reserve deputy’s stop of suspected DUI to call for a deputy was a reasonable minor intrusion

A reserve deputy followed defendant who was driving badly and then she ran into a car in her driveway. He stopped behind her and told her to “hang tight,” and he called for a deputy. The stop was reasonable, considering it was a minor intrusion on defendant’s rights. State v. Wright, 2019 N.M. App. LEXIS 7 (Feb. 14, 2019):

P2 It is undisputed that the reserve deputy lacked statutory authority under the Motor Vehicle Code to require Defendant to remain in her truck until the commissioned deputy arrived on the scene. It is also undisputed that the reserve deputy’s action constituted an arrest under New Mexico law, albeit one that did not violate the Fourth Amendment. The question we must decide is whether the arrest was constitutionally unreasonable under Article II, Section 10 of the New Mexico Constitution. The district court found that the reserve deputy’s action was unconstitutional, and suppressed all evidence obtained by law enforcement after the reserve deputy directed Defendant to “hang tight.” The State now appeals.

P3 We conclude that the arrest was constitutionally reasonable, because the State’s strong interest in apprehending and prosecuting drunk drivers outweighed the minor intrusion on Defendant’s privacy rights. We therefore reverse the district court’s suppression order.