New agreement allows Iowa, Meskwaki officers to cross jurisdictions in pursuit

DES MOINES — State and tribal law enforcement officers will be able to cross jurisdictional boundaries while pursuing fleeing suspects under a new legal agreement between the Iowa Attorney General’s Office and the Meskwaki Nation.

State and tribal officials signed the agreement Thursday during a public ceremony at the Hoover Building on the Iowa Capitol complex in Des Moines.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, Department of Public Safety Commissioner Stephan Bayens and Meskwaki Tribal Chairman Vern Jefferson signed a memorandum of understanding that is a “fresh pursuit agreement,” or case law that allows law enforcement officers to continue pursuit of a fleeing suspect across jurisdictional lines.

The agreement, according to the Iowa Attorney General’s Office, recognizes that tribal officers who are certified by the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy may detain or arrest suspects even after pursuit continues off the Meskwaki settlement near Tama. Conversely, the Iowa State Patrol may do the same when its officers’ pursuit crosses onto the settlement.

Bird said her office and Meskwaki leaders have been working on the agreement for roughly a year.

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“As a practical matter, this can be something that’s important, whether it’s a drug stop, a stop concerning child endangerment, or a suspected drunken driver, or someone fleeing law enforcement,” Bird said during a press conference Thursday. “Ultimately, this agreement shows how Iowa sovereigns can work together for public safety and for public good.”

Bird said “important evidence” was suppressed in district court during a case involving an alleged methamphetamine drug deal because of the lack of clarity in the law.

Jefferson said there have been instances in recent years when Meskwaki officers have initiated traffic stops but the driver did not stop and left the settlement. He said federal law created uncertainty about tribal law officers’ authority, and the new agreement with the state clarifies that.

“That uncertainty left our communities less safe and allowed people who broke the law to avoid accountability and rewarded those who refused to pull over,” Jefferson said. “With this agreement, we are closing that gap and reinforcing the safety and well-being of everyone in and around the settlement. By signing this agreement, we give our Meskwaki police officers who are state-certified officers the legal clarity they deserve.”

Jefferson said the Meskwaki Nation had worked on such an agreement over time but previous attempts fell short. Bird said it was a difficult agreement to finalize because of the legal complexities between two sovereign governments.

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“It seems simple on paper, but I think in application it really took some time to kind of wade through a lot of the legal consequences of it and what each party felt comfortable agreeing to in terms of the extent that it impacts that sovereign immunity that exists among the two entities,” Bird said.

“I think one of the reasons that (Bayens and Jefferson) and I are so happy today is, it is a complex agreement. It’s one that’s important, and it recognizes that continuing cooperation going forward,” Bird added. “But it’s not easy to have an agreement between two sovereigns.”

Comments: (515) 355-1300, erin.murphy@thegazette.com

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