COUPLE SUES OVER FALSE DRUG ARREST

Plaintiffs Mistaken For Suspect Who Had The Same Name

A Whitefish man and woman are suing the city of Helena and Lewis and Clark
County over a case of mistaken identity.

In documents filed in federal court in Helena, Joan Bolkovatz and Mark
Michaels claim their civil rights were violated two years ago by members of
the Missouri River Drug Task Force, who wrongly believed the couple was
bringing drugs into Helena.

Both Bolkovatz and Michaels say they were injured by local law enforcement
officers when they dragged the two out of Michaels' truck, and they want to
be compensated not only for their injuries but also for the humiliation of
being publicly handcuffed and taken into custody.

"Joan's shoulder, neck and wrists were injured, and Mark's shoulder, wrists
and upper back and neck were hurt," attorney Jim Sewell said on Thursday.
"We waited two years to file the lawsuit thinking that Joan's medical
condition would resolve itself, but it didn't. It looks like she might need
surgery, and the medical bills are mounting."

The incident occurred on Nov. 27, 1998, when Michaels was driving Bolkovatz
to Helena to pick up her grade-school-age son, who had been staying with
her ex-husband. As the couple passed by Rimini on Highway 12, they noticed
a police or sheriff's vehicle following them.

"The closer they got into town, the more cop cars they saw. They told me
they had a discussion about how somebody must be in a lot of trouble with
all those cop cars around," Sewell said.

What the two didn't know was that law enforcement officials had an
anonymous tip that a Mark Michaels was transporting drugs into Helena in a
truck. The police ran a computer check on the name and found that a Mark
Michaels from Idaho had an outstanding warrant for his arrest.

The computer search included a photograph of the Idaho Mark Michaels. It
wasn't the same person as the one in the truck coming into Helena, but the
photo apparently wasn't given to the local officials prior to stopping the
Whitefish Michaels' truck, Sewell said.

As Bolkovatz and Michaels pulled into the Donut Hole, where they were to
pick up her son, their vehicle was surrounded by law enforcement officers.

"They inquired as to why they were being stopped, but there was no
explanation given," Sewell said. "They dragged them out of the car and
slammed them down on the pavement, just like on TV, in front of God and
everybody.

"They found no gun, they found no drugs. All this time they had a photo of
the guy who they wanted from Idaho, and if they had just looked at the
photo and looked at this Michaels, they could have seen it wasn't the same
guy."

As Bolkovatz's son watched, the couple was taken into custody and placed in
separate law enforcement vehicles while Michaels' truck was searched. Once
the misunderstanding was cleared, the two were allowed to leave.

In their lawsuit, Bolkovatz and Michaels say their right to unreasonable
search and seizure, guaranteed by the Fourth Amendment, was violated.

Allen Chronister, who is representing the county in the lawsuit, said they
don't dispute the basic facts of the case - that Bolkovatz and Michaels
were caught in a case of mistaken identity. But he and Joe Seifert, who is
representing the city in the case, filed motions recently saying that those
entities can't be held liable for the actions of their employees.

Local governments can be sued only "when an injury is inflicted due to the
execution of the government's policy or custom," and the attorneys are
asking that the lawsuit be dismissed.

In addition, Seifert wrote that the city denies its officers took action in
reliance to an anonymous tip - he said they responded to a request for aid
from sheriff's deputy Vance Gehringer - a drug task force member who later
was convicted of embezzling money from the drug program.

Sewell noted that the Supreme Court recently ruled that police can't act
only on an anonymous tip - that they need more substance.

He added that in response to the city and county's motions, he'll add the
names of the officers who were involved in the incident to the lawsuit, and
the case should progress from there.

"But I think it's important that they're saying they don't want to be
responsible for their officers' actions," Sewell said. "They want to leave
those individuals swinging on their own."