• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Subscribe to the Magazine
American Police Beat

American Police Beat Magazine

Law Enforcement Publication

  • Home
  • Editor’s Picks
    • The power of teamwork
      Stay awake and alert on the job
      The worst rank in law enforcement
      Firearms maintenance
      Why fries need salt
  • Topics
    • On the Job
      • “Take care of your veterans”: Massachusetts police save suicidal...
        The problems with loyalty
        My experience being a Black woman in policing
        Tucson tries new tact to fight crime
        2022 Top Cops
    • Labor
      • Philadelphia may rehire officers and civilian employees to fill...
        Chicago police recruit Marines to help address officer shortage
        Illinois State Police announce lateral training program with added...
        The “great resignation” brings staffing troubles to Missouri law...
        NYPD overtime expected to surpass budget by over $142 million to...
    • Tech
      • NYPD deploys K-9s with innovative electronic harness to prevent...
        Understanding end-to-end encryption apps
        Local law enforcement agencies learn to recover stolen cryptocurrency
        New York mayor proposes gun detection scanners after rise in subway...
        Hacker group steals data from multiple law enforcement data systems...
    • Training
      • An equation for performing lawful Terry stops
        A Connecticut police chief says his department needs more drug...
        “The hidden danger is the water”
        Weapon retention
        Developing trauma-informed training and drills for K–12 schools
    • Policy
      • Philadelphia spends almost a billion dollars on policing in new...
        Supreme Court decision protects police officers against civil...
        Chicago police limit foot pursuits under new policy intended to...
        Putting the brakes on wandering cops
        Detroit police team up with federal law enforcement agencies to fight...
    • Health/Wellness
      • True detectives: Psychological realities of investigative work
        Effective use of chaplain services
        Things I learned as a retiree
        Normalization of deviance
        The nobility of policing
    • Community
      • Miami Heat and nonprofit build bridges between law enforcement and...
        Right place, right time: Off-duty Florida police officer braves house...
        Community steps up to support Rhode Island police officer brothers...
        Safety exchange zones
        Crime problems are community problems
    • Offbeat
      • Iowa police and fire agencies, community team up to rescue bulldog...
        Buzz fuzz: NYPD “bee unit” officers remove swarms from various...
        Only in Florida: Police snipers provide backup during...
        Longtime Maryland con man arrested for impersonating U.S. marshal
        Seattle cancels and refunds seven months of parking tickets due to...
    • We Remember
      • Memorializing our fallen sisters
        Paying Tribute to Fallen Heroes
        National Law Enforcement Memorial expands to accommodate more names
        National Police Week
        “It’s not enough to never forget anymore”
  • On the Job
    • “Take care of your veterans”: Massachusetts police save suicidal...
      The problems with loyalty
      My experience being a Black woman in policing
      Tucson tries new tact to fight crime
      2022 Top Cops
  • Labor
    • Philadelphia may rehire officers and civilian employees to fill...
      Chicago police recruit Marines to help address officer shortage
      Illinois State Police announce lateral training program with added...
      The “great resignation” brings staffing troubles to Missouri law...
      NYPD overtime expected to surpass budget by over $142 million to...
  • Tech
    • NYPD deploys K-9s with innovative electronic harness to prevent...
      Understanding end-to-end encryption apps
      Local law enforcement agencies learn to recover stolen cryptocurrency
      New York mayor proposes gun detection scanners after rise in subway...
      Hacker group steals data from multiple law enforcement data systems...
  • Training
    • An equation for performing lawful Terry stops
      A Connecticut police chief says his department needs more drug...
      “The hidden danger is the water”
      Weapon retention
      Developing trauma-informed training and drills for K–12 schools
  • Policy
    • Philadelphia spends almost a billion dollars on policing in new...
      Supreme Court decision protects police officers against civil...
      Chicago police limit foot pursuits under new policy intended to...
      Putting the brakes on wandering cops
      Detroit police team up with federal law enforcement agencies to fight...
  • Health/Wellness
    • True detectives: Psychological realities of investigative work
      Effective use of chaplain services
      Things I learned as a retiree
      Normalization of deviance
      The nobility of policing
  • Community
    • Miami Heat and nonprofit build bridges between law enforcement and...
      Right place, right time: Off-duty Florida police officer braves house...
      Community steps up to support Rhode Island police officer brothers...
      Safety exchange zones
      Crime problems are community problems
  • Offbeat
    • Iowa police and fire agencies, community team up to rescue bulldog...
      Buzz fuzz: NYPD “bee unit” officers remove swarms from various...
      Only in Florida: Police snipers provide backup during...
      Longtime Maryland con man arrested for impersonating U.S. marshal
      Seattle cancels and refunds seven months of parking tickets due to...
  • We Remember
    • Memorializing our fallen sisters
      Paying Tribute to Fallen Heroes
      National Law Enforcement Memorial expands to accommodate more names
      National Police Week
      “It’s not enough to never forget anymore”
  • Between the Lines
    • Persecution of the LEO is Classic Schadenfreude
      The Rule of Law is Worthless Without Order
      School policing: a paradox of the defund movement
      Defending the honor of the LE profession – finally!
      The dichotomy of the defund movement: reality setting in
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Advertise
  • Contact
Search

