# Police traffic stops **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 22, 2016, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637 "2016-07-22T23:48:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Oddball\_92](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b3f665/32.png) [@Oddball\_92](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oddball_92)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/21 "2016-07-23T13:21:06Z")
> [@I.Dunno](#): > > Is number 2 really true or is this some kind of urban legend? In about 50 years of driving I’ve only been pulled over a handful of times but I’m positive no cop touched my car during the proceedings. > > I have seen (on the internet so it must be true) claims that a cop will touch the left taillight so that if a driver kills him and runs off, fellow officers will later know to check that taillight and send the driver to the big house. I’m skeptical. When I went through basic cop school is was taught. I was an arson investigator not a uniformed street cop but I have seen many officers do that. I am not so sure it is taught that way any more. Texas DPS used to teach the “Seven Step Violator Contact” (actually you can Google that) but that, too, might be outdated now. ---
**Author:** ![Chihuahua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dec6dc/32.png) [@Chihuahua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chihuahua)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/22 "2016-07-23T13:25:43Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Why? And it’s not like they’re approaching the car with their gun drawn and calling for backup. They’re just being cautious. They keep their eyes on you and that’s usually about it. IME, they don’t even ask you to keep your hands on the wheel (they might want to see what your hiding and where you put it, it could give them probably cause). At most, they might walk up with one hand on the butt of their gun. But that’s not what OP is talking about. OP is saying police should carry bulletproof shields and make everyone in the vehicle get out and “assume the position.” ---
**Author:** ![Oddball\_92](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b3f665/32.png) [@Oddball\_92](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oddball_92)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/23 "2016-07-23T13:34:07Z")
If it is a felony stop, that is if there is a warrant for the individual, or if the officer has reasonable suspicion or probable cause to believe the driver has committed a crime, the officer will be in a much higher state of readiness than if it were just a simple traffic offense. Felony stop procedures are often incorporated in the departments policies and procedures manual. Most officers also know that a suspects eyes, mouth, feet, etc. cannot hurt them. It is the hands that can hurt them. Therefore the hands of the individual is what the officers want to see… sooooo… if you get stopped, make sure the officer can see your hands. Keeping them on the steering wheel is a good idea. Do not make overt gestures like reaching under the seat or in the glove box. How stupid is that??? Just sit there and wait until the officers asks you to produce your license. If you are carrying a weapon it would be a good idea to let the officer know. ---
**Author:** ![Oddball\_92](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b3f665/32.png) [@Oddball\_92](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oddball_92)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/24 "2016-07-23T13:43:22Z")
> [@bardos](#): > > So, as a citizen, if i am driving and a police car behind me flashes lights and maybe a siren and signals for me to pull over, I am by law required to stay sitting in the vehicle? Or can I get out of the car? It is not a “law” that you remain in the car (at least not in Texas) but is sure is a good idea. If an individual gets out of the car, the officer is immediately going to think 1) they are being confrontational or 2) there is something in the car they do not want the officer to see…or smell. ---
**Author:** ![bardos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bardos/32/1069_2.png) [@bardos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bardos)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/25 "2016-07-23T14:02:39Z")
> [@Oddball\_92](#): > > It is not a “law” that you remain in the car (at least not in Texas) but is sure is a good idea. If an individual gets out of the car, the officer is immediately going to think 1) they are being confrontational or 2) there is something in the car they do not want the officer to see…or smell. I think what you have written has become a new unwritten law. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/26 "2016-07-23T14:27:40Z")
> [@Chihuahua](#): > > But that’s not what OP is talking about. OP is saying police should carry bulletproof shields and make everyone in the vehicle get out and “assume the position.” No, he didn’t say they should, he asked why they don’t. I feel that was answered, multiple times by several posters. I small, but important difference, I/we answered the question, I wasn’t arguing against a statement. TL;DR, having the driver in the car gives the officer more control over the situation. Furthermore, you’ll note that the part of my post your quoted was a reply to you. Telling me it completely apply to the OP isn’t really fair. ---
