I got a really nice email from a KNX listener who has partnered with the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department to educate teen drivers on what to do when pulled over by the police. It’s through a program called POP which stands for The Pull Over Protocol:
Jerry,
I greatly appreciate your transparency and sharing from your life AND your interest in keeping our teenagers safe.
I am the Chief Education Officer from http://popprotocol.org (which trains teens on what to do at a traffic stop) and we have partnered with the LA Sheriff’s Dept. Here is Sheriff Jim McDonnell sharing the results of our training 969 students on POP:
So what should teens do if they are pulled over at a traffic stop? POP’s program promotes these S.A.F.E guidelines:
S = Show your hands. Peace officers are trained to look at what your hands are doing at all times. It will also help if you put the dome light of your car on, to help the peace officer to see you cooperating and complying with the SAFE procedure.
A = Ask for permission. Depending on the conversation, ask for permission to move your right or left hand to reach for something such as your license and registration and where the peace officer will not be able to see your hands.
F = Follow instructions. Do whatever the peace officer tells you. Whatever they’re saying is not meant to punish you. They are just following strict training procedures especially in the day and age of body cameras. All of these procedures are meant for them to be able to do their duty as peace officers.
E = Exchange Respect. Do not say hostile things to the peace officer that will only serve to provoke him or her and make it more of an effort to maintain their complete concentration on following the procedures they have been trained to follow.
POP says its goal is to save lives on both sides of the badge. For more information about the program, visit: http://popprotocol.org.
Logo Credit: POP