3 Traffic Stop Survival Tactics

STOP RUSHING

Always ask yourself: why are you rushing into a situation?

• Is there an exigency? 
• Is someone actively being harmed? 
• Are you facing opposition and being forced to act immediately? 

If not, then there is rarely a need to rush to do anything on a vehicle contact. 

There is certainly benefit to the element of surprise sometimes. 

For example, getting up on a vehicle quickly in order to catch an occupant attempting to conceal contraband. 

In those situations, however, remember to assess how much time the individual has already had to do it. 

Do you think they spotted you 5 seconds ago, 20 seconds ago, or 3 minutes ago?

Think of a criminal traveling in a stolen vehicle or with an active arrest warrant. 

He spots you (a police officer) and immediately thinks “they’re on to me.” 

They begin planning what to do next.

Attack. Flee. Ditch evidence. 

But you have no idea about the stolen vehicle or an arrest warrant yet. 

You just observed a minor traffic violation and are now making a stop to determine if the driver actually has an updated registration card on them.

You’re rushing into a potentially deadly encounter.

Hasty actions can lead to mistakes or missed signs of danger.

Rushing a vehicle stop without a clear, compelling reason can escalate situations unnecessarily and increase risk.

Employ tactical patience.

Tactical patience is defined by how you control the tempo, pace, and rhythm of an encounter.

You do this by: 

1. Controlling contact (when, where, and how it happens)
2. Leveraging the gift of time and distance
3. Waiting for backup

Tactical patience allows for thorough situational assessment, enhancing your ability to make sound decisions. 

When you rush, you forgo the opportunity to observe critical cues, such as the occupants’ behavior, body language, or movements within the vehicle. 

This period of observation can offer insights that alert you to potential risks or suspicious actions, giving you the upper hand.

Tactical patience also helps avoid committing to force too soon.

Once you decide to make a stop, you should begin asking yourself throughout the encounter if things are the same as when the stop began.

Ask yourself, “should I approach?”.

Here are factors to consider:

• Is approaching necessary?
• Are there obvious dangers in approaching?
• Who is the subject?
• What help is available?
• When is the contact taking place?
• Where is the contact taking place?
• Are other suspects present and/or seen? 

Taking a few extra moments to assess and plan your approach reinforces your tactical advantage and improves overall safety.

It offers you a chance to mentally prepare for potential outcomes, reducing stress and improving decision-making under pressure.

And it can make a significant impact on how the encounter goes.

Don’t ever mistake tactical recklessness for heroics.

There is no honor in rushing into danger.

There is one instance, however, where we do encourage urgency:

When getting ready to exit your vehicle, particularly the moment you stop to get out and make contact with someone or something.

In general, a subject on foot will have a much easier time drawing a weapon on you than you do at drawing your weapon while remaining in your cruiser.

It’s important to be prepared and maintain proper athletic mobility to rapidly exit your vehicle.

The restriction on your movement inside of your vehicle suggests that you should never make contact with someone on foot while remaining inside of your cruiser.

Critically important: being prepared and able to rapidly exit your vehicle DOES NOT suggest rapidly approaching a person or vehicle as well.

In many cases it’s highly encouraged to move backwards to the rear of your own vehicle in order to better assess the situation as well as have whatever cover your vehicle provides while doing so.

THE GIFT OF TIME AND DISTANCE

The gift of time and distance is one of the most important tools you have as a police officer.

The closer you are to danger, the less time you have to make an informed decision.

This is critical in high stress situations such as a violent encounter with a criminal.

A vast majority of officers that are killed in the line of duty are killed by an offender close to them (between 0-10 feet) with over half within just 0-5 feet.

By exploiting distance, you create time as an advantage.

Time and distance allows you to gather additional information, assess the situation, and problem solve.

Remember that action is generally faster than reaction.

This means that suspects initiating movement can complete their actions before officers can respond, making time and distance crucial in mitigating this disadvantage.

Time and space can also reduce tension, giving suspects a chance to comply facilitating a resolution without force.

Example: A suspect might respond more positively to calm, repeated commands delivered from a distance than to immediate physical confrontation.

Distance creates more opportunity to utilize other tactical options like beanbag rounds.

There is an obvious balance between time/distance and your field of vision.

Generally the farther away from a threat you are the less you can visually observe it.

But time is what allows you to optimize your decisions.

Time and distance is also free.

You can employ it in any situation and it doesn’t require any additional gear or insight.

It’s one of the key fundamentals of tactically sound patrolling.

CONTROL YOUR COMMUNICATION

Containing the stop includes controlling the communication occurring during a stop.

For police officers, that means controlling the communication between other officers on scene and anyone who can hear your radio communication.

One mistake officers make is running wanted checks in front of the person. 

This telegraphs your intentions giving the subject time to prepare.

Always control the information that the person you’re dealing with has access to.

This goes hand in hand with not only preventing danger but also controlling the roadside interview ensuring that you have the upper hand in making the person more amiable to reveal the truth about their activities.

Subjects may overhear tactical information, such as the arrival or request for backup, which could influence their behavior or actions.

Downplaying your suspicions helps ease the potential for an escalated response from the individuals you’re dealing with.

Failing to control the communication can quickly lead to dangerous or wanted subjects to take the opportunity to act knowing that they may be the subject of arrest soon.