As a Massachusetts DUI lawyer, I have been involved in a number of criminal cases involving motor vehicle stops in which police officers have been quite creative in assessing “reasonable suspicion” thereby justifying the stop of my clients’ cars.  In Massachusetts a police officer can stop a car for any civil motor vehicle infraction (speeding, marked laned violation, defective equipment etc.)  or upon “reasonable suspicion” that an occupant within the car has recently committed, is committing or is about to commit a crime.  “Reasonable suspicion” is a term that has been defined through hundreds of appellate decisions in Massachusetts and these rulings along with the civil motor vehicle infractions are often times misinterpreted or ignored by law enforcement when determining whether to stop a car.

     Some recent examples which have caused my clients to be arrested in Massachusetts and criminally charged have included a so-called defective taillight, a misplaced registration decal, and a feather hanging from a rear view mirror. 

     Although Massachusetts does have a civil motor vehicle infraction known as “defective equipment” the statute is very clear as to what constitutes defective equipment relative to a taillight.  Massachusetts law requires that a motor vehicle have two illuminated red lights at the rear end of the car, one placed on each corner.  My client had a taillight which had a burned out bulb however the remaining bulbs illuminated appropriately thereby not constituting defective equipment under the statute.  The Trooper quickly learned of his misinterpretation when the judge allowed my Motion to Suppress and the case was dismissed.

     In a similarly strange interpretation, a Massachusetts State Police Trooper stopped my client for allegedly placing the registration decal on his license plate somewhere other than the upper right hand corner.  Massachusetts law does require that if the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles issues a registration decal it must be placed in the upper right hand corner however in my case the police officer could not recall where exactly the decal was located on the plate.  The officer testified that the car was registered and insured and the registered owner was in fact licensed according to the information on his cruiser computer.  Despite all of his valid registry information the officer decided to stop the car and inquire of the occupants.  The judge in the Brockton District Court informed the officer that without reasonable suspicion that a crime had been, was being or was about to be committed, the mere fact that the decal was placed in an inappropriate location on the license plate was not sufficient and the stop of the motor vehicle was illegal.

     Finally a Massachusetts State Trooper stopped my client’s car simply for having a feather hanging from the rear view mirror.  Massachusetts law states that a item cannot hang in an area that may obstruct the view of the operator however the Massachusetts Court of Appeals has specifically stated that an item hanging from a rear view mirror does not automatically justify the stop of a motor vehicle.  The law is clear that there must be information as to how large the item is and whether the item could distract either the driver of the vehicle or other drivers in the area of the vehicle.  Once again the Trooper was unaware of the Appellate Court’s interpretation of the statute and simply stopped the motor vehicle based on his own misunderstanding of Massachusetts motor vehicle law. 

     These cases reveal how aggressive law enforcement has become in creating opportunities to stop cars and inquire as to who and what is going on inside.  While incidents of drunk driving and other crimes increase, police become trained in being proactive in stopping motor vehicles and will use any excuse or explanation for making motor vehicle stops and inquiring of drivers.  Be certain that should your car be stopped when you have consumed any amount of alcohol, you will be asked to step out of your car, perform field sobriety tests and ultimately you will be arrested for Operating Under the Influence. 

     Despite my career as a Massachusetts DUI lawyer, I certainly understand why law enforcement believes that it is important to be proactive and I advise clients that if they choose to drink any alcohol at all before driving a car they put themselves at risk of not only being prosecuted, but harming themselves or others on the road.  Massachusetts OUI  law has a .08 per se statute which states that a person operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher is guilty of Operating Under the Influence regardless of how well they are able to control and operate their motor vehicle.  Very few people, if any, are aware of what their blood alcohol level is despite how sober they may feel.  In fact very few people are aware of how little alcohol is need to be consumed to have a .08 blood alcohol level.  Therefore, I once again remind everybody that if you consume any amount of alcohol before operating a motor vehicle you may be stopped and you will be arrested if there is an odor of alcohol on your breath.