• 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
      • LAPD officers arrest man in Hollywood for criminal threats, prevent...
        Georgia officer pushes stranded woman’s car to gas station
        Washington police K-9 retires after nearly a decade of service
        “An emotional encounter”: Connecticut police officer talks a man...
        California police officer uses K-9’s leash to rescue drowning man
    • Labor
      • South Dakota Police Department offers $5,000 hiring bonuses to boost...
        Sioux Falls Police Department offers $5K hiring bonuses to boost...
        San Francisco mulls over increasing police recruitment bonuses to...
        Nevada may soon allow noncitizens to become police officers to...
        Florida pays out $5M in hiring bonuses for more than one thousand...
    • Tech
      • Scott City police dispatchers use new technology to livestream...
        NYPD iconic police cruisers get high-tech makeover
        NYPD warns of police attacks after Apple AirTag device was found on...
        Airbnb expands law enforcement portal to fight child trafficking
        West Virginia law enforcement agencies use drones to get a...
    • Training
      • Pennsylvania police utilize VR for de-escalation training
        Running your patrol rifle like a champion
        Present ability, opportunity and apparent intent
        Defensive tactics
        Mechanics, consistency and aggression
    • Policy
      • Iowa House proposes legislation to criminalize ransomware
        Atlanta’s “Cop City” training center project approved despite...
        Arkansas sheriff’s offices refuse to enforce federal ATF gun policy
        President Biden signs bill expanding national missing persons database
        California Highway Patrol spotlights new traffic laws for 2023
    • Health/Wellness
      • Retired Wisconsin police officer offers mental health services for...
        Coping with internal investigation or legal action
        The value of data: Wellness through the eyes of officers
        What officers love, hope and worry about
        Don’t be “that guy” — get moving
    • Community
      • Washington’s King County sets record for fentanyl overdose deaths...
        Brotherly love: Police officer donates kidney to deputy sibling
        North Charleston police officer drafted by professional football team
        “I’m very, very blessed”: Cleveland police officer back on...
        Newark good Samaritan honored for assisting wounded officers
    • Offbeat
      • Pig crosses path with law enforcement in Virginia
        Texas police find cute dog behind the wheel in reckless driving...
        Drunk-driving suspect performs backflip for Ohio police during...
        “Like a scene from ‘Home Alone’”: Georgia man slips on ice...
        “Some real sitcom stuff there”: Florida burglars call 9-1-1 for...
    • We Remember
      • “I had a calling”: Colorado cadet inspired by fallen hero Eric...
        Chicago police remember fallen and injured officers this holiday...
        Deputy killed by roommate after he “jokingly” pulled trigger of...
        Maryland’s oldest cold case solved
        At least 13 officers shot in five days as wave of violence sweeps...
  • On the Job
    • LAPD officers arrest man in Hollywood for criminal threats, prevent...
      Georgia officer pushes stranded woman’s car to gas station
      Washington police K-9 retires after nearly a decade of service
      “An emotional encounter”: Connecticut police officer talks a man...
      California police officer uses K-9’s leash to rescue drowning man
  • Labor
    • South Dakota Police Department offers $5,000 hiring bonuses to boost...
      Sioux Falls Police Department offers $5K hiring bonuses to boost...
      San Francisco mulls over increasing police recruitment bonuses to...
      Nevada may soon allow noncitizens to become police officers to...
      Florida pays out $5M in hiring bonuses for more than one thousand...
  • Tech
    • Scott City police dispatchers use new technology to livestream...
      NYPD iconic police cruisers get high-tech makeover
      NYPD warns of police attacks after Apple AirTag device was found on...
      Airbnb expands law enforcement portal to fight child trafficking
      West Virginia law enforcement agencies use drones to get a...
  • Training
    • Pennsylvania police utilize VR for de-escalation training
      Running your patrol rifle like a champion
      Present ability, opportunity and apparent intent
      Defensive tactics
      Mechanics, consistency and aggression
  • Policy
    • Iowa House proposes legislation to criminalize ransomware
      Atlanta’s “Cop City” training center project approved despite...
      Arkansas sheriff’s offices refuse to enforce federal ATF gun policy
      President Biden signs bill expanding national missing persons database
      California Highway Patrol spotlights new traffic laws for 2023
  • Health/Wellness
    • Retired Wisconsin police officer offers mental health services for...
      Coping with internal investigation or legal action
      The value of data: Wellness through the eyes of officers
      What officers love, hope and worry about
      Don’t be “that guy” — get moving
  • Community
    • Washington’s King County sets record for fentanyl overdose deaths...
      Brotherly love: Police officer donates kidney to deputy sibling
      North Charleston police officer drafted by professional football team
      “I’m very, very blessed”: Cleveland police officer back on...
      Newark good Samaritan honored for assisting wounded officers
  • Offbeat
    • Pig crosses path with law enforcement in Virginia
      Texas police find cute dog behind the wheel in reckless driving...
      Drunk-driving suspect performs backflip for Ohio police during...
      “Like a scene from ‘Home Alone’”: Georgia man slips on ice...
      “Some real sitcom stuff there”: Florida burglars call 9-1-1 for...
  • We Remember
    • “I had a calling”: Colorado cadet inspired by fallen hero Eric...
      Chicago police remember fallen and injured officers this holiday...
      Deputy killed by roommate after he “jokingly” pulled trigger of...
      Maryland’s oldest cold case solved
      At least 13 officers shot in five days as wave of violence sweeps...
  • 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

