BOZEMAN — Beneath the flashing lights of a routine traffic stop, lies the unpredictable reality police officers face every day. In fact, an incident occurred Sunday morning where two Bozeman Police officers were struck by an alleged drunk driver. Which raises the question, just how dangerous is a day in the office for law enforcement?
“Around Montana? Officers, deputies, troopers? I mean, they’re getting struck on the side of the road a lot,” says Lieutenant Anthony Hutchings.
After nearly two decades on the force, officers like Hutchings know all too well how a routine traffic stop can be unpredictable.
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I asked Hutchings what's the most dangerous part of a simple traffic stop.
“Honestly, just getting out of our cars. Cars are designed to keep you safe, and as soon as you step outside of it, you start elevating the risk to the officer."
Which recently happened for two Bozeman Police officers. Early Sunday morning, a regular traffic stop led to the arrest of an alleged drunk driver. You can see in dash cam photos backup officers arrived, but what happened next, no one was prepared for.
“In the middle of that investigation, another driver ended up striking the secondary officer's car,” says Hutchings.
Which caused a chain reaction, crashing into the initial police vehicle.
“That car ended up hitting our officers,” Hutchings explained.
The second driver was another suspected drunk driver. According to court documents, they had a blood alcohol concentration of .156, nearly twice the legal limit.
The two officers struck by the car were taken to the hospital. Now, almost a week later?
“They are doing better. But it takes time to kind of get over what happened. So, it’s a reminder of the risks that are involved in this job,” says Hutchings.
This isn’t the first time Montana law enforcement has faced hardship while on the job. You may recall an incident from 2010? For 23-year-old Montana Highway Patrol Trooper David DeLaittre, it was a regular day on the job. Until he stopped to investigate a pick-up truck that was idling near his hometown of Three Forks. That traffic stop led to a shootout, where DeLaittre was shot and killed. Making him the youngest Montana Trooper to die in the line of duty.
In 2017, a similar scenario took the life of Broadwater County Sheriff’s Deputy Mason Moore, who was shot and killed after initiating a stop.
So, this isn’t a rare occurrence. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, there were 136 law enforcement officer fatalities in 2023 alone. Of those, 47 were firearms-related, and 37 traffic-related.
“It’s a risky job, but we understand that when we do it, the job we’re doing benefits society, and we’re here to help the public. And we do put ourselves at a certain level of risk. But it’s for the greater good,” says Hutchings.
One way Lt. Hutchings says you can help keep officers safe when they’re out on the streets?
“If people are driving around, they see emergency lights, everyone wants to know what's going on, and they want to look. And I understand that. But also, don’t lose focus on what you’re doing, especially if you're driving. Life can change very quickly,” explains Hutchings.
Hutchings also reminds folks of Montana's Move Over law, which requires drivers approaching an emergency vehicle to slow down and move over.