On the Job

Traffic tactics

Dan Kickert and Lauren Sheehan Published December 22, 2021 @ 6:00 am PST

iStock.com/Nomadsoul1

When conducting traffic stops, we all get complacent. They become a routine part of the job. We have all heard the saying, “routine is deadly,” but those words, like so many other words from the academy, are only a faint echo somewhere in the back of our minds. This is especially concerning when it comes to traffic stops. They are regularly listed as one of the deadliest call types for law enforcement each year. If we want to change that, we need to do better.

Depending on the agency, we are either on 8s, 10s or 12-hour shifts. What is the rush to flip our lights on and jump straight into this stop? We need to start thinking ahead and planning to ensure there are as many variables as possible in our favor. There are so many things we do not and cannot know before we make a stop. We cannot be sure who is in the vehicle. We cannot be sure of how many occupants are in the vehicle. We do not know if those occupants are armed. We cannot know if those occupants have just committed a crime that we are unaware of. All these unknowns put us in a position of distinct disadvantage. It is human nature to ensure that we are in the most advantageous position possible in anything we do. Survival is the most basic human instinct. It is the reason those hairs on the back of your neck stand up from time to time.  So, what can we do to turn those odds back in our favor?

There are so many things we do not and cannot know before we make a stop.

The very first thing we should be doing is running the registration on the vehicle. Let’s check and see if the registration is valid, who the registered owner is and where the vehicle is registered — make sure that the vehicle is not stolen or wanted. That is basic, but why not take it a few steps further? Run the registered owner and check their driver’s license status, check “in-house” to see what involvements the vehicle and registered owner have had with law enforcement in the area. The moment your patrol car pulls behind a vehicle, the occupants know who you are and what you are about. Why don’t we take the time to do a little homework and try and find out not only who owns this car but what they are about by finding out what this car has been stopped for in the past, who was in it and who they are by running their criminal history.

Once we have done some research on the driver or vehicle owner, we need to decide where this stop is going to take place. There are a multitude of different factors to consider when picking the location for a stop. Some of the common factors are the number of people present, if those people are known to law enforcement, traffic, lighting and weather. Ideally, you will want to choose a location that is well lit, out of the way of traffic and will limit the possibility of interference from people who are not associated with the stop.

Next, call out your stop a few blocks ahead of where you plan to stop the car. For example, if you give dispatch your location and vehicle description ahead of time, such as, “SouthCom, 426 Traffic, Lincoln Highway and Western Avenue on a silver Buick, Illinois registration ABC123,” this makes your stop a lot smoother and simpler. The fact is, you never know what is going to happen when you hit your lights. The vehicle could flee, shots could be fired, or the occupants could exit the vehicle and flee on foot or rush your patrol car. It is way easier to key up on the radio and yell, “shots fired,” “vehicle fleeing eastbound” or “get me units,” than it is to attempt to get all the information of the entire stop, location and what went to hell out all at the same time. We must remember, as cops, we are multitaskers. We can absolutely do more than one thing at a time, but we are also human. Let’s get the talking out of the way before it’s time to fight. 

Once you have made the stop, sit in your car for a minute and watch the occupants. If you have made enough traffic stops, you have a good idea of what “normal” behavior is. You may not be able to fully articulate it right away, but if something just seems off, call for a second unit. Sit back and watch a little longer, see if you can key in on what it is that just doesn’t seem right. When you are watching them, you are observing their behaviors, learning more about the occupant(s) of the vehicle and leveling the field just a little more.