**Author:** ![Nelson\_Pike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Nelson\_Pike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nelson_Pike)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/27 "2016-07-23T15:45:17Z")
> [@bardos](#): > > I totally agree. It has morphed into an incredibly dangerous job. Especially with an incredible amount of guns in people’s hands. This is incorrect. Police work is dangerous, but there has been no trend toward increasing danger in this century, and annual police deaths are about half what they were in the 1920s and 1930s. See data: [US Law Enforcement Deaths 1791-2015](http://www.nleomf.org/facts/officer-fatalities-data/year.html) [US Law Enforcement Deaths, Assaults and Injuries 2004-2013](http://www.nleomf.org/facts/officer-fatalities-data/daifacts.html) [US Law Enforcement Deaths and Injuries 2014](https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2014-statistics-on-law-enforcement-officers-killed-and-assaulted) Having said so, I constantly worry about our vulnerability to maniacs, and I worry most about the vulnerability of police because they are conspicuous, and because their duties include first response to crime in progress. ---
**Author:** ![Me\_Billy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e480ec/32.png) [@Me\_Billy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Me_Billy)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/28 "2016-07-23T16:02:59Z")
Their current procedures are the way they are because of accidents/shootings which have happened in the past. -Officers have been shot. -I’m sure some drunk stumbled out of his car door into traffic and got run over. -Cars have run into the stopped police car. -Etc. The idea is to conduct the stops in a manner which will reduce accidents/officers being hurt to the bare minimum. ---
**Author:** ![Nelson\_Pike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Nelson\_Pike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nelson_Pike)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/29 "2016-07-23T16:13:29Z")
> [@LH75](#): > > As a CHP holder this is the formula that has worked for me: > > Flashing lights from a Patrol Car show up in my rear view mirror. > I signal my tun and pull off to the side of the road, then shift to hazard lights > While I am doing that, I turn my dome light on and roll down my window > I then sit patiently with my open hands on the wheel in clear view > > When the officer approaches, I politely say “Good evening officer. I have a concealed handgun permit. My firearm is just behind my right hip. My wallet with my driver’s license and permit are in my left front pocket. My registration and proof of insurance are locked in the console compartment. How would you like to proceed?” > > In the four times I have been stopped since getting my permit, I have yet to have any problems. Also, all four stops have resulted in verbal warnings rather than tickets. I have been stopped a few times myself, and I was always guilty of something up to and including DUI (which I was never charged with). Although your SOP has been working IMO it would be much better, _especially_ if you have a gun in the car, to put your license in one hand, your registration and insurance card in the other hand, and put both hands out the window. Also, I wonder under if there is a legal requirement to volunteer to an investigating officer, without being asked, that you are armed. Finally, I was on the occasion of my first traffic stop told to turn off my hazard lights, and although he did not say so, I got the impression the officer would rather I had not turned them on in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/30 "2016-07-23T16:21:12Z")
> [@Nelson\_Pike](#): > > …Finally, I was on the occasion of my first traffic stop told to turn off my hazard lights, and although he did not say so, I got the impression the officer would rather I had not turned them on in the first place. If the police car is parked behind you, and your hazard lights are on, only the flashing light on the left side of your car may be visible. It may appear to an approaching car that you are signalling to pull back out into the road. ---
**Author:** ![Nelson\_Pike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Nelson\_Pike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nelson_Pike)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/31 "2016-07-23T16:59:35Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > If the police car is parked behind you, and your hazard lights are on, only the flashing light on the left side of your car may be visible. It may appear to an approaching car that you are signalling to pull back out into the road. My question was whether I should have turned them on at all. In retrospect it would seem unnecessary, since there was blue light blazing away right behind me. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/32 "2016-07-23T17:27:13Z")
**Nelson Pike** > [@](#): > > Also, I wonder under if there is a legal requirement to volunteer to an investigating officer, without being asked, that you are armed. This varies from state to state. I live in Nebraska, and it is a “Must Notify” state. I am obligated, by the terms of my CHP, to notify an officer at any contact with Law Enforcement. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/33 "2016-07-23T17:30:10Z")
ETA: In Nebraska the CHP database is cross indexed with the DL database. If I should happen to fail to notify an officer, and then produce my driver’s license, he or she will find in the DL check for wants and warrants that I have a CHP and did not notify them of this. This violation could result in the loss of my CHP. ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/34 "2016-07-23T17:47:32Z")
I’m in Missouri and it’s not a must notify state, though if asked you should answer truthfully of course. Our DL information is no longer tied with the CHP information though it used to be. I live in a rural area and at least the Sheriff’s officers assume the local folks they stop are armed. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/35 "2016-07-23T17:53:16Z")
