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What should you do if you don't feel safe during a traffic stop?

Here are some recommendations from Cobb County Police to consider.
Credit: Haney, Adrianne

After multiple women reported being assaulted by a man posing as a police officer, police are responding by offering tips for what drivers can do if they don't feel safe.

Over the weekend at least two victims – one in Atlanta and another in Cobb County – reported getting pulled over for supposed traffic violations by a man dark-colored vehicle. Both women pulled over, but in both instances, police said the women were sexually assaulted.

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Here are some recommendations from Cobb County Police to consider when pulling over for an officer who is conducting a traffic stop:

  • Pull over in a public area.
  • Find a well lit area so the officer can see you and you can see the officer. Turn on your hazard lights, slow down, and find the best location available to pull over.
  • You do not have to roll your window all the way down in order to speak to an officer or give an officer your driver’s license and proof of insurance (but the license and proof of insurance are required to be handed over if an officer asks for them).
  • You can call 911 and make sure you are being pulled over by an actual officer (if you are unsure due to darkness or the car not being easily recognized as a marked patrol vehicle) while driving slowly with your hazard lights on.
  • If you suspect the individual is not an actual officer, call 911 immediately and give your location and a description of the suspect and suspect vehicle if visible. Stay on the phone with the 911 operator until an officer arrives to assist you.

Meanwhile, investigators are still searching for the suspect involved in the incidents, believed to be the same person.

This suspect is described as a white male about 30 years old; about 6 feet tall; with an average build; short dark brown hair worn in a buzz cut; unshaven; and with a square-shaped head.

Police said he was wearing a dark jacket with a light blue emblem or some other writing on it, a black vest with a star-shaped gold badge on one side and three service bars (gold) on the other. He was also wearing a tan-collared uniform shirt with a gold emblem on the left side of the collar and a white t-shirt under the uniform shirt, with dark pants. He was also wearing a police duty belt with a gun, Taser, and radio.

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