When it’s time to approach the vehicle, approach on the passenger side. Most officers are still doing the driver’s-side approach. This will potentially catch the occupant(s) off-guard, keep you away from traffic and permit you to see more of the driver. If the windows are tinted, have the driver roll all the windows down before walking past. Now that you have a clear view of who is in the passenger compartment of the vehicle, use the pillars for cover. On a passenger vehicle, the “A-pillar” is the pillar that is on the front face of the front doors, nearest the windshield. The “B-pillar” is the pillar that is on the rear face of the front doors and front face of the rear doors, if applicable. The “C-pillar” is on the rear face of the back doors. Sports utility vehicles, station wagons and vans may have a “D-pillar,” which would be the pillar at the rear corners of the vehicle, nearest the cargo doors or tailgate. No part of your body should ever cross the B-pillar unless you are physically fighting with or extracting an occupant. If there are occupants (who are not small children) in the backseat of the vehicle, it is advisable not to cross the C-pillar. There is no reason people in the backseat cannot be the middleman and pass items like a driver’s license and proof of insurance between you and the driver. Staying back and using the pillars for cover not only offers you protection, but it also gives you the ability to see the occupants of the vehicle clearly while they have to strain to see you.  

The final and possibly most important thing you can do to conduct the safest possible traffic stop is by managing your backup. Anytime there is a second unit on your stop, whether it is your partner, an assisting officer who showed up or even a supervisor, there is no reason for them to leave the suspect vehicle when you do. When you walk back to your patrol car to run the identification the occupant(s) gave to you, they need to stay with the car and keep their eyes on the occupants. They are keeping everyone safe up there. When they are at your passenger window, they are not only failing to keep their eyes on the occupant(s), but they are also distracting you and placing you both in danger. 

We must keep our minds open to the possibility of violence at any given time. Too many officers are seeking to gain control over a situation for no other reason other than to exert control. The idea is to make sure the control you have gained actually serves a purpose. These tactics are designed to give you every possible advantage, place a potential threat at every possible disadvantage and control as many variables as possible. They are not a guaranteed recipe for success, but they will greatly increase your chances of going home at the end of your shift.

Dan Kickert and Lauren Sheehan

Dan Kickert and Lauren Sheehan

Dan Kickert is a police officer in the south suburbs of Chicago with 15 years of experience. He is currently assigned to patrol and training. He serves his agency as a field training officer, range master, tactics instructor and training coordinator. He was previously assigned to investigations, where he worked as a homicide investigator in a task force setting for seven years.     

Lauren Sheehan spent four years with the Olympia Fields Police Department before going to work as a deputy sheriff in a collar county of Chicago. She has an M.S. in criminal social justice from Lewis University. She has served as a crisis intervention team officer, accident reconstructionist, juvenile specialist and firearms trainer, as well as volunteering to coordinate events such as the National Night Out Against Crime and Cop on Top fundraisers for the Special Olympics of Illinois.

View articles by Dan Kickert and Lauren Sheehan

As seen in the December 2021 issue of American Police Beat magazine.
Don’t miss out on another issue today! Click below:

SUBSCRIBE TODAY!

Categories: On the Job

Primary Sidebar

Recent Articles

  • Philadelphia spends almost a billion dollars on policing in new budget aimed at addressing gun violence
  • Miami Heat and nonprofit build bridges between law enforcement and community
  • Right place, right time: Off-duty Florida police officer braves house fire to rescue trapped children
  • “Take care of your veterans”: Massachusetts police save suicidal veteran
  • Iowa police and fire agencies, community team up to rescue bulldog stuck in sinkhole
  • Community steps up to support Rhode Island police officer brothers who lost everything in a house fire
  • Supreme Court decision protects police officers against civil lawsuits over Miranda rights violations
  • NYPD deploys K-9s with innovative electronic harness to prevent terrorist attacks
  • The problems with loyalty
  • Chicago police limit foot pursuits under new policy intended to enhance officer safety and public trust

Footer

Our Mission
To serve as a trusted voice of the nation’s law enforcement community, providing informative, entertaining and inspiring content on interesting and engaging topics affecting peace officers today.

Contact us: info@apbweb.com

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

Categories

  • Editor’s Picks
  • On the Job
  • Labor
  • Tech
  • Training
  • Policy
  • Health/Wellness
  • Community
  • Offbeat
  • We Remember
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Events

Editor’s Picks

The power of teamwork

The power of teamwork

July 23, 2021

Stay awake and alert on the job

Stay awake and alert on the job

July 20, 2021

The worst rank in law enforcement

The worst rank in law enforcement

July 19, 2021

Firearms maintenance

Firearms maintenance

July 04, 2021

Privacy Policy | Copyright © 2022 APB Media, LLC | Website design, development and maintenance by 911MEDIA

Open

Subscribe

Close
Receive the latest news and updates from American Police Beat directly to your inbox!
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.