Traffic Stops
MCA 61-5-116 — the license on demand, on paper or a digital copy, and proof of insurance in the car
A licensee has the driver's license in immediate possession at all times when driving and displays it on the demand of a peace officer, a highway patrol officer, a judge or an inspector of the department.
Who handles this in Montana: State Bar of Montana, Licensed Lawyer Montana; and legal aid programs and the state offices, listed in the Montana directory.
- Beginning September 1, 2025, a digital or hard copy version of the license issued and authorized by the department meets the requirement.
- A person charged with not carrying a license is not convicted who produces, in court or at the arresting officer's office, a license valid at the time of the arrest.
Every owner or operator carries proof of insurance in the vehicle, an insurance card or an electronic device that can display the insurer's electronic document, and shows it on the demand of a peace officer.
No one may willfully fail or refuse to comply with a lawful order or direction of a peace officer, flag person, crossing guard or public safety worker about the use of the highways by traffic.
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 (9)
- MCA 61-5-116 — License to be carried and exhibited on demand
- MCA 61-6-302 — Proof of compliance -- definition
- MCA 61-8-105 — Obedience to peace officers, flag persons, crossing guards, and public safety workers -- 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 Montana attorney.