An officer who observes a blown taillight, cracked windshield, or failure to signal when changing lanes may stop a vehicle even if a hypothetical "reasonable officer" would not have been motivated by a desire to enforce the traffic laws.

Question

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This is based on the legal concept of "reasonable suspicion" which allows officers to stop a vehicle if they have a reasonable belief that a crime or traffic violation has occurred, even if that belief turns out to be incorrect. The Supreme Court has held that an officer's subjective motivation for the stop is not relevant as long as there is objective justification for it based on the officer's observations.

An Officer Who Observes a Blown Taillight, Cracked Windshield, or Failure