Hey guys, this is Anthony, Senior Legal instructor with blue two gold law enforcement training. Just got a question from an officer in Idaho. Two great questions, I want to share it and give you my thoughts about it.

The question is, is if you have reasonable suspicion or probable cause that a passenger in a vehicle, right has committed a crime, can you stop the vehicle even though you have no reasonable suspicion? or probable cause that the driver has committed a crime? And the answer is yes. And let's look at why the answer is yes. First of all, we know that the US Supreme Court has already said that, when you have reasonable suspicion or probable cause that the driver has committed a crime, the car can be stopped, even though there's passengers in the vehicle, right.

And so the Supreme Court has held that those passengers are legally seized under the Fourth Amendment, even though you have no suspicion that they've committed any crime. So we already know that. So we know, based on that logic, that the reverse is true, that if you have reasonable suspicion, or probable cause, that the passenger has committed a crime, let's say you think that they have a warrant, or they're not wearing their seatbelt, they throw a cigarette out the window, you know, that type of crime, we know that we can stop the vehicle because that's where the passenger is, even though the driver has not committed any crime. And so that's the that's the logic behind it. But there's a few things I want to kind of share with you before I end off and one is, remember, just that the driver has at this point not committed any crime. So, you know, demanding a license demanding registration insurance is maybe not appropriate, right? Because they are just they happen to be there, you have lawfully stopped them, but whether or not you can lawfully identify them, just because they're in the car, it may or may not be may not be required. I mean, because if you stop the driver, and for speeding, for example, can you demand that a passenger provided identification? The answer is generally no. Right? Because they just happen to be there, even though they are seized under the Fourth Amendment. They have not done anything wrong. So you're required your your requirement to identify themselves is really not applicable. I think the reverse is true for the driver. Now, if you ask the driver, can I see some identification or see a driver's license and they tell you, I don't have a driver's license? Well, guess what? They have now committed a crime in your presence. They just told you that they have no driver's license. So now that now you can take enforcement action on them, whether it's a citation, or an arrest. So that's the question. I hope this helps. It was a great question I want to share with you just remember if you have other questions, email me info at Blue to gold comm info at Blue to gold calm. I would love to answer more of your questions in this kind of format. It's easy for me and hopefully helps you too. So until next time, be safe.