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The police have enough to worry about with people committing real crime. The most obvious way to avoid capturing police attention is to follow the law, but sometimes that isn’t enough. There are laws one may not be aware of, but even appearing suspicious can garner unwanted notice. Here are some practical things anyone can do to stay off of their radar.

Let’s start with avoiding being pulled over. Obviously, the best method is to follow all traffic laws. People who get pulled over are usually guilty of more than just driving faster than the speed limit. Their offense? Getting noticed in the first place.

1) Drive the same speed as everyone else. Cops look for vehicles that are going noticeably faster than other cars on the road. If you are in a group of cars going faster than the speed limit, you dramatically improve your chances of being pulled over for speeding. The cop has to pick one car. If you are going with the flow of traffic it probably won’t be you. And it definitely won’t be you if you don’t speed in the first place.

2) Stay in the middle of the pack. If you find yourself in a group of vehicles going over the speed limit, you do not want to be the lead vehicle or the last vehicle. The lead vehicle is in the riskiest position because he will be the first to register on the cop’s radar. If you are the last vehicle in the pack, you risk being the one the cop rolls up behind and paces.

3) Pace another speeding vehicle. If you can’t find a pack of cars going to speed you wish you travel, at least find a single vehicle and follow discretely behind at about 100 yards. Police usually radar from ahead, so chances are the lead vehicle will spring the trap.

4) Avoid driving a flashy vehicle, and if you do, watch your speed. Police look for attention grabbers like Mustangs, Corvettes, Chargers, exotic cars, etc. These cars may get even more attention if they are painted red, yellow, or black. Modifications like loud exhaust of excessively bright headlights may also present a problem.

5) Drive smoothly. Do not change lanes frequently, tailgate, or drive aggressively. Avoiding doing so should keep people from reporting you and will help you blend into the background.

6) Avoid the fast lane. The far left lane should only be used to pass when necessary. Try to stay in the middle lanes for the most part. Police hanging out in the median or coming at you are much more likely to be using their radar to target the left lane.

7) Keep a wary eye out for speed traps. Highway cut outs, overpasses and groups of bushes near the road can hide a speed trap, so regulate your driving accordingly.

8) Follow traffic laws strictly if you are the only car on the road. Lone speeding or erratic driving is asking for a ticket. This is ESPECIALLY true at night. DUI patrols are heavy at night and cops are looking for any excuse to pull people over to check for signs of substance use.

9) Get a radar detector. $300 for a decent radar detector is often cheaper than a single speeding ticket, not counting the potential increase in insurance costs that will come with it. Radar detectors are legal in most states and well worth the investment to avoid a speeding ticket. Be aware of the limitations, however. Your radar detector will detect instant-on radar just in time to let you know you are going to get a ticket.

Next, no one wants to be hassled by police while minding their own business walking down the street. Cops will stop anyone exhibiting behavior they deem suspicious, so what do signs do they look for?

Officers form suspicion when they observe something unusual, become curious or otherwise distrustful of an individual or individuals. According to this study, the majority of persons who aroused the suspicion of officers, or who were stopped by police, were male (74%) minority group members (71%) who averaged thirty-two years of age. However, Blacks constituted a slightly higher percentage of suspicions (71.0%) than stops (68.9%), while whites had an inverse pattern (they constituted 29.0 % of the suspicions and 31.1 % of the stops.

Suspicion is based on appearance, time and place, and information, but the primary cause is behavior. They watch for people who get nervous when they spot a cop and make every effort to avoid contact. If you avoid eye contact or are very fidgety, the cop is likely to stop you