The stop has a clock. An officer may not detain a motorist for a traffic violation longer than reasonably necessary to finish investigating it and write the citation, absent reasonable suspicion of other criminal activity.
- A licensee has the physical license, or a digitized license through the department's application, in immediate possession while driving, and displays it on an officer's demand.
- A digitized license shown at a traffic stop is not a reason to cite for driving without the physical license.
- Showing a phone for the digitized license is not consent to search anything else on it, and the officer promptly hands the phone back.
- The insurance card may be shown as an image on a phone.
- A person carrying a concealed handgun tells an officer who approaches officially that there is a weapon, submits to a pat down, and allows the officer to disarm him temporarily.
The Fourth Amendment sets limits on every stop, and the Supreme Court of the United States has drawn several of them. It has held that a stop is reasonable where the officer has probable cause to believe a traffic violation occurred, whatever the officer's actual motive; that an officer making a lawful stop may order the driver, and the passengers, out of the vehicle; that a passenger is seized by the stop and may challenge it; and that a stop may last no longer than its purpose requires, so it may not be extended for a dog sniff without separate reasonable suspicion. It has also held that consent to a search has to be voluntary, judged on all the circumstances, and that the prosecution does not have to prove the person knew they could refuse. Those holdings are a floor: a state's own constitution and statutes can give more protection than they do, never less.
Sources for this section (10)
- La. C.Cr.P. art. 215.1 — Temporary questioning of persons in public places; frisk and search for weapons
- La. R.S. 32:411 — Deposit of license in lieu of security upon arrest; receipt; licensee to have license or receipt in immediate possession; notification to vehicle owner; surrender of license; issuance of temporary permits
- La. R.S. 32:863.1 — Evidence of compulsory motor vehicle liability security contained in vehicle; enforcement; penalty; fees
- La. R.S. 40:1379.3 — Statewide permits for concealed handguns; application procedures; definitions
- Whren v. United States, 517 U.S. 806 (1996) — A traffic stop is reasonable when there is probable cause of a traffic violation
- Pennsylvania v. Mimms, 434 U.S. 106 (1977) — An officer may order the driver out of a lawfully stopped car
- Maryland v. Wilson, 519 U.S. 408 (1997) — An officer may order passengers out of a lawfully stopped car
- Brendlin v. California, 551 U.S. 249 (2007) — A passenger is seized by a traffic stop and may challenge it
- Rodriguez v. United States, 575 U.S. 348 (2015) — A stop may not be extended beyond its purpose to run a dog sniff
- Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218 (1973) — Consent to a search must be voluntary
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Louisiana attorney.
