Being my first time having been pulled over, I was prepared and calm. Luckily, a few things I learned back in high school flooded into my mind.
Here is the basics of what you should do if you get pulled over.
1- keep your hands on the steering wheel where they can be seen and don't move them
2- don't move until the officer speaks to you
3- when he asks you for your license and registration, ask him if you can move your hands to get them
4- when he takes them back to his/her vehicle, keep your hands on the steering until he/she gets back
I was lucky and only got a warning. But the officer also thanked me for keeping my hands where he could see them.
When we were taught this in high school, it did not make sense until the teacher explained some things.
One of the most dangerous things an officer can do is pull someone over. When they do, they are essentially walking up to the vehicle blind, not knowing what could happen. The simple act of keeping your hands on the steering wheel can give the officer a great deal of ease as they approach the unknown of your vehicle. The worst thing you can do is start moving around and rummaging through things.
If I were a cop, the scene from "Fargo" where they officer is shot when he is standing at the drivers window would run through my mind every time I approached a pulled over vehicle.
So, put the officer at easy, don't be stupid and maybe you to will get off with just a warning.
Peace all
