Under Iowa law the term “arrest” has a specific meaning and requires certain procedural steps in order to make the arrest “lawful.” These steps are imperative when determining if a peace officer has lawfully requested a blood, breath, or urine sample from someone suspected of operating while intoxicated. Attorney Matt Lindholm recently exploited this situation in a for a client facing an OWI charge in Decatur County, Iowa. Despite the fact that the police officer’s report and the implied consent form (which was signed under penalty of perjury) indicated that the client had been lawfully placed under arrest for OWI, a review of the videos showed otherwise. Thus, because the client was not “lawfully” arrested and there was no other basis to request a body specimen for testing, the resulting implied consent proceeding were suppressed, the client’s driver’s license was saved, and the OWI charge was amended to a simple misdemeanor.
