During an Indiana traffic stop, stay calm, keep your hands visible, provide required identifying information, and clearly invoke your right to remain silent. Do not consent to a vehicle search. If police order you out of the car, comply. Never fight or run.
A traffic stop can feel routine right up until it isn’t. You may be driving home with friends and see red and blue lights behind you. Maybe you know you did nothing wrong.
That does not mean you should treat the encounter casually.
What you say, where you put your hands, and whether you consent to a search can affect what happens next.
Here are five police tactics Indiana drivers should understand.
Do I have to answer an officer’s small-talk questions?
An officer may ask where you are coming from, where you are going, or what you were doing tonight.
Those questions may sound friendly. They can also produce evidence.
Imagine you answer, “I’m coming from a bar.” You may consider that harmless. An officer investigating possible intoxicated driving may consider it useful information.
The opposite approach can create problems, too. An officer may be confrontational or impatient. Getting angry usually does not improve your position.
Do not turn a traffic stop into an argument you have to win on the side of the road.
Stay calm. Stay polite. Do not volunteer information about your evening.
Can I just stay completely silent during an Indiana traffic stop?
You have a Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, but you should clearly invoke it.
In Salinas v. Texas, 570 U.S. 178 (2013), the U.S. Supreme Court addressed circumstances where silence alone did not invoke the Fifth Amendment privilege. In plain English, simply refusing to answer may not always provide the protection people assume.
We suggest making your position unmistakable:
“I plead the Fifth.”
Indiana drivers also should not confuse remaining silent with refusing to provide required identifying information.
If you are operating a vehicle, police can require identifying and licensing information. Refusing required identification can create an entirely new legal problem under Indiana code 34-28-5-3.5.
The practical approach is simple:
- Provide legally required identification.
- Do not lie to the officer.
- Do not volunteer information about potential criminal conduct.
- Clearly invoke your right to remain silent.
Silence and dishonesty are two very different things. When in doubt, saying less is generally safer than trying to talk your way out of trouble.
Why should I keep my hands visible when police pull me over?
Police officers routinely evaluate movements inside a vehicle as potential safety concerns.
Do not give an officer unnecessary ammunition for that argument.
Keep your hands visible, preferably on the steering wheel. If an officer asks you to retrieve something, explain what you are about to do.
For example: “My registration is in the glove box. I’m reaching for it now.”
Passengers should also avoid sudden movements.
If you want to record the encounter, be careful about reaching around for a phone. An audio recording that can be started without handling the device may be a safer practical option for the driver.
Do I have to get out of my car if the officer tells me to?
Generally, yes.
In Pennsylvania v. Mimms, 434 U.S. 106 (1977), the U.S. Supreme Court held that an officer may order a lawfully stopped driver out of the vehicle.
The side of the road is not the place to litigate whether the officer is right.
If ordered out, comply calmly. Move deliberately. Continue asserting your rights without physically resisting.
Should I let police search my car if I have nothing to hide?
No. Having nothing illegal in your car is not a good reason to surrender your constitutional rights.
An officer might ask:
“Nothing illegal in the car?”
Then comes the follow-up:
“You wouldn’t mind if I searched?”
Do not get trapped trying to determine whether “yes” or “no” communicates what you mean.
Say this instead:
“I do not consent to a search.”
That statement is difficult to misunderstand.
Police may still have another lawful basis to search your vehicle. The automobile exception, for example, can permit certain warrantless vehicle searches when officers have probable cause.
That is different from consent.
If police rely on an exception to the warrant requirement, a defense attorney can later examine whether its requirements were actually satisfied. If you freely consent, you may eliminate an important issue your lawyer otherwise could challenge.
You also cannot guarantee what every passenger, friend, relative, or previous driver has left inside your vehicle.
Do not consent simply because an officer pressures you.
Can police make me wait for a drug dog during an Indiana traffic stop?
Police cannot extend an ordinary traffic stop simply to wait for a drug-detection dog without an independent legal basis for the delay.
The U.S. Supreme Court addressed this issue in Rodriguez v. United States, 575 U.S. 348 (2015). A dog sniff cannot add time to an otherwise completed traffic stop without sufficient additional justification.
If an officer mentions bringing a dog, remain calm.
You can ask:
“Am I free to leave?”
If the answer is no, do not leave anyway.
Continue documenting the encounter when safely possible. Note how long you have been stopped. If police search the vehicle, clearly state that you do not consent.
Do not physically interfere with a dog sniff or vehicle search. Whether police acted legally is an issue for your attorney and, if necessary, the court.
What should I do if police arrest me anyway?
Do not run. Do not fight. Do not turn a questionable arrest into an unquestionable resisting case.
Body-camera footage may eventually become important evidence. You want that recording to show you remaining controlled and reasonable.
You do not have to win the argument with the officer.
You need to get through the encounter safely while preserving your legal rights.
Remember the basic rules:
- Stay calm and keep your hands visible.
- Provide identifying information the law requires.
- Clearly invoke your right to remain silent.
- Say, “I do not consent to a search.”
- Ask, “Am I free to leave?”
- Comply with lawful physical commands, including an order to exit the vehicle.
- Never fight or flee.
A traffic stop is temporary. An unnecessary statement, consensual search, or resisting charge can follow you much longer.
If you were arrested or searched during an Indiana traffic stop, contact the Marc Lopez Law Firm at 317-632-3642 to speak with a lawyer today.
And remember: always plead the Fifth.
