I am a 17 year old male of Middle Eastern background and just got my licence. Lately I’ve noticed that every time I drive around in my car at night I get pulled over. There’s never any reason given for pulling me over. I am not speeding or committing a crime. Every time it has happened I have co-operated with police and their questions but I’m getting sick of it and want to know my rights.
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Answer by Shamaila Khan, Kingsville 3012 VIC
- Traffic laws allow police to pull you over in your vehicle and demand your name and address without a reason.
- It is an offence to supply police with false identification details.
- You are not completely powerless in this scenario. Your rights are as follows:
- you have the right to refuse to answer any questions beyond providing your name and address;
- if the police tell you that you are breaking the law by refusing to answer any further questions ask to speak to a lawyer;
- you have the right to ask the police officer why you have been pulled over;
- you have the right to request the police officers’ name, rank and the name of the station where they are based and make notes about the incident;
- you have the right to refuse to allow police to search your vehicle if they don’t have a warrant to do so; and
- police are only allowed to search your vehicle without a warrant and without your consent if they have a reasonable suspicion of finding evidence of a crime such as weapons, drugs or graffiti tools.
- If these incidents are occurring on a regular basis and if you believe they are occurring solely due to your appearance as a Middle-Eastern Australian you could try keeping a log of all incidents and lodge a complaint with the Police Ombudsman or the Human Rights Commission in your state or territory.