On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a motion relating to Assembly Bill 2773 which went into effect on January 1, 2024. The law states that law enforcement must state the reason for pulling someone over, and can no longer ask drivers, “Do you know why I pulled you over?” 

The new law was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in the fall of 2022 and gave law enforcement agencies across the state two years to prepare for implementation. 

AB 2773 was put into place to promote transparency and accountability during “Pretextual stops,” in which law enforcement officers use a minor infraction as the basis to pull over a vehicle and investigate other possible crimes. 

Law enforcement can make an exception to the law if the officer deems it necessary “To protect life or property from imminent threat.” 

“The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) has had some time to plan for the implementation of this new law, including updating relevant policies and procedures, notifying its deputies of the change, and establishing an enforcement mechanism to ensure that the new law is being followed,” The motion states. “AB 2773 requires a higher level of service and transparency from local law enforcement, and it is the job of LASD to carry out this law as intended for the safety and well-being of everyone in the County. This law marks a significant change in how pretextual stops will be conducted, so the Board of Supervisors and the public should be aware of how LASD plans to implement and enforce AB 2773.”

Stating the reason drivers are being pulled over could help ease people’s anxieties over interactions with law enforcement to avoid escalating the situation further along with helping to increase accountability and trust with law enforcement, according to the motion.

According to a 2021 report titled “Racial Disparities in Law Enforcement Stops” by the Public Policy Institute of California: 

• Black Californians are more than twice as likely to be searched as white Californians, at about 20 percent versus eight percent of all stops.
• Searches of Black civilians are somewhat less likely to yield contraband and evidence than searches of white civilians 
• Black individuals are almost twice as likely to be booked into jail as white individuals
• Black residents make up about six percent of California’s population, roughly 16 percent of all arrests are of Black residents

The author of the bill, Assemblymember Chris Holden, said during a hearing in 2022 that he hopes that the law promotes equity and accountability in communities across the state.

“I believe that the confrontation between the law enforcement and the public begins because people of color are being asked to surrender their civil rights and they do not even know why they are being stopped. But they are forced to comply,” said Holden.

Photo by Antonio_Diaz