Pulling over to another road

[phil413dude]

The other day, my girlfriend was driving on a 3 lane busy road at night when an officer pulled her over for a broken license plate light. The issue was that my girlfriend didn't feel comfortable pulling over on the big road and wanted to pull off to a side road for the safety of herself and the officer. She turned on her hazard lights and proceeded at half the speed limit to ensure the officer that she wasn't running. However, the officer began to use audible sirens to indicate that they wanted her to pull over right now. The officer then informed her that she is supposed to pull over as soon as she sees the flashing lights.
My question is if as drivers we have a right to pull over when we feel comfortable? I know we're supposed to pull off as soon as possible but when it might impede the flow of traffic or just for getting out of the way of possible drunk drivers that might slam into the vehicles stopped in the right lane I would think that the driver should be able to pull off to a side road or if on the highway be able to take the next exit instead of pulling off on the side of the highway when so many deadly accidents happen there. Thanks for any help you can provide!

[Ruh]

Personally, I always appreciate the thought that some people give to my safety when I pull them over (when it is genuine). So for the thought, tell her I said thanks. HOWEVER, when she sees the lights she should pull over as QUICKLY and as SAFELY as she can. In most (if not all states) it is actually illegal to continue to drive etc.

So to answer your question: No. You do not have the right to pull over when you feel comfortable to do so. Generally an officer chooses to pull you over when they do because it is the safest for everyone involved. It may not seem like the safest place to you, but the officer may know that further down the road is a broken down vehicle or the next exit has an accident at the top of the ramp. Not to mention the concern for Officer Safety that goes up when we deal with a vehicle that does not pull over as QUICKLY and as SAFELY as possible. How do I know you have my safety in mind? Maybe you have several felony warrants, a gun, and a desire to not go to jail...so you drive further down the road to setup a bad situation for me.

[Curt581]

My question is if as drivers we have a right to pull over when we feel comfortable?

Do you have a right to stop when and where you feel like doing so?

No, you do not.

Police officers are trained to initiate traffic stops in such a way that the driver is more likely pull over in a safe location. The officer will often wait to turn his lights on until such a location is reached. In as much as the officer knows the area he patrols and it's hazards better than most people travelling through it, he's not likely to stop someone in an area inherently unsafe, unless it's a serious emergency. He knows better than to try to pull a vehicle over where there is no shoulder or distress lane and where the driver would be forced to stop in a traffic lane. Trust that the officer knows what he's doing and pull over as soon as possible, stopping as far as is reasonable from lanes of traffic.

The only real exception to this guideline is a traffic stop by an unmarked car. If you suspect (and it better be legitimate reasoning) that officer trying to stop you is not an actual police officer, you are permitted to drive to a well lit area with people around or to the nearest police station. If you choose to do that, you must at least acknowledge the officer's signal and try to let him know your intentions.

I know we're supposed to pull off as soon as possible but when it might impede the flow of traffic or just for getting out of the way of possible drunk drivers that might slam into the vehicles stopped in the right lane I would think that the driver should be able to pull off to a side road or if on the highway be able to take the next exit instead of pulling off on the side of the highway when so many deadly accidents happen there. Thanks for any help you can provide!

Your argument is weak. The officer is well aware of the dangers in the area he works. You don't get pulled over anywhere near as often as he makes stops. He knows the danger far better than you do.

If the officer wants you to exit the highway to pull over, he will either indicate so, or he will wait until you get to an exit before he turns his lights on to stop you. If the next exit is five miles down the road, slowing down drastically, but continuing to drive when signalled to stop will only guarantee an adverse reaction from the officer. He won't know whether he's dealing with someone about to flee and require a pursuit, or if you're trying to hide or dispose of contraband, or if you're a drunk driver. Continuing until you can turn onto a side road, possibly in a secluded area, will make him wonder if you're about to ambush him when you finally do stop.

[G35 Mass]

The duty to stop is absolute. "I want to pull over up there where it's safer" is better than "I'm stopping in the middle travel lane becasue I don't know what the heck to do", but you really need to just pull over and stop right away. We're not going to stop you in a place we know to be super hazardous, but we also know no place on the side of the road is safe. It's a job hazard we know we face every time we conduct a motor vehicle stop. Thanks for the concern, but I get a lot more concerned about people who don't stop right away than someone hitting me or my cruiser.

[Gutwrench]

Hello phil413dude,

Thank you for the question and your concern.

Each state has specific requirements but, in general, a driver has a duty to immediately yield, usually to the right-hand edge of the roadway and immediately stop and remained stopped. If the officer wishes to move the stop to a different location he/she will instruct the driver as to what to do. In California you must stop immediately.

While you may assume an officer is trying to stop your gf and you for a traffic violation you could be wrong. The officer may in fact be trying to get somewhere and needs your lane. Therefore the proper thing to do is to immediately yield and stop. If the emergency vehicle passes by then you are free to reenter traffic when it is safe to do so, otherwise remain stopped and wait for contact by the police officer.

[Ispbear]

You've got to figure a couple of things, I'm not going to turn my lights on to make the traffic stop until it is an area that I feel it's safe to do so. For some reason if you weren't paying attention and pull off someplace that I feel is unsafe I will approach your vehicle and give you instructions on where I want you to go and then will follow you to that location. Even though your intentions were good, you have to understand most of us have had that driver that "was just trying to find a safe place to pull over" that was actually using the time so they could hide their drugs, alcohol, weapons, etc. and it puts us on alert.

[mcsap]

In addition to all of the other posts , we are also dipsatched to every ambulance call. So while I am trying to get to the call of the person whose heart has stopped beating ( and the volunteer ambulance crew is just getting out of bed at their home) , I am TRYING to get to their house. Meanwhile you want to look for a nice place to stop.

Regardless , we stop people for a living. We have all kinds of lights on our cars that let the public approaching from behind that something is going on with an emergency vehicle. If the road conditions are poor, we will follow you to a nearby intersection or wait until we get close to a parking lot to turn on the overhead lights.

When you don't stop , we BELIEVE that you are up to something.



You need to pull over and stop IMMEDIATELY.