What Is the Legal Reasoning Behind Police Pull Overs?

In the United States, police officers are allowed to pull over vehicles based on a reasonable suspicion that the driver has broken the law or is in the process of committing a crime. In certain circumstances, they may also have more broad authority to temporarily detain drivers and their occupants on other grounds.

Reasonable Suspicion:

One of the legal requirements for a police pull over is that there must be reasonable suspicion that the driver has broken the law. This means that there must be an objective basis for believing that criminal activity is occurring or has occurred-more than just a hunch or suspicion. Reasonable suspicion encompasses both articulable facts and rational inferences drawn from those facts. For example, if an officer witnesses a driver running a red light, that would constitute reasonable suspicion to make a stop.

Probable Cause:

Probable cause is another legal requirement for making a police stop. It is a greater standard than reasonable suspicion. In determining whether there is probable cause, the officer must be able to articulate facts that would lead a reasonable person to believe that criminal activity has taken place or will very likely take place. In other words, it must be more than just a guess that the driver has done something wrong. Probable cause exists when there are sufficient facts and circumstances within the knowledge of the officer which permit him/her to conclude that a crime occurred or will very probably occur in the immediate future.

Traffic Infractions:

It is also a legal requirement for police officers to have probable cause when making a traffic stop. This often occurs when an officer observes some kind of traffic violation like speeding, running a red light, or failing to signal. While moststates require very specific observation of the driver's behavior that suggests a potential infraction, it is enough if the officer simply can clearly observe such behavior in order to create probable cause.

Warrant Execution:

In certain cases, requests for a vehicle search are part of a warrant execution. A warrant is an order from the court typically issued when an officer can present sufficient evidence to establish probable cause that an arrest has been or will be made or that a search or seizure has taken place or is about to take place. In other words, when the police express they have good cause to believe something illegal has occurred, they may execute the warrant by searching someone's vehicle without permission.

Plain View Doctrine:

The plain view doctrine allows the police to search your vehicle without a warrant if they lawfully observe evidence of a crime in "plain view". This means that if you are pulled over and officers can, from outside and in plain sight of your vehicle, spot something inside indicating criminal activity (such as illegal drugs or weapons), they do not need to obtain a search warrant first.

What Happens After An Arrest?

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