For many of us in law enforcement, making traffic stops is among the most common of all procedures we perform on a daily basis. It also is one of, if not the most frequent ways, where we initiate activity that can lead to arrest situations. As such, they also tend to have a high degree of potential for danger.

Assuming that the reader already has a working knowledge of effecting traffic stops, there are certain points worth rehashing, both in order of importance, and in relation to prevalent mistakes and practices being made by officers on a daily basis.