Do police run warrant checks on routine traffic stops ?

jake99

Bluelighter
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
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When a police officer pulls you over for a traffic violation and takes your license , do they run a check to see if yuo have warrants ? Isnt that what the NCIC system is , (i think they just put yuor license number in and it searches the databse they have to see if yuo have any "hitS" or warrants . Correct ? Someone told me that they dont do that at every stop if they dont have reason to but i figure when you are pulled over that is what they are usually waiting on before they give you a ticket or let you off with a warning............(i am asking because one time i thought i might have had old warrants i needed to take care of and i got pulled over and nothing came up so i assumed i was ok but not sure) Anyway i wanted to double check , so i went to my township court clerk and they ran my name and said i didnt have any warrants.............I wanted to know for sure because i had a trip to france coming up and althuogh i got my Passport with no problem , i didnt wanna have a old warrant for unpaid fines and get locked up at the airport or not be able to make it ti France......................
 
The police almost always check for warrants. If they suspect anything they can they often take everyone in the cars Identification, even people who arent even driving just to try to catch some innocent bystander who has a warrant
 
They don't do it at every stop, but they almost always do. Some police will look it up, and won't tell you that they saw the warrant, if it's marked as non-extraditable or out of state or whatever factors show up on their computer screen, because that means they aren't authorized to actually arrest you for the warrant from so far away.
 
yeah man its just because you didn't have a warrant out.

your right they type in your number and theres everything for them to read. They defiantly take you in right away if you have a warrant. Shit my mom got a ticket because my puppy ran away. she didnt pay it on time, got pulled over for a tail light being out and she got arrested and brought to lock up.

Now I have a question though...

What if its just a stupid little warrant and your out of the state that you have the warrant in?

does it still show up on there computer?
 
It shows up but they don't necessarily say anything. I had an out of state warrant for many years; some cops handcuffed me and threw me in the cruiser until they heard back from the county it was in, some asked me, "Did you know you had a felony warrant?", but didn't do anything about it when I said yes, and others didn't even MENTION it. It depends on the cop and the nature of the traffic stop, etc.
 
Here is how a traffic stop happens in Florida (I only use this state as an example because I am familiar with it, but it is nearly identical everywhere).

1. An officer decides to stop a vehicle.
2. The officer calls dispatch to alert them that he is stopping a vehicle, provides the location of the stop, provides the tag number and vehicle description.
3. The dispatcher takes all the information and inputs it into the dispatch software.
4. The software automatically runs a query through NCIC to check for a hit on the tag number to see if the vehicle or tag is reported stolen. At the same time, a query is sent to the DMV to ascertain the registered owner of the vehicle and whether or not that person has a valid license. That information is then also sent as a query through NCIC to check if the registered owner of the vehicle is wanted. This entire process takes about 15 seconds.
5. The dispatcher will alert the officer if there is a possible name, vehicle or tag hit.
6. If there are no hits, the officer will approach the vehicle and determine the identity of the person driving. If it's not the registered owner, the officer will run the drivers DL number through the DMV system which will also trigger the same queries listed in paragraph 4.
7. If a warrant is discovered, it will be verified with the originating agency. Verification looks something like this:

halmpaacb.jpg


With the age of technology, it would be foolish to assume that the police wouldn't check every person they come into contact with.
 
What if you had a warrant that you didnt even know you had (cops were after you for something you did) ? Would you eventually get a court notice in the mail or just never know abuot it if cops didnt try to come find you ?
 
They don't do it at every stop, but they almost always do. Some police will look it up, and won't tell you that they saw the warrant, if it's marked as non-extraditable or out of state or whatever factors show up on their computer screen, because that means they aren't authorized to actually arrest you for the warrant from so far away.

this
 
SO chances are if you are pulled over for speeding and have a warrant most likely you are getting arrested (assuming it is in the state the warrant is for )
??
 
It shows up but they don't necessarily say anything. I had an out of state warrant for many years; some cops handcuffed me and threw me in the cruiser until they heard back from the county it was in, some asked me, "Did you know you had a felony warrant?", but didn't do anything about it when I said yes, and others didn't even MENTION it. It depends on the cop and the nature of the traffic stop, etc.

i would add that it also depends on the nature of the warrant. though i suppose that could be included under "etc."

i was once playing pool while having a couple drinks at a bar. all the while my car was parked in the parking lot. two cops walked in and approached myself and my friends, we had no idea why. apparently the cops were running checks on license plates of cars parked in that lot and came across mine. i had a warrant for failure to appear in court. as it turns out, it was communication breakdown from a case i was involved in where my lawyer told me that i was not required to go to court for the finalization of the case as it was solely to see if i had paid my fines, served my time, etc. apparently i WAS required to be in court. so i was plucked from this enjoyable social setting and spent the remainder of the night and all day the next day in jail.

moral of the story. you don't even have to SEE a cop. if you or anything identifying you are in a public domain and you have a warrant... you're at risk to serve your penalty for that risk.
 
Police can look you up on a traffic stop, that happens all the time.

They punch in your license plate on their laptop, get owner's info, felonies, rap sheet, bada bing warrants right there baby.

so yes. they can...

sourcE: http://news.google.com/newspapers?ni...g=6759,6128839

(Lodi is a city near Sac, the capital in Calif... if you were wondering...)
 
next weekend, remind me to punch in some stuff on a cruiser and ill have photographic evidende (privacy ensured of course) of the answer to this question. Any volunteers with warrants? XD
My criminal charges show up, but as ongoing/pending so I don't get them mentioned much by traffic cops etc..
 
HOw are you gonna punch in the stuff ? if you call courts they can run your name and tell you if you have any warrants
 
AChemicalLife said:
remind me to punch in some stuff on a cruiser

It would be best not to run anyone's info but your own, I think. Otherwise, I can see a scandal brewing... ;)

Nice that you have a good relationship with law enforcement!
 
It should be noted that NCIC data does not qualify as a public record and is strictly confidential.
 
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