Police officers are only allowed to detain someone long enough to investigate what they believe is the crime they think may be in progress or that they believe may have happened. If an officer stopped somebody for a vehicle code violation, like pulling out of the parking lot and not using their signal, then they could stop and detain that person long enough to run their record and to write them a ticket. Any detention beyond that point would be improper or illegal unless the officer got more information during that time period that might lead to a longer investigation.
The officer would justify a longer stop if they saw something during the time they were writing a ticket for a regular traffic violation. Typically, it would give rise to a longer detention if someone was stopped for speeding or weaving in a driving under the influence case, and the officer walked up and saw that the person had red watery eyes and smelled like they had alcohol on their breath, so then what would have been a 5 to 10 minute stop would justify a 15 or 20 minute stop to conduct a DUI investigation.
Things become a little more gray when a police officer stops someone for speeding and decides to call in a second, more experienced officer to do the investigation, leaving the person to sit and wait for that second officer to arrive.
There is no black and white rule explaining that a certain period of time would or would not be acceptable, although the longer the detention, the more unreasonable the detention may be. The length of time, the location and the method used by the officers may make it more likely for the judge to agree that it was a prolonged, improper or illegal detention and at that point, there may be a possibility of getting evidence thrown out or excluded, which is where a skilled attorney could often bring in a suppression motion to assist in defending a DUI case.
What Happens If Someone Asks If They Could Be Allowed to Leave?
It would not be considered an arrest when an officer was doing an investigation, so the question would be how the person who was stopped would know whether or not they were arrested. In order to determine that, they would need to ask the officer whether or not they were free to go. If the officer says, “Yes,” then the person would be able to just go about their business.
If the officer said, “No,” then they would know it was not just a detention but an actual arrest. At that point, the officer would need to have sufficient evidence to justify the arrest or prolonged detention. The more time the person spent with the police officer, the more likely the officer would be to find a reason to keep the person there, and ideally the person should try to minimize the conversation or the time they spend with the police officer.
Can Police Impound Someone’s Car?
Yes. If somebody was stopped and arrested for possibly driving under the influence of alcohol, then the police would have the right to impound the car, whether or not a DUI charge is made. The vehicle owner would get stuck paying the tow charges and the impound charges.
Often, police officers allow people to leave the car at the location where they were stopped. The police officers may move the car for them to a side street, park it, lock it, and take the keys. The reason for that might be because the officers were being nice and saving some money for the person by not taking it to the impound lot.
This would also save the officer some time, and they would be able to move more quickly through the process. They would not have to wait for a tow truck, they would be able to get the person to a breath or blood testing instrument at the station closer to the time of driving, and it would allow them to get back out on the street to continue their DUI investigations and making more arrests. Many officers make multiple DUI arrests in a single shift. The police officers have the authority to tow and impound the car in a typical DUI case.
Can Police Take the Person’s Driver’s License and Do They Have to Give a Temporary One?
Someone who was stopped and arrested for driving under the influence would oftentimes have their hard driver’s license taken from them. This would be done for alcohol DUIs and sometimes for drug DUIs.
It would typically not be done for someone who had an out-of-state license. California license holders who were believed to be driving under the influence with a 0.08 or above would have their hard license taken from them and forwarded along with some paperwork to the Department of Motor Vehicles, which would start the administrative process with the DMV. This would be separate from the court process.
The police officers would give the person a pink temporary license if they were arrested for a DUI and their driver’s license was taken from them. This would be just a piece of paper from the DMV saying the person had a temporary license and that it was valid for 30 days.
It is important to act quickly because if the person does not act within the first 10 days, then their license would become suspended once that 30 days was up. If we contact the DMV and demand a hearing, we would be able to get a new temporary license and we would be able to defend the DMV case as well as the court case. Police officers do take the hard license and issue a pink temporary license, or at least they should for 0.08 or above DUI cases.
For more information on Dealing with Police for DUI, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you’re seeking by calling (310) 424-3145 today.
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