Background
A Milwaukee County sheriff’s deputy stopped St. Clair Riley after seeing him pass traffic in the emergency lane and gore area of Interstate 43. Riley stopped on the highway shoulder during heavy rush-hour traffic and told the deputy that his license was suspended. Because Riley could not legally drive and no other driver was present, the deputy called for the rental car to be towed.
Before the tow, the deputy conducted an inventory search for valuables and found suspected controlled substances, a digital scale, baggies, and a Glock magazine. The State charged Riley with possession with intent to deliver methamphetamine and cocaine. The circuit court suppressed the evidence, reasoning that the deputy should have contacted the rental company before towing the car and that officers failed to complete the inventory form required by department policy.
The Court’s Holding
The Court of Appeals reversed. It held that towing the car was a reasonable exercise of the community caretaker function because the car was illegally stopped on the shoulder of an interstate during rush hour, where it posed a safety hazard and could impede emergency vehicles. Unlike the legally parked vehicle in State v. Brooks, Riley’s car could not safely remain at the scene, and neither Riley nor another driver could lawfully wait for or retrieve it from the freeway shoulder.
The court also held that officers were constitutionally permitted to inventory the car before it was towed. The search was aimed at locating valuables, and Riley did not show that officers searched places beyond that purpose. Although department policy required officers to list the car’s property on a vehicle-storage form, their failure to complete that form did not, under the circumstances presented, render the otherwise reasonable inventory search unconstitutional.
Key Takeaways
- Police may impound a vehicle under the community caretaker exception when its location presents a genuine traffic or safety concern.
- The court distinguished a car illegally stopped on an interstate shoulder from a vehicle legally parked where it can safely remain until a licensed driver arrives.
- Failure to complete the required inventory form did not automatically invalidate this inventory search because the omission did not affect the reasonableness of the decision to search or the search’s scope.
Why It Matters
The decision clarifies that the constitutional reasonableness of an impoundment depends on the vehicle’s actual location and the practical alternatives available to officers. Police were not required to contact the rental company where no lawful, safe means existed for someone to retrieve the car from the freeway shoulder.
It also confirms, in the circumstances of this case, that an officer’s failure to complete required inventory paperwork does not by itself require suppression when the impoundment is lawful and the inventory search remains reasonable in purpose and scope.