The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office recently announced that they will no longer prosecute cases that were initiated by traffic stops originally tied to minor equipment or registration violations that do not present an immediate danger.
The change is scheduled to be implemented on October 15, 2025, after a period to allow feedback from law enforcement and community partners. Essentially, any crime that arose out of what the county is calling a “non-public safety traffic stop” will no longer be prosecuted. But what exactly is a non-public safety traffic stop?
Non-Public Safety Traffic Stop
A non-public safety traffic stop is any minor issue that is technically in violation of a vehicle equipment or registration law. Essentially, it’s a minor infraction that does not really have an impact on public safety. Some examples of these non-public safety traffic stops include:
- Broken tail lights
- Outdated vehicle registration
- Illegal items hanging from a rearview mirror, like an air freshener
- Faulty headlight
- Excessive window tint
- Cracked windshield
Now, that’s not to say that police will just ignore these violations. Drivers may still be pulled over and cited for being in violation of these matters, but the attorney’s office in Hennepin County will no longer prosecute crimes that are discovered as a result of this initial traffic stop. For example, police will no longer bring a drug dog or request to search the vehicle for an illegal firearm during these traffic stops. In other words, police are not going to go looking for additional violations during these non-public safety traffic stops, but if trouble finds them, they can still move forward with an arrest. For example, if this traffic stop revealed that the driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, it would still lead to an arrest. Any matter arising from one of these non-public safety traffic stops that is considered an exceptional public safety concern (like a driver under the influence) would still be prosecuted.
The purpose of the change is to get rid of a tactic that the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said far too often targeted minorities. Moreover, they said that they pretextual traffic stops rarely ever led to the discovery of a more serious criminal matter, like an illegal weapon. According to the data from 2017 and 2018, an illegal firearm was found in less than one half of one percent of these stops.
“Why would we spend limited time and money on a tactic that fails 99 times out of a hundred? It’s an enormous waste of resources and comes at a devastating cost to our community,” the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
The goal of the change is to focus on traffic stops that do serve a larger public safety interest. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said the change will free up resources to crack down on more deadly driving infractions, like speeding, distracted driving and driving under the influence.
Not everyone loves the change, but if it does allow officers to focus on more serious traffic infractions, it should help to keep the community a little safer and perhaps cut down on traffic accidents and fatalities, which is a big win for Minnesotans.
If you or someone you know needs help defending themselves against a traffic-related crime, reach out to Avery and the team at Appelman Law Firm today at (952) 224-2277.
