State of Iowa
v.
Ryan Bradley Tostenson
Appellee
State of Iowa
Appellant
Ryan Bradley Tostenson
Attorney for the Appellee
Bridget A. Chambers, Assistant Attorney General
Attorney for the Appellant
Grant C. Gangestad
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Worth County, Colleen D. Weiland, Judge. REVERSED AND REMANDED. Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Doyle and Bower, JJ. Opinion by Doyle, J. (9 pages)
Ryan Tostenson appeals following his conviction for operating while intoxicated, challenging the denial of his motion to suppress evidence obtained during a traffic stop. OPINION HOLDS: The officer did not have reasonable suspicion to believe that Tostenson violated Iowa Code section 321.266 (2018) by leaving the scene of an accident involving personal property because nothing in that section required him to stay at the scene of the accident. A violation of Iowa Code section 321.288(1) cannot be justification for the stop because the accident did not occur on a public road or highway. Finally, the record does not disclose facts on which an officer could reasonably believe Tostenson intentionally damaged a light pole. Because State has failed to establish a lawful basis for the stop, we reverse the order denying Tostenson’s motion to suppress and remand to the district court for a new trial.
