SANDPOINT — An Oldtown man contends his civil rights were violated when he was catheterized against his will so authorities could obtain a urine sample during a drug-related traffic investigation.

Jason Charles Miller is suing the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office and Idaho State Police alleging his constitutional rights were violated when the sample was obtained.

The suit seeks unspecified damages and a jury trial.

Miller, 27, was stopped by a state trooper on suspicion of driving under the influence in Priest River on May 5, 2007, according to an ISP report. Deputy Jason Slinger allegedly spotted Miller stumble at the entrance to his vehicle in Laclede and relayed the information to Trooper Chris Yount, who was patrolling the Priest River area.

Miller was arrested after failing some of the field sobriety tests. Miller’s pupils were dilated and he exhibited symptoms of central nervous system stimulant use, the police report said. He was also charged with possession of methamphetamine after trace amounts of the drug were found in a pipe Miller allegedly possessed.

Miller repeatedly refused to provide a urine sample and was taken to Bonner General Hospital, where a nurse inserted a catheter into his penis and withdrew a sample, court documents said.

At the time of the arrest, Miller was awaiting trial on charges of vehicular manslaughter and meth possession stemming from a July 3, 2006, crash on Highway 57 north of Priest River. The crash killed Richard Martin Boge, the 78-year-old father of Sandpoint Councilman Michael Boge.

Miller’s defense attorney, Doug Phelps, moved to suppress the urine evidence in the DUI case, arguing it was obtained in violation of his client’s constitutional right to due process and protection from illegal searches and seizures. In criminal court documents, the defense accused Yount intentionally choosing the most evasive and degrading method of obtaining the urine evidence.

In the civil suit, Phelps alleges Slinger and Yount, under the color of law, conspired to deprive Miller of his constitutional rights.

The motion to suppress in the criminal case was pending when a jury convicted Miller of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter for speeding and unsafe passing in the deadly car crash. He subsequently entered into a plea agreement which resolved all his remaining charges.

Miller pleaded guilty to possessing meth and intravenous drug paraphernalia in the manslaughter case, and the meth charge in the DUI case was dismissed. He also pleaded guilty to DUI.

Miller was sentenced last year to up to seven years in prison on the meth possession charge and given a series of concurrent jail sentences on the other charges. Jurisdiction was retained, which made Miller eligible for release after serving six months in the Idaho Department of Correction.

A judge is slated to decide on April 28 whether Miller should be made to serve the remainder of his prison sentence.