I consistently receive questions about “probable cause,” what it is and how does it allow an officer of the law to stop or arrest truck drivers. Let’s look into what probable cause is and how it works.
Probable cause is when an arresting officer has knowledge and sufficient trustworthy information to warrant a person of reasonable caution and prudence in believing the arrestee has committed an offense (Draper v. U.S., 358 U.S. 307,313[1957]). What this means is the officer can stop a truck anytime they think the driver is breaking the law. Any traffic violation is breaking the law and thus the officer has established probable cause. Anytime you are speeding, if a light is out, if you are following another vehicle too close or if you make a “sloppy” lane change, law enforcement has the right to stop you and ticket you for your violation.
What about someone calling in to report your violation and the officer does not see you break the law himself? An officer can make an investigatory stop of a truck based upon information a concerned citizen had reported of the truck being driven erratically (State v Smith, 638 N.E. 2nd 1353, 1355). When reasonable suspicion is based on a citizen informant’s report, that report must contain some indicia of reliability (State v Bybee, 884 P.2d 906, 908). Indicia of reliability can be something as simple as your truck color, location or direction of travel, or any names or numbers on the side. Normally the citizen informant will be a local person and they will be available for trial if they are upset enough or the prosecutor requires them to appear. Often, the officer will get the call from dispatch and then follow the trucker and watch him drive to make up his own mind on simpler violations like speeding. Keep in mind-it is a lot easier for the prosecutor to convince a judge or jury if the officer has actually observed the violations. Remember your ability to drive is a privilege, not a right. The privilege can be taken from you if you violate the law.
Since drivers and carriers are operating under the close eye of CSA, they must be very careful to follow the law. Some states have a requirement that the officer must have probable cause in order to pull a truck driver over. Here is a list of those states: DE, MI, NM, NY and OR. Some other states do not have a statutory requirement but may have an administrative requirement for the officer to have probable cause before they pull you over. Here is a partial list of those states that have some type of administrative requirement: AZ, CA, FL, ID, MN, MO, ND, PA and ME. All other states can pull the driver over without probable cause.
Often, in a probable cause state, the officer will pull a driver over for speeding (speeding is a violation of the law and establishes probable cause, thus the officer can pull the truck over), and they will perform an inspection. This inspection could lead to finding several CSA violations. However, the speeding charge is often written as a ‘warning’ or only written on the inspection and the driver not charged, again meeting the probable cause requirement.
Currently there is no way to challenge a warning so the driver and the carrier get the CSA points without being able to defend themselves on the speeding charge. Some carriers also discipline the driver based on the warnings and notations on the inspection report and the driver is unable to defend himself against those charges. The driver has no opportunity to present his side to a judge or unbiased third party for a fair evaluation of the charges.
Drivers often think officers over-step the law and do what they want to truckers. I tell them my golden rule: NEVER argue on the side of the road with an officer who has a badge. Let an attorney represent you in court when you think an officer has overstepped the law.