State v. Iowa District Court for Scott County
Annotate this CaseA special restitution law provides that the court may order restitution paid to any public agency for the costs of the “emergency response” resulting from the actions constituting a violation of the operating while intoxicated (OWI) statute. In this case, Defendant was arrested for and convicted of OWI, second offense. The State sought restitution for the costs of the traffic stop, which was conducted by an officer while on regular nighttime parole. The district court denied the request on the grounds that there was no emergency in this case. Thereafter, the State filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) routine law enforcement activities do not qualify as an “emergency response”; and (2) there was no emergency response by law enforcement in this case.
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