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AR15.COM
6/19/2009 7:04:32 AM EDT
No nefarious purposes here, just genuinely curious.  I live near the Florida/Georgia border so see a lot of DOT and "State Officer - Department of Agriculture" cars on I-95.  Other than the labels on the sides of the cars, they look almost identical to a regular police car (same model, light bars on the top, etc).  Questions:  Are these guys authorized to make traffic stops on non-commercial vehicles for things like speeding?  Are they even considered LEOs?
6/19/2009 7:05:48 AM EDT
[#1]
Quoted:
No nefarious purposes here, just genuinely curious.  I live near the Florida/Georgia border so see a lot of DOT and "State Officer - Department of Agriculture" cars on I-95.  Other than the labels on the sides of the cars, they look almost identical to a regular police car (same model, light bars on the top, etc).  Questions:  Are these guys authorized to make traffic stops on non-commercial vehicles for things like speeding?  Are they even considered LEOs?


not a leo but the short answer is yes.
6/19/2009 7:12:19 AM EDT
[#2]
Maybe if you were believed to have stolen fruit or something.
6/19/2009 7:12:21 AM EDT
[#3]
In Iowa the DOT folks can most definitely stop you.  Rarely do, but it can happen.  I would imagine its the same with most states that have DOT enforcement groups.
6/19/2009 7:14:27 AM EDT
[#4]
Quoted:
Quoted:
No nefarious purposes here, just genuinely curious.  I live near the Florida/Georgia border so see a lot of DOT and "State Officer - Department of Agriculture" cars on I-95.  Other than the labels on the sides of the cars, they look almost identical to a regular police car (same model, light bars on the top, etc).  Questions:  Are these guys authorized to make traffic stops on non-commercial vehicles for things like speeding?  Are they even considered LEOs?


not a leo but the short answer is yes.


Thanks, GeorgiaBII, and everone else.  Like I said, no nefarious purposes.  I'm not really a "speeder", but I'll keep up with the traffic flow.  Just one of those out-of-the-blue questions that pop into my head during my long commutes.

6/19/2009 7:16:39 AM EDT
[#5]
In MO they can stop you for traffic violations but they are not state cetified police officers.
6/19/2009 7:17:30 AM EDT
[#6]
Most of them could probably somehow "justify" a stop.

This reminds me of an incident we had back when I lived in AL where a game warden stopped an individual for driving irratically.  

The GW ended up shooting and killing the guy because he thought the suspect was reaching for a gun...the suspect was unarmed.

6/19/2009 7:17:34 AM EDT
[#7]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
No nefarious purposes here, just genuinely curious.  I live near the Florida/Georgia border so see a lot of DOT and "State Officer - Department of Agriculture" cars on I-95.  Other than the labels on the sides of the cars, they look almost identical to a regular police car (same model, light bars on the top, etc).  Questions:  Are these guys authorized to make traffic stops on non-commercial vehicles for things like speeding?  Are they even considered LEOs?


not a leo but the short answer is yes.


Thanks, GeorgiaBII, and everone else.  Like I said, no nefarious purposes.  I'm not really a "speeder", but I'll keep up with the traffic flow.  Just one of those out-of-the-blue questions that pop into my head during my long commutes.



The chance of an aggie officer doing that are miniscule. DOT guys are more likely to. I know a bunch of them in Ga and they have said you need to do something really stupid to make it worth the bother.