The Georgia Supreme Court made a ruling on Monday that could stop officers from arresting someone on a traffic violation outside their jurisdiction.
In the unanimous decision, court overturned a Court of Appeals decision, ruling that driver Bajrodin Zilke's DUI arrest by a Kennesaw State University police officer was invalid because the stop and arrest occurred more than 500 yards from campus, according to The Albany Herald.
Officer Decari Mason was returning to campus after dropping off a suspect at the Cobb County Jail in the early morning hours of May 5, 2013 when he spotted Zilke driving erratically and without headlights on Powder Springs Road in Marietta.
Mason observed that Zilke smelled of alcohol, was unsteady and had bloodshot eyes. Officials said that Zilke admitted to drinking two beers. The officer administered a breath test, which registered positive for alcohol.
Georgia Code empowers campus police to make arrests within 500 yards of University System of Georgia property. The Appeals Court cited a 1984 case, Glazner v. State, which states an officer can make a traffic stop outside the officer’s jurisdiction if it is committed in the officer's presence. The Supreme Court overruled that decision to the extent of the making of custodial arrests.
Justice Robert Benham wrote in his opinion that the state law for police officers operating outside their jurisdiction does not permit custodial arrests.
Attorneys for the state did not challenge the trial court's decision to toss out the alcohol breath test evidence.
