New Mexico § 28-8-3 - Duty of peace officer

§ 28-8-3. Duty of peace officer

A. A peace officer shall make a diligent effort to determin [determine] whether any

disabled person he finds is an epileptic or a diabetic or suffers from some other

type of illness that would cause the condition. Whenever feasible, this effort shall be made before the person is charged with a

crime or taken to a place of detention. B. In seeking to determine whether a disabled person suffers from an illness, a peace

officer shall make a reasonable search for an identifying device and an identification

card of the type described in Subsection B of Section 2 of this act and examine them

for emergency information. The peace officer may not search for an identifying device or an identification

card in a manner or to an extent that would appear to a reasonable person in the circumstances

to cause an unreasonable risk of worsening the disabled person's condition. C. A peace officer who finds a disabled person without an identifying device or identification

card is not relieved of his duty to that person to make a diligent effort to ascertain

the existence of any illness causing the disabled condition. D. A claim for relief against a peace officer does not arise from his making a reasonable

search of the disabled person to locate an identifying device or identification card,

even though the person is not wearing an identifying device or carrying an identification

card. However, nothing found on the disabled person during a search authorized under this

act shall be admitted into evidence in any court in a criminal proceeding where the

disabled person is a defendant if the admission of the product of the search would

not be entitled to admission except for the authority to search granted in Subsection

C of this section. E. A peace officer who determines or has reason to believe that a disabled person

is suffering from an illness causing his condition shall promptly notify the person's

physician, if practicable. If the officer is unable to ascertain the physician's identity or to communicate

with him, the officer shall make a reasonable effort to cause the disabled person

to be transported immediately to a medical practitioner or to a facility where medical

treatment is available. If the officer believes it unduly dangerous to move the disabled person, he shall

make a reasonable effort to obtain the assistance of a medical practitioner.