> [@Chihuahua](#): > > But that’s not what OP is talking about. OP is saying police should carry bulletproof shields and make everyone in the vehicle get out and “assume the position.” Which is in and of itself a violation of the drivers civil rights and against the law, not to mention unconstitutional. Not the shield bit, that’s just stupid. But you cannot make someone “assume the position” without probable cause as the “position” exists solely as a prelude to a search. If all I’ve done is coast through a stop sign, the officer has ZERO cause to ask me to do shit except show my license, insurance card and registration. Few cops want to escalate a simple interaction with the public into a confrontation every fucking time. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/36 "2016-07-23T18:30:08Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > From my extensive police experience (watching TV shows), under these circumstances I think they stand well back, draw their guns in readiness, and shout “LIMMYSEERHANZ!” to tell the driver to stick his empty hands out the window. > > Seeing the driver’s hands apparently then allows the police to then adopt one of several different procedures, depending how far south the state is and what color the hands are. IIRC that’s called a “felony stop” and is conducted a lot different than a typical traffic stop. > [@bardos](#): > > So, as a citizen, if i am driving and a police car behind me flashes lights and maybe a siren and signals for me to pull over, I am by law required to stay sitting in the vehicle? Or can I get out of the car? A traffic stop isn’t necessarily considered a custodial detention (so you don’t have to be Mirandized and anything you say during the stop can be used against you in court later), but it considered a “type of detention.” While detained by police you have a general requirement to follow lawful orders. So while some police officers may not care if you get out of your car, I suspect the vast majority will tell you to get back in the car. If they do tell you to do so, you need to comply with the lawful order. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/37 "2016-07-23T18:38:30Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Unless you have some way of knowing which person is going to get violent or shoot at the officer based on how they were driving, what the offense was or what their car looks like, the officer does actually have to treat each stop like it could turn out that way. At least until they get a better feel for it. Fresh Air had a retired NYPD patrolman who had written a book about his life in for an interview a few months ago. He was more of the “old school” community-policing sort of cop, not the new age “warriors whose only job is to make sure they go home at night, and damn who dies in the process” (that’s an exaggeration of the doctrine of “making it home at night”, which is based in reasonable officer safety, but in the minds of many police has taken on a dangerous element.) Even he noted that something every cop learns, or should learn, relatively early in their career is there are no “ground ball arrests” or “easy ones.” He related a story where he’d been on the force for a couple years, and was feeling somewhat confident in his abilities because he’d been through some tough situations. Anyway, he gets called on to effect an arrest warrant in a nice Manhattan condo building on a stockbroker. He basically goes in thinking he’s going to slip handcuffs on some yuppie or pencil-necked geek kinda guy and goes into the situation with essentially no concern at all. At the time, he said he frequently would just leave his bullet proof vest off, he sort of indicated it was a time when you were kinda supposed to wear your vest if you were out on patrol, but a lot of guys didn’t because it was bulky and there was a sense that being shot is so rare it wasn’t worth it. Anyway, he knocks on the door and the “yuppie stockbroker” opens it, and is standing there wearing body armor and has a semiautomatic rifle. It’s only through sheer luck, and the fact he was able to immediately wrestle the gun partially out of the guy’s hands and then wrestle him down that he avoided being killed. He said that was the point in his career when he said he learned there’s no such thing as a “groundball” in policing, and he also said he rarely went to work without his vest again. ---
**Author:** ![Nelson\_Pike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Nelson\_Pike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nelson_Pike)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/38 "2016-07-23T18:48:05Z")
> [@LH75](#): > > **Nelson Pike** > This varies from state to state. I live in Nebraska, and it is a “Must Notify” state. I am obligated, by the terms of my CHP, to notify an officer at any contact with Law Enforcement. Google was uninformative: What is CHP? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/39 "2016-07-23T19:05:53Z")
Cutaneous Hepatic Porphyria. It’s a medical condition that darkens your skin, and it may be extremely dangerous unless you explain it to the cop. Ok, maybe it’s a Concealed Handgun Permit. ---
**Author:** ![Oddball\_92](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b3f665/32.png) [@Oddball\_92](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oddball_92)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2016, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637/40 "2016-07-23T20:40:32Z")
> [@Nelson\_Pike](#): > > Google was uninformative: > > What is CHP? CHP= Concealed Handgun Permit in Texas it is CHL which is Concealed Handgun License Probably other acronyms in other places with the same meaning Look here > **[Successful Duty To Inform: 20+ Tips For Concealed Carriers](https://concealednation.org/2015/07/do-you-have-a-duty-to-inform-when-carrying-concealed-we-look-at-all-50-states-for-the-answers/)** > > Dive deep into the Duty to Inform with our comprehensive guide for concealed carry holders, ensuring compliance and safety. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/police-traffic-stops/760637.md?page=3)