Authority of employees to make arrests; penalty for resisting or assaulting employee; enforcement of chapter

An appointee or employee of the commission shall have the authority of a peace officer, to arrest a person for an act committed on or about the premises of a state warehouse, state store, or agency, and in his presence, which amounts to: (1) A violation of a provision of this chapter; (2) Disorderly conduct. The commission shall furnish its appointees and employees with an official badge as evidence of this authority. A person who resists or commits an assault upon an appointee or employee of the commission while engaged in the performance of his duties hereunder shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $500, or by confinement in jail not less than thirty days nor more than six months, or, in the discretion of the court, by both such fine and imprisonment. Members of the commission are hereby vested, and such officers, agents and employees of the commission as shall be designated by the commission shall, upon being so designated, be vested, with like power and authority to enforce the provisions of this chapter and the criminal laws of the state relating thereto as are vested in sheriffs of counties and members of the department of public safety.