https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-a-hvlhsi8

Transcript:

The internet told you never roll your windows down for police or you just have to prick your window a little bit

I am a criminal defense lawyer and I am telling you that advice is exactly how people get their windows broken, their cars searched, and their charges upgraded

Here's the truth many don't want to talk about.

The fight is not how far you roll your window down

You could win that little window argument and still lose your car, your weekend, and your case

If you actually want to keep cops out of your car, you need to stop obsessing over the glass and start mastering what happens after the officer gives you the one phrase, "Step out of the vehicle for me.

" That's the real trigger

That's when the law changes, and that's where you either hand them your car on a silver platter, or you quietly slam the door on their search

Hi, I'm Mark Lopez, a criminal defense lawyer

And in this [clears throat] video, I'm going to show you when to roll your windows down, when to shut up, and the exit and lock protocol that turns your car back into a Fourth Amendment fortress

Let's go to school.

Part one, the window trap

Okay, picture it

It's 11:00 p.m. You get pulled over for a dim tag light

The officer walks up

He can't see inside very well

He taps the glass, roll down all the way for me

Your gut reaction because you watch YouTube is I don't have to

I know my rights.

Look, these internet warriors are about half right

You don't technically have to roll your window down all the way in many jurisdictions

Just enough to communicate and pass documents

But here is the realworld problem with that

If you leave your window up, you are handing the officer the greatest gift you can give them

Officer safety concerns.

They can't see their hands

They can't see the passengers

They feel threatened

And generally officers want the windows down

They want that window down all the way

And if you refuse, you escalate the situation exactly where they want it to go

You are forcing them to play their ace card

Now, I need you to listen very carefully right now.

If a police officer tells you to step out of your vehicle, you do not argue

You do not ask why

You do not say, "I know my rights." You step out

On this point, the law is settled

In 1977, the Supreme Court ruled in Pennsylvania v

Mims that the slight inconvenience of you getting out of your car is outweighed by the officer safety.

They don't need suspicion of a crime being pulled over for a traffic violation is enough

And by the way, the passengers, well, that applies to you, too

You got to get out if asked

Marilyn v

Wilson

Everybody out of the car

If you refuse this order, you are no longer fighting a traffic ticket

you are now possibly committing a new crime.

Obstruction of justice, resisting law enforcement, it can get pretty deep pretty fast

And a ticket can turn into a crime just like that

And even worse than refusing to roll your window down all the way or getting out, well, that's locking your car door and refusing to get out because police will break your window.

They will drag you out through the broken glass and the judge will say they were allowed to do it

And the officer is going to look at the judge, the prosecutor and say, "I didn't try to do damage against him

I didn't do damage against the car to make sure I was safe." And the judge is going to be like this, "Officer safety.

" So, please just understand, don't lock yourself in that car

It's not going to work out the way you think

So, the police orders you out, you lost the window game

You feel defeated

Don't feel defeated

That's exactly where we want that

The moment you step out of the car, the entire legal landscape changes.

This is where you execute the exit and lock strategy

You are going to get out of the vehicle

You're going to close the door and you're going to lock it

You can even lock it before you get out

Open the car

Press the little button to lock it

Get out

Shut the door behind you

This is what I consider legal jiu-jitsu.

Why do you think they wanted you out of the car

They want to stick their head in

They want to smell marijuana

They want to look under the seat

They want to manufacture probable cause to search that vehicle

By locking that door behind you, you have severed your connection to that vehicle

You have reestablished a fourth amendment barrier.

Now, if that officer wants back inside your car, he's going to need one of three things

A warrant, brand new probable cause, such as seeing a gun or drugs to the window, plain view doctrine, or your consent

And guess which one they're going to try to get

Now, you are standing on the roadside

Your car is locked

The officer is frustrated.

He's going to try the pocket check trick

He'll say, "Hey, before I put you in my car, you don't have any weapons or drugs on you, right

You mind if I check your pockets real quick

You mind if I just check the trunk?" Kind of threw that little car part in there

Now, you're going to look them in the eye and say, "I do not consent to searches.

" You're going to say it clearly

You're not going to be rude

Just be a broken record

I don't consent to searches

Now, an officer is going to be able to pat you down for safety, but unless you give him permission to go into your car, he's going to have to figure out a different route to go there, a warrant or probable cause.

And while you're outside that vehicle, keep your mouth quiet

Don't say, "I only had two beers

Hey, that bag in there, that's my cousins." Just just be quiet

Just be quiet

Don't don't talk anymore

Look, it feels unfair

It feels like you're being treated like a criminal when you just had a tail light out or some other minor traffic violation.

But the side of the road is not a law school classroom

It's not a debate stage

The goal isn't to win the argument with the cop

I'm of the opinion you probably can't win a verbal or physical fight with a police officer at the side of the road

The goal is to give your lawyer something to work with in court.

So remember, don't bite the window

Comply with the exit

lock the door and then deny them consent to get back into the vehicle

Now, if you've watched this video this long, you must like me a little bit

I really want you to like this video, subscribe to my channel, and leave a comment

People love putting comments on there.

Remind me of Joe Peshy, remind me of Turtle from Entourage

I hope you guys are talking about the skinnier turtle in the later seasons as opposed to bigger one

Although they're great actor

Um, John Liguam was on there

Some other random people

If you can't think of a comment, leave me a comment who I remind you of

I love reading nice comments.

I try to read the comments multiple times per day

I set my watch like five minutes

Try to respond as many as I can

I love reading nice ones, but you know, I can handle some negative ones

Let me know what you think

If you are facing charges in Indiana, give me and my team a call at 317-6323642

And most importantly, remember to always plead the fifth.

Edit

Pub: 31 Jan 2026 18:03 UTC

Views: 14