Notwithstanding opinions to the contrary, there is no officer safety exception to the 4th Amendment unless, as indicated in Terry v Ohio:
1) The officer can articulate a
specific reasonable suspicion that an individual has committed, is committing, or will immediately commit a crime. (In Florida there are only a handful of traffic offenses that are criminal in nature - so the huge, overwhelming majority of traffic stops do not, in and of themselves, warrant a pat down, nor temporary seizure of a lawfully carried firearm.)
2) The officer has
probable cause to believe that an individual is armed
and presently dangerous. (Most in authority gloss over the 'and' and assume/think/dictate that the mere possession of a lawfully possessed/carried firearm is sufficient to establish PC. They are wrong!)
3) Exigent circumstances.
I urge people to go read the entire Terry decision and then go look into your State's codification of it. Read the Law. Understand the law. Obey the Law -
nothing more, nothing less!
In states that do not require notification to LEO, it's best to keep your mouth shut. Nothing good can come from notification. Those of you that do it an attempt to keep from getting a ticket are a bunch of
! uh, look at me I'm unique, I'm special, I have a piece of paper that the vast majority of adults in my state can get just by filling out some paperwork, maybe taking a class, and paying a fee to the state to allow me to exercise my constitutionally protected right.
If people would react properly to these unconstitutional actions by LEO each and every time it occurred it would stop. FOI requests first (if you wait to file after a complaint, you may not get what you want because of an ongoing investigation); Formal complaints; post all of this on the Internet so others can flood the department and government officials with complaints; get it on the local news; then, if appropriate, follow up with 1983 Civil Rights violation lawsuits.
Yes, cops have a difficult job, but we must insist that they do it lawfully.
For those of you spouting off about how dangerous traffic stops are, I suggest you go research the FBI Uniform Crime Reports and you will find that traffic crashes are far more deadly to LEO than traffic stops. Actually, traffic stops are near the bottom of the list.
Grow a pair, act like an adult and never allow anyone to violate your rights.
Nothing above should be construed to suggest this cannot be accomplished while being pleasant and courteous. Smile when you tell the LEO in no uncertain terms he may not disarm you nor search your vehicle.
RIF however, comprehension is critical.