Fact Check: Police Touch Cars' Taillights to Leave Fingerprints During Traffic Stops?

Claim:

Police officers touch the taillights of cars they pull over so their fingerprints are on the vehicle if anything happens to them during a traffic stop.

Rating:

True ( About this rating? )

Context:

It is unknown how many police academies formally teach this technique, or whether it is instead a strategy passed along as a training tip by more experienced officers. Police may also touch other areas of the vehicle's rear — not just the taillights.

For years, people online have shared a police strategy that allegedly helps connect officers to a vehicle or location if something happens to them during a routine traffic stop. According to social media posts, officers learn to touch vehicles' taillights after pulling them over — leaving their fingerprints behind.

A meme about the claim was shared to Facebook in July 2024, for example:

(Facebook group Weird, Strange and Interesting Things)

Versions of the claim have been shared on platforms including X , YouTube , TikTok and Quora , as well as in publications including Mental Floss , The Mirror and the Daily Mail . Snopes found examples of the claim dating back to 2017, including a Reddit post that had more than 19,000 upvotes:

The Reason Cops Touch Your Car’s Taillight When Pulling You Over | To leave fingerprints, as proof that they pulled you over in case you decide to flee
by u/edgar01600 in savedyouaclick

William Johnson , executive director of the National Association of Police Organizations, a coalition of police unions and associations across the U.S., told Snopes that yes, police officers will touch the taillights and other locations of the vehicle's rear to leave their fingerprints:

It does not have to be the taillights, but usually somewhere on the rear of the vehicle such as the lid of the trunk or that general area as they approach the vehicle from behind to prove that they were there. And to help identify the vehicle in case something goes wrong, meaning an assault or accident injuring the officer.

He said it is unknown how many academies formally teach this technique, or whether the tactic is informal knowledge "passed along as a training tip by more experienced officers."

"But it's definitely something that new officers learn," Johnson said. Therefore, we rated this claim as "True."

The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. However, when there is probable cause a vehicle contains evidence of criminal activity, an officer may "lawfully search any area of the vehicle in which the evidence might be found."

Traffic stops are conducted for a variety of reasons, such as when a person violates traffic laws or during sobriety checkpoints. According to the Legal Information Institute at the Cornell Law School, a routine traffic stop is also "justified if the police officer has a reasonable suspicion that the occupant is unlicensed or the vehicle is unregistered."

Snopes had previously looked into other claims related to the police, which can be found here .

Sources:

Archibald-Powell, Naimah. "Police Officer Explains Why They Always Touch Your Car When They Pull You Over." The Mirror , 3 Sept. 2023, https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/us-news/police-officer-explains-always-touch-30851847. Hamilton, Jessica. "Police Officer Reveals Why They Touch Back of Cars They've Pulled Over." Mail Online , 2 Sept. 2023, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12460919/Police-officer-reveals-cops-touch-cars-theyve-pulled-over.html. Log in or Sign up to View . https://www.facebook.com/login/. Accessed 23 July 2024. Mike The Cop. Why Police Don't Touch Your Taillight, It's Extremely Insignificant! 2019. YouTube , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlpLEfukikY. Police Officers Touch Taillights - Google Search . https://www.google.com/search?q=police+officers+touch+taillights&sca_esv=18f094ea9bb8ac0e&sca_upv=1&ei=cOyfZpP6BomCm9cPy8K6oAg&start=0&sa=N&sstk=AagrsugwVruGEUDCyXLnrVXUBzofYt1dIPDksMpudELSn8BeFvxuTXd7Wo1dWXwRLGAWpTNJiB-8rgcbIsm7lrnOhnSse7j0M0vG9F8SlUx1AbT1MnQCdX5UbLeLo8Unee_ZRG0Dq75P2iOOkStfSkmYgxPzG54YdnB_NjmxX9i9x4-Yvd04CiWm6L2hwvKnKg&ved=2ahUKEwiT8obs272HAxUJweYEHUuhDoQ4HhDy0wN6BAgGEAQ&biw=890&bih=751&dpr=2. Accessed 23 July 2024. "The Reason Police Officers Tap Your Taillight When They Pull You Over." Mental Floss , 11 July 2017, https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/502605/reason-police-officers-tap-your-taillight-when-they-pull-you-over. TikTok - Make Your Day . https://www.tiktok.com/@lawbymike/video/7229064245718158634?lang=en. Accessed 23 July 2024. "Traffic Stop." LII / Legal Information Institute , https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/traffic_stop. Accessed 23 July 2024. What Does the Fourth Amendment Mean? | United States Courts. https://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/educational-resources/about-educational-outreach/activity-resources/what-does-0. Accessed 25 July 2024. "Why Do Cops Touch Your Tail Light When They Pull You Over?" Quora , https://www.quora.com/Why-do-cops-touch-your-tail-light-when-they-pull-you-over. Accessed 23 July 2024.