Background
Trooper Matthew Butcher stopped Jason Gast after observing him speeding and swerving on I-235 in February 2025. The trooper smelled alcohol, and Gast answered “Enough” when asked how much he had consumed. Because of winter weather, the trooper took Gast to a state patrol post for field sobriety testing.
At the patrol post, Gast asked to call an attorney before deciding whether to take a preliminary breath test. The trooper declined that request at that point, arrested Gast after treating his response as a refusal, and then read him the implied-consent advisory and Iowa Code section 804.20. About nine minutes after Gast’s request, the trooper allowed him to use his phone. Gast made seven unsuccessful calls to the same law firm, said he was done making calls, initially consented to a DataMaster test, and then asked to speak with counsel before testing. The trooper denied further calls and recorded a refusal. Gast conditionally pleaded guilty to third-offense OWI while preserving his suppression challenge.
The Court’s Holding
The court affirmed the denial of Gast’s motion to suppress. Assuming without deciding that Gast was restrained and at a place of detention when he first asked for counsel before the preliminary breath test, the court held that section 804.20 did not require the trooper to provide an immediate phone call. The nine-minute interval was not an unnecessary delay because the trooper was completing typical OWI administrative steps, including the implied-consent advisory and the statutory notice, before allowing Gast to call counsel.
The court also held that Gast received a reasonable opportunity to contact an attorney before chemical testing. Section 804.20 does not guarantee consultation with counsel or require additional calls after an arrestee cannot promptly reach a lawyer. Unlike cases in which an arrestee had reached counsel and was awaiting further contact, Gast never reached an attorney despite repeated calls and had told the trooper he was finished making calls.
Key Takeaways
- Iowa Code section 804.20 requires a reasonable opportunity to contact counsel, not an immediate phone call upon request.
- Routine OWI administrative procedures may justify a short delay before access to a phone.
- An unsuccessful effort to reach counsel does not require officers to extend the consultation period indefinitely before chemical testing.
Why It Matters
The decision applies Iowa’s pragmatic approach to section 804.20 in OWI investigations. Officers must allow a reasonable opportunity for counsel contact without unnecessary delay, but they may complete ordinary security and administrative tasks first.
For defendants, the case confirms that the statutory right is limited: absent an actual, ongoing attorney contact known to law enforcement, repeated unanswered calls do not prevent an officer from requiring an election on chemical testing.