TITLE 67

STATE GOVERNMENT AND STATE AFFAIRS

CHAPTER 29

IDAHO STATE POLICE

67-2901.  Idaho state police created — Director — Divisions — Powers and duties — Failure of peace officers to obey orders, misdemeanor — Deputies — Compensation and powers. (1) There is hereby created the Idaho state police. The Idaho state police shall, for the purposes of section 20, article IV, of the constitution of the state of Idaho, be an executive department of the state government.

(2)  The governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, shall appoint a director of the Idaho state police who shall serve at the pleasure of the governor. The director shall receive such salary as fixed by the governor.

(3)  The Idaho state police shall be composed of such divisions as may be established by law and other administrative units as may be established by the director for the proper and efficient administration of the powers and duties assigned to the director or the state police. The director shall appoint, subject to the approval of the governor, an administrator for each division within the state police.

(4)  The director shall exercise all of the powers and duties necessary to carry out the proper administration of the state police, and may delegate duties to employees and officers of the state police.

(5)  The Idaho state police shall have power to:

(a)  Enforce all of the penal and regulatory laws of the state, to preserve order, and exercise any and all powers, duties and authority of any sheriff or other peace officer anywhere in the state of Idaho, in the same manner and with like authority as the sheriffs of the counties; said department may employ from time to time, to carry out any of the provisions of this subsection, such deputies or special deputies as may be deemed, by the governor of the state of Idaho, necessary to carry out these duties and powers, and deputies shall have power to deputize other persons as deputies when necessary; said department may call into the police service of the state any and all peace officers of the state, of any city, or of any county, and may deputize private citizens, when deemed necessary by the governor of the state, to preserve order and enforce law in any extraordinary emergency when the governor shall have declared, by order in writing, the existence of such extraordinary emergency; the governor shall designate by order such peace officers or private persons as are to be called into the service of the state, and when such peace officers or deputized citizens are so called into the police service of the state such officers shall act under the direction of the director of the state police in such manner as may be directed and ordered by the governor; failure on the part of any such peace officer of the state, or person so deputized, to so act and obey such orders shall constitute a misdemeanor; the governor shall fix the compensation of such deputies;

(b)  Prevent and detect crime and apprehend criminals and maintain order;

(c)  Require all persons using the highways in the state to do so carefully, safely, and with the exercise of care for the persons, property and safety of others;

(d)  Safeguard and protect the surface and other physical portions of the state highways and enforce any laws for highway safety;

(e)  Enforce federal statutes and regulations relating to motor carrier safety and hazardous materials for interstate carriers;

(f)  Enforce Idaho statutes and rules of the Idaho state police applicable to motor carriers;

(g)  Enforce all of the laws of the state enacted for the identification, inspection and transportation of livestock and all laws of the state designed to prevent the theft of livestock;

(h)  Regulate traffic on all highways and roads in the state, including the authority to temporarily close or restrict the use of any highway or road whenever the closure or restriction of the use is deemed necessary for the safety of the public;

(i)  Perform all of the duties and exercise all of the powers of peace officers vested in the director of the Idaho state police;

(j)  Execute and serve any warrant of arrest or search warrant issued by proper authority of the state, according to the tenor thereof, in any part of the state;

(k)  Arrest without warrant, any person committing or attempting to commit in their presence or view a breach of the peace or any other violation of any of the laws of the state;

(l)  Members of the Idaho state police shall be subject to the call of the governor and are empowered to cooperate with any other department or authority of the state, with counties and municipalities, or any locality in detecting crime, apprehending criminals and preserving law and order throughout the state; but the Idaho state police shall not be used as a posse in any municipality, except when ordered by the governor to do so; provided nothing herein contained shall be construed to vest direction or control over any sheriff, policeman, marshal or constable in the Idaho state police or any employer or officer thereof;

(m)  Each member of the Idaho state police shall take and subscribe to an oath of office to support the constitution and laws of the United States and the state of Idaho, and to honestly and faithfully perform the duties imposed upon him under the provisions of the laws of Idaho as a member of the Idaho state police. The oath shall be filed with the director; and

(n)  Enter into contractual agreements to reimburse the Idaho state police for services provided to private entities if it is deemed necessary to enforce the law or ensure public safety when those services or resources are beyond the usual and customary services provided by the Idaho state police.

(6)  The director shall operate and supervise a forensic laboratory which will provide to state and local agencies having responsibility for enforcement of the penal laws of this state assistance in the collection, preservation and analysis of evidence in criminal cases. Idaho state police forensic services resources including, but not limited to, equipment, instrumentation, facilities and supplies may be used only by authorized employees or approved subcontractors of Idaho state police forensic services.

