New Mexico Supreme Court affirms law enforcement's authority to request passenger ID during traffic stops

The New Mexico Supreme Court on Monday clarified the authority of law enforcement officers to expand the scope of their investigation during a traffic stop to ask a passenger in a vehicle for identifying information.. The high court said the identifying information could include a name and a date of birth. The court concluded unanimously that a Clovis police officer had the necessary "reasonable suspicion" of criminal activity to ask about the identity of a front seat passenger in a vehicle stopped because of a broken license plate light. BIDEN...