Just a dark veh stopped, and which can easily be passed?
I'm retired. I'm no longer paid to be concerned, and Unoccupied/Susp Veh's are no longer my concern unless they end up on my property. Carefully and quickly drive on, and then call the local SO or CHP to see if they're interested. The potential to unwittingly bite on 'bait' put there by someone of criminal inclination isn't an unreasonable possibility, I'd think, and certainly not something I'd wish to do.
I'm with you, things are rather chaotic in this part of the world at present.
Dispatch was phoned, unknown if the vehicle was unoccupied or not, or even if there was a response.
To illustrate the situation, a few years ago a man driving to work, ~5AM, stopped to assist a stranded vehicle in the middle of nowhere on US 191, he was shot and killed, his vehicle stolen.
Another incident involved a DPS officer who was ambushed on the Interstate, a passing citizen witnessed the assault and ultimately ended up shooting the assailant dead.
In another incident recently, a DPS officer was shot and wounded by a driver from Georgia during a traffic stop, I-10 near the New Mexico border. During the resulting pursuit, the nearest city PD officers some miles down the Interstate, successfully employed spikes on the fleeing vehicle, disabling it, the assailant engaged the wounded DPS and the assailant was fatally shot during the exchange of gunfire.
The Arizona deputy who was seriously injured when he fell off a bridge last month is making significant improvements.
ktar.com
This occurred during a CBS investigative report on life down here on the border.
I'm linking to this story for two reasons, one of which is because these situations are now too common. Second for the quote, which relates to the OP's first post.
Three people were killed and three injured in a car crash in Douglas on Thursday morning, September 7.
www.kold.com
“Law enforcement is aware that drivers involved in human smuggling are routinely told to travel at high rates of speed in order to dissuade law enforcement from engaging in pursuit,” Douglas Police said in a statement.
As the Mrs and I are driving to town and approaching the intersection in #1 post, we are passed by a pickup driving at a very high rate of speed, 80-90mph in a 55mph zone, the bed of the pickup is overloaded because the suspension bump stops are resting on the axle, "Gee, I wonder what the cargo is?"
A question to pose, if one's petite grandmother, great-grandmother was the known female driver in the OP's first post living in this environment, what would you advise she should have done?