(7)  The director shall provide security and protection for the governor and the governor’s immediate family to the extent and in the manner the governor and the director deem adequate and appropriate.

(8)  At the written direction of the governor or the director, the director shall provide security and protection for the lieutenant governor and the lieutenant governor’s immediate family to the extent and in the manner the lieutenant governor and the director deem adequate and appropriate.

(9)  The director shall provide security and protection for both houses of the legislature while in session as in the opinion of the speaker of the house of representatives and the president pro tempore of the senate and the director deem necessary.

(10)  The director shall provide security and protection for the supreme court and the court of appeals while they are in session, and at their places of work, as the chief justice and the director deem necessary.

(11) The director may award to an officer, upon retirement, that officer’s badge, duty weapon and handcuffs, providing that a committee of three (3) of the officer’s peers certifies to the director that the retiring officer has served meritoriously for a minimum of fifteen (15) years and should therefore be so honored.

(12) The director, within the limits of any appropriation made available for such purposes, shall for such Idaho state police:

(a)  Establish such ranks, grades and positions as shall appear advisable and designate the authority and responsibility in each such rank, grade and position;

(b)  Appoint such personnel to such rank, grade and position as are deemed by him to be necessary for the efficient operation and administration of the Idaho state police, and only those applicants shall be appointed or promoted who best meet the prescribed standards and prerequisites; provided however, that all employees shall be selected in the manner provided for in chapter 53, title 67, Idaho Code, and shall be probationers and on probation for a period of one (1) year from the date of appointment;

(c)  Formulate and place in effect such rules for the Idaho state police as from time to time appear to him advisable;

(d)  Prescribe by official order the uniform and equipment of the employees in the Idaho state police;

(e)  Station employees in such localities as he shall deem advisable for the enforcement of the laws of the state;

(f)  Have purchased, or otherwise acquired, by the purchasing agent of the state, motor vehicle equipment and all other equipment and commodities deemed by him essential for the efficient performance of the duties of the Idaho state police and purchase and install approved mechanical devices and equipment for the rapid transmission and broadcasting of information relative to crime, apprehension of criminals and the administration of the business of the Idaho state police.

(13) (a) The director shall issue to every eligible police officer member of the Idaho state police, as defined in section 59-1303(3), Idaho Code, and pursuant to the contract provided for by the personnel group insurance administrator in the department of administration, a term group life insurance certificate in the face amount of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) on the life of such members. Said insurance certificate shall set forth the name or names of such beneficiary or beneficiaries as the insured may name or designate.

(b)  Any eligible person entering the employ of the Idaho state police as an active police officer after the effective date of this act shall be insured as other members of the state police immediately upon taking the oath of office.

(c)  Every member of the Idaho state police, upon termination of active duty or permanent release, may surrender said certificate to the head of the state police, or, at the person’s option, may convert the insurance in accordance with the provisions of the contract, and no further premiums shall be paid on said policy by the state of Idaho.

(d)  The director is hereby directed to hereafter include in the budget of the Idaho state police an amount sufficient to pay the annual costs accruing with respect to policies of insurance purchased under the provisions of this chapter.

(e)  The premiums on the insurance herein provided for are to be paid one-half (1/2) by the employee and one-half (1/2) by the state. The director is hereby authorized to make a monthly deduction on the payroll of the amount due from each employee under this chapter.

(14) Nothing in this section shall affect the duties of the sheriff as described in section 31-2202, Idaho Code, or the primary duty, described in section 31-2227, Idaho Code, of the sheriff and prosecuting attorney of each of the several counties to enforce all the penal provisions of any and all statutes of this state.

History:

[(67-2901) 1919, ch. 8, sec. 31, p. 43; C.S., sec. 332; am. 1923, ch. 152, sec. 1, p. 221; I.C.A., sec. 65-2801; am. 1963, ch. 91, sec. 1, p. 288; am. 1970, ch. 217, sec. 1, p. 616; am. 1971, ch. 173, sec. 19, p. 812; am. 1974, ch. 27, sec. 2, p. 811; am. 1982, ch. 30, sec. 1, p. 59; am. 1982, ch. 95, sec. 139, p. 274; am. 1986, ch. 215, sec. 1, p. 549; am. 1988, ch. 47, sec. 1, p. 55; am. 1995, ch. 116, sec. 1, p. 387; am. 2000, ch. 469, sec. 4, p. 1457; am. 2008, ch. 85, sec. 2, p. 223; am. 2012, ch. 272, sec. 1, p. 767; am. 2013, ch. 175, sec. 1, p. 404; am. 2015, ch. 67, sec. 1, p. 179; am. 2015, ch. 232, sec. 1, p. 728.]