There are a couple different places that we can get information about what happened during a traffic stop. I wish that every stop was videotaped. I think there should be legislation requiring it.
Unfortunately it’s decided on an agency by agency and case by case basis in Los Angeles whether somebody is videotaped. The California Highway Patrol, which does a lot of DUI enforcement in Los Angeles, does have video cameras in most of their patrol cars.
The Los Angeles Police Department in the city of Los Angeles does not have video cameras in the cars. Some locations in Los Angeles do. Most of them don’t, and a lot of times if we do not have video, we’re left with one man’s word against another’s. We try to sort that out by looking at the officer’s statement, the officer’s police report, and probable cause declaration.
Police Are Required to Have Reasonable Suspicion to First Initiate a Police Stop and Then to Initiate a DUI Investigation
Police officers are not supposed to make gut decisions. They’re supposed to base a stop on reasonable suspicion. This means that they have to have reasonable cause to believe that the person has committed a crime.
It could be reasonable suspicion to believe they’re driving under the influence or they committed a different type of vehicle code violation, like speeding.
It could be failing to signal where other traffic could be affected. There are a number of different reasons why someone may get stopped, and a stop may start out as a regular traffic stop and then turn into something much more.
Police Reports List Many Different Reasons Why They Initially Pull a Driver Over
There are a million different reasons for why an officer pulls over a vehicle. If you look at the vehicle code, it’s incredibly detailed and thick with reasons to pull somebody over. However, most of the time when we see someone pulled over it’s not for a DUI reason. It’s for regular vehicle code violation like speeding.
Oftentimes we also will see equipment violations, such as having expired registration or a broken tail light. Typically, the reason has nothing to do with a DUI.
The Time of Day Is a Factor in Why Police Stop Drivers
At 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning, officers are looking for any reason at all to pull someone over. Having no headlights is another reason for why we see a lot of people being pulled over. Currently, many people who use valet services have cars with automatic headlights. They park at the restaurant, the valet turns them off, and the officers are waiting down the street.
The Time of Day You Are Driving Is More of a Factor Than Your Location but California Highway Patrol Does Look for Minor Infractions on Highways Early in the Morning
When it comes to a road’s location, people can get stopped on the highway as much as they’re stopped on the side streets. It’s really across the board where people are getting stopped. Of course, the California Highway Patrol is on the freeways and when it gets to 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning, they’re looking for any reason to stop someone.
This is because they know with some certainty that the driver has been out and has had something to drink, so the freeways are a big area where people are being stopped. People are also stopped in metropolitan areas. Whether you’re talking about downtown LA by the Staple Center or Hollywood or West Hollywood, there are a large number of bars and restaurants and clubs. People are getting stopped all the time in those locations.
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