People who are being pulled over by a police officer will often wonder what they did to cause the stop. One thing that’s possible is that the law enforcement officer saw something that constitutes reasonable suspicion.
Reasonable suspicion means that the officer saw something that any reasonable person would believe signals that the driver is impaired. This can include signs, such as stopping without a valid reason or driving through red lights. There are many different signs that could be considered reasonable suspicion.
What happens once the officer conducts the stop?
Once the officer stops the vehicle, the focus becomes determining what’s going on with the driver. This usually starts with talking to the driver. They may ask questions about where the driver was going, where they came from and whether they’ve been drinking. Drivers should remember that they have specific rights, including the right to remain silent when they’re being questioned.
If the officer believes the driver may be impaired, they may ask the driver to take a field sobriety test or a chemical test. Both of these may give the officer information that could support an arrest for drunk driving, but the combined information must amount to probable cause, which is a higher standard than reasonable suspicion.
From that point, the driver’s focus should be on determining how to address the charges. They may opt to seek assistance in developing their defense strategy, but this must be done quickly because some options may be time-sensitive.