Local police, CHP talk traffic stop risks in light of Riverside shootout
For local law enforcement, traffic stops are an effective tool when it comes to maintaining public safety, but officers say there are times when things can get unpredictable.
“When you’re dealing with traffic stops, you’re dealing with an unpredictable variable which is the general public,” Officer Ramon Perez with CHP Indio Division, said.
That’s on the mind of local officers whenever they pull a driver over for a traffic stop. For the California Highway Patrol, millions of people are stopped every year by officers.
“We’re going to do whatever we can as officers, to try to minimize the dangers to everybody involved,” Officer Perez said.
It comes after a deadly shootout Monday in Riverside that killed a CHP officer and injured two others which all started from a traffic stop. While that is the worst-case scenario, CHP says it has to watch out for a number of potential dangers.
“Not only do we have to worry about the violator, but also put a fair amount of attention on passing traffic,” Perez said.
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“If there’s a lot of movement inside before I walk up, it raises my hairs a little bit,” Cpl. Hazen said.
He says a majority of his interactions with drivers or passengers in a car don’t involve use of force but can escalate in certain situations.
“You just never know who that person is. They could be your average person, or they could be having a felony warrant, and you just happen to stop them,” Cpl. Hazen said.
If you do happen to be pulled over for whatever reason officers say keeping your hands visible is the number one piece of advice.
“When people are shuffling around or moving around in the car is kind of when we don’t know what’s going on,” Cpl. Hazen said.
“Their hands are obviously where a lot of the dangers may come from, so we appreciate when they’re cooperative, and they keep their hands in a location where we can see them,” Officer Perez said.
Tips on what to do if you are pulled over by law enforcement on the road can be found here.
