The County Commissioner's Crash
You are a Colorado State Patrol trooper working a solo night shift in a rural county. At 22:40, dispatch sends you to a single-vehicle crash on a two-lane state highway. A full-size pickup has gone off the right shoulder, clipped a fence, and come to rest in a pasture. The driver is standing outside, slurring his words, and tells you he is a county commissioner. He asks you to “keep this quiet” because he is up for reelection and says a local police chief is already on the way. You smell alcohol, see an open bottle in the truck, and notice a fresh cut on his hand. The truck’s lights are still on, the road is not blocked, and a tow is 25 minutes out. The commissioner is friendly but keeps edging toward his vehicle.
1. What are your first five priorities on arrival, and why does each matter for both safety and later court review?
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- Scene safety: Park with emergency lights on, check traffic, and keep the commissioner away from the travel lane and his truck. A crash scene is not a conversation area.
- Medical assessment: The hand cut and slurred speech could be injury, alcohol, medication, or a medical emergency. EMS should evaluate before I decide impairment.
- Evidence preservation: Note the open bottle’s exact location before moving it, photograph the truck, fence, injury, and scene, and keep the commissioner from retrieving anything from the cab.
- Impairment investigation: Build reasonable suspicion from driving, odor, speech, admissions, and the cut-not from his title. I would conduct SFSTs only when safe and document any refusal or limitation.
- Notification: Tell dispatch and my supervisor early that a county commissioner is involved and that a police chief is responding. That protects the investigation from later claims of favoritism.
The legal review will ask why I took each step, so I would record times, exact statements, and who arrived when.
2. The commissioner asks for a favor and the police chief arrives. How should you manage the conflict of interest and chain of command?
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The favor request is not a negotiation. I would say plainly: “I have to handle this like any other crash; I can’t give you special treatment.” I would record the request verbatim and notify my sergeant early. When the chief arrives, I would keep him outside the investigation area and ask whether he is there as family, a friend, or an official. If he is there officially, I would explain that CSP is handling the scene. If he tries to intervene, I would ask for a supervisor and document it. I would not share investigative details or hand over evidence. The chain of command exists to protect both the investigation and the trooper from accusations of favoritism. If policy requires an internal notification because of the political conflict, I would make it promptly rather than waiting until the end of shift.
3. What must appear in your report and notifications so the case survives scrutiny?
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The report should include dispatch and arrival times, vehicle position, fence damage, open-container location, the commissioner’s exact statements including the favor request, medical findings, SFST observations, any chemical test or refusal, tow information, and all notifications. I would separate observations from conclusions and avoid editorializing. I would photograph the bottle before moving it, collect it as evidence, and document chain of custody. I would also record the police chief’s arrival time and any statements or interference. If the commissioner is arrested, I would follow agency policy for transporting a public official and avoid any appearance of a courtesy release. A supervisor review before end of shift is prudent because the political dimension makes the report likely to be scrutinized.