Sgt. Sid Jackson faces charges of drunken driving and interference with official acts.
Police Chief Sam Hargadine said Jackson was off duty at the time of his arrest.
Hargadine said an Iowa City Police on-duty officer was the first one to come across Jackson. The officer requested assistance and University of Iowa Department of Public Safety officers arrived. The University of Iowa officers made the arrest, he said.
According to the Department of Public Safety complaints, an officer observed Jackson sitting in his vehicle with the door open at the intersection of Iowa and Muscatine avenues at 3:54 a.m. Saturday.
Jackson denied driving but admitted he had been drinking, according to the complaints. There were tracks in the fresh snow leading from the front and rear tires, according to the complaints.
According to the complaints, Jackson walked away from the officer and refused to cooperate with testing. He also refused to get in the patrol vehicle and pulled away from officers as he was being placed in handcuffs, according to the complaints.
Jackson was injured during the incident, according to the complaints.
Two calls to a home phone number listed online for Jackson were not answered Saturday night.
Jackson is one of three late-night watch commanders who work 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. for the Iowa City Police department, according to the Iowa City Police Web site.
“He is on administrative leave” pending the outcome of the internal affairs investigation, Hargadine said.
The University of Iowa Department of Public Safety will investigate the criminal matter, and when Iowa City Police receive the paperwork Monday, the internal affairs team will open an independent investigation, Hargadine said.
Hargadine said Jackson is a 20-plus year veteran of the Iowa City Police department.
