DENVER — A federal appeals court has ruled that two police officers did not violate a Utah man's rights when they arrested him for refusing to identify himself.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a 1998 decision by a Utah federal judge that officers James Woods of Centerville, Utah, and Dale Schow of Farmington, Utah, had violated Bruce Oliver's Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable search and seizure.
Oliver, a lawyer, was approached by Woods at Dave's Import Auto Shop in Centerville on Sept. 25, 1995, after Oliver dropped off his MGB for service. Someone had been illegally leaving used oil at the shop.
When Woods asked for identification, Oliver asked if he had committed a crime. The officer said he had not, and Oliver left in a second car that had been driven to the shop by his son. Woods and a Farmington officer, Dale Schow, stopped and arrested him.