![]() This statute requires that vehicles newer than 1986 be equipped with a “third brake light.” In some jurisdictions in Hampton Roads, Virginia, this statute was used almost exclusively as the basis for DUI investigations simply because the officer thought the third brake light was “too dim.” Police officers are now prevented from stopping a vehicle specifically for a third brake light being in defective condition.Ĥ6.2-1030. Now officers are not allowed to stop a vehicle specifically for defects with the brake lights on a vehicle.Ĥ6.2-1014.1. Police officers were formerly able to stop a vehicle because a brake light was in defective condition, regardless of whether it affected the driver’s ability to drive the vehicle or not. This statute requires that every vehicle be equipped with at least two working brake lights. This statute had previously been used by police officers to stop vehicles with tail lights that were “too dim.” The new amendment prevents an officer from stopping a vehicle for this reason.Ĥ6.2-1014. This statute requires that every vehicle have two red lights plainly visible from a distance of 500 feet on the rear of the vehicle. The new amendment prevents an officer from stopping a vehicle specifically for defective equipment under this statute.Ĥ6.2-1013. This statute makes it illegal for any person to have defective or unsafe equipment on the vehicle. Illegal use of defective and unsafe equipment. No evidence discovered or obtained as a result of a stop in violation of this subsection, including evidence discovered or obtained with the operator’s consent, shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.”Ĥ6.2-1003. ![]() “No law-enforcement officer shall stop a motor vehicle for a violation of this section. Now, the Virginia General Assembly has amended several laws to give Virginia drivers much greater protection from these types of traffic stops.Įffective July 1, 2021, many equipment violation statutes have been amended to include this phrase: ![]() These types of pretextual stops were the basis for a large number of DUI/DWI charges for many drivers across Virginia for many years. Then after stopping the vehicle, the officer would be allowed to perform routine DUI/DWI investigations, and if such evidence was found, the officer would then be allowed to charge the driver with a criminal class one misdemeanor for driving under the influence. These new amendments may now give drivers charged with Driving Under the Influence or Driving While Intoxicated (DUI/DWI) under § 18.2-266 a fighting chance in court.įor example, before the new amendments, a police officer was allowed to initiate a traffic stop of a driver specifically for a third brake light being too dim, or for objects dangling in the windshield, or even for the smell of marijuana. But with brand new legislation now effective, the Virginia General Assembly has severely restricted a police officer’s authority to pull a driver over for an equipment violation alone. Up until now, police officers in Virginia routinely used “equipment violations” to justify traffic stops for Driving Under the Influence and Driving While Intoxicated (DUI/DWI) investigation purposes. (Last year’s notable traffic law changes were summarized in this previous post from 2020.) As of July 1, 2021, there are several new traffic law amendments that greatly widen legal protections for drivers in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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