Training

Traffic interviews

The art of asking the right questions

Dan Kickert and Lauren Sheehan Published December 22, 2022 @ 9:30 am PST

iStock.com/avid_creative

If you have selected a vehicle for a traffic stop, even if it is solely for the violations, good questions can make all the difference. We would like to think that most of us are, at the very least, asking some very basic questions, such as the standard “Where are you coming from?” and “Where are you heading?” However, we have been stopped in our personal vehicles and we know that this is not the case. The only questions we have been asked are, “Do you know why I am stopping you?” and “Can I have your license and proof of insurance?” There could be a litany of reasons for this, but we tend to believe it is simply not looking beyond the violation. Too many of us lock a speed on a radar unit and decide to stop the car for speeding. What we are failing to do is understand that we have no idea who or what is in the vehicle. We have somewhere along the line decided it is no longer our job to investigate everything about everyone we encounter.

The first step in asking better questions on a traffic stop is presenting the questions themselves in a better manner. You need to find your own style. We, Dan and Lauren, tend to simply be ourselves when conducting a traffic stop interview. If you can relax and talk to the people you stop in a conversational yet professional tone, you will come across as a genuine person because you are actually being genuine. Most people can subconsciously pick up on deceptive behavior rather simply. They may not be aware of it, but it is the reason they become “uncomfortable” around some people. If you make people comfortable, they will be more at ease and more likely to tell the truth or maybe slip up. For those of you who may be struggling to understand the tone, it’s difficult to describe in written words, but we talk to compliant people like they are our friends. When someone is non-compliant/aggressive or it is a felony stop, we talk to them like we talk to our friends when we are mad at them.

A quote that is tossed around far too often in law enforcement is, “A good cop never asks a question they don’t already know the answer to.” In an interrogation, it is good form to get a baseline and start off with questions we already know the answers to, but that really does not work on a traffic stop. However, we can still arm ourselves with as much knowledge as we can. We all know that it is a must to be well-versed in law, code and case law; however, how much do you know about your jurisdiction? Do you know which gangs control what areas? Do you know who sells what drugs where? If you cannot answer “yes” to all those questions, and you know those questions are just the beginning, you have some homework to do. You need to get out of your car and talk to people. Talk to people on calls for service, talk to people on the street, talk to people when you stop at a gas station, talk to people every chance you get. If you hear something interesting, sit and watch and verify the information for yourself. Read the walls and pay attention to the gang graffiti in your area. If you do not know what is going on in your streets, what do you plan on asking someone other than their favorite color?

