Denver police: These vehicles can still be pulled over by cops

DENVER ( KDVR ) — The Denver Police Department announced the results of a recent enforcement operation aimed at cracking down on expired vehicle registration and other license plate violations but said some drivers should still expect to be pulled over even after the operation.

Denver police said it cited 339 drivers during the weeklong enforcement operation, which was done alongside the Colorado State Patrol, the Aurora Police Department and the Colorado Springs Police Department. It aimed at violations along the Interstate 25 and Interstate 70 corridors.

According to Denver police, traffic officers cited the drivers for expired license plates and, in some cases, fictitious ones. Some drivers had extremely expired vehicle registrations, with the oldest plates from as far back as May 2019, August 2021 and October 2022.

The department said it exercised a clause in its recently adopted policy against conducting low-level traffic stops to participate in the operation. Under the policy, officers are not allowed to pull drivers over for minor traffic infractions that do not pose an immediate threat to public safety.

Denver police: Some vehicles can always be stopped

However, the agency did say that certain vehicles could always be stopped because they are considered a higher priority. The police department said vehicles with missing license plates can always be stopped, regardless of the department’s policy.

Denver police said this is because all vehicles in the public right-of-way – which includes roads, alleyways and sidewalks – must have a visible license plate.

“Any vehicle in the roadway without a license plate is considered suspicious and will be treated as such,” the department said.

Even if you do have a license plate, if the registration on it has expired for more than 90 days, you can also be stopped at any time. This is because officers are expected to stop those vehicles to “investigate lawful ownership.”

“Often times, suspects remove the license plate from a vehicle in an attempt to avoid detection when committing crimes,” DPD Chief Ron Thomas said in a release.

Thomas also highlighted the success of the new automated license plate reader network installed this June, which the city said has already led to over 100 suspects being arrested .

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