Which case held that officers may order all occupants out of a vehicle during a stop pending completion?

Which case held that officers may order all occupants out of a vehicle during a stop pending completion?

• A. Maryland v. Wilson
• B. Terry v. Ohio
• C. United States v. Mendenhall
• D. People v. Smith

Answer: (A)

Officer safety during traffic stops allows authorities to order everyone in the vehicle to exit while the stop is in progress. This principle was established in Maryland v. Wilson, where the Court held that once a stop is underway, police may require all occupants to get out of the car to reduce the risk of surprise, weapon concealment, or other threats, and they may do so without needing separate, individualized suspicions for each person. The exit is a temporary safety measure tied to the stop’s duration and ends when the stop is completed.

Terry v. Ohio covers stop-and-frisk and the right to briefly detain and frisk someone when there’s reasonable suspicion of danger, but it doesn’t address ordering occupants out of a vehicle. United States v. Mendenhall deals with whether a person is seized or free to leave during encounters with police, not with vehicle exits. People v. Smith is not the controlling authority for this particular rule and varies by jurisdiction, so it doesn’t establish the standard here.

So the best answer reflects the safety-based rule from Maryland v. Wilson.