We covered “vehicle selection” a few months back, and hopefully you were paying attention and stopped a good car. Now that we have a good car stopped, we need to talk to the occupants. For the purpose of traffic interviews, the advantages and disadvantages of the driver or passenger side approach pretty much cancel each other out. Either way, let’s begin the interview with the driver. When it comes to asking the driver questions, develop a baseline of questioning and let their responses determine what additional questions you are asking, but pay attention to the other occupants of the vehicle. See if they are ignoring your presence, see if they have physical reactions to or become uncomfortable by the questions you are asking of the driver. If anyone in the car becomes uncomfortable, stop asking questions and separate them. Remember, Pennsylvania v. Mimms states that we can ask anyone to step out of the vehicle — use that precedent. They may have had time to rehearse replies to the standard “Where are you going? Where are you coming from?”, but they most likely did not prepare for questions such as “When did you leave?”, “Who are you seeing there?”, “How long will you be staying?” and “Where will you be staying?” Conflicting answers to those questions can all add toward your reasonable suspicion for a vehicle search.

There is no secret formula to asking these questions. The above example would be great for an interview for a group of people from out of town traveling together. But for the people who are coming from “a friend’s house,” you could always ask “Whose friend is it?”, “How long have you known them?” and “How long have they lived there?” It is pretty easy for us to figure out when people are being deceptive. However, we usually skip right by the next question and issue the citation(s). Conflicting answers from different occupants or someone who doesn’t know their childhood friend’s last name are clues to deception. When you find deception, there is always a reason for it. As you start asking more questions, you will soon find some questions elicit a better response than others. You will soon have a pretty standard line of questioning lined up. One of our favorite questions to ask is simply, “Is there anything illegal in the car?”, which is always followed up slowly by “Any drugs?” Short pause. “Weapons?” Pause. “Dead bodies?” Pause. We are not sure if there is any science to back this method, but we have both noticed that people tend to look at their drugs or weapons when you ask about them. “Any weapons in the car?” pause and the driver looks at the center console. During the vehicle search, a fully loaded handgun with the serial number filed off is located in the center console.

Traffic stops are just like every other interview we, as police officers, conduct. The only difference is that, for some reason, we are hesitant to ask questions when someone is sitting in a car. But now we know better. We are going to use the same genuine tone we use with our friends and family. We are going to do our homework and learn about our streets, not just where they are, but who is on them, what those people are about and what is happening on the streets. We are going to ask harder questions. We are going to pick up on deceptive behavior. We are going to separate the occupants when we can. We are going to use conflicting answers and deception to bolster our reasonable suspicion. When we do all of these things, we are going to make the jurisdictions we swore to serve and protect better, safer places. Yes, running traffic can actually fight crime, sorry, old-timer.

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 2022 issue of American Police Beat magazine.
Don’t miss out on another issue today! Click below:

SUBSCRIBE TODAY!

Categories: Training

Primary Sidebar

Recent Articles

  • Scott City police dispatchers use new technology to livestream emergency calls in real time
  • LAPD officers arrest man in Hollywood for criminal threats, prevent possible mass shooting
  • Iowa House proposes legislation to criminalize ransomware
  • Atlanta’s “Cop City” training center project approved despite activist opposition
  • Pig crosses path with law enforcement in Virginia
  • NYPD iconic police cruisers get high-tech makeover
  • Georgia officer pushes stranded woman’s car to gas station
  • Washington’s King County sets record for fentanyl overdose deaths in 2022; morgue running out of space for bodies
  • NYPD warns of police attacks after Apple AirTag device was found on marked patrol vehicle
  • South Dakota Police Department offers $5,000 hiring bonuses to boost recruiting and diversity

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 | (800) 234-0056.

  • 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 © 2023 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.