We have all seen our fair share of drivers speeding and sometimes swerving down the freeway late at night on our way home.

Due to the fact that we are all such “upstanding” citizens, it is our civic duty to call 911 and report any and all suspicious drivers on the road.

But is this all the information police require to justify pulling someone over? Or should they first observe the suspected driver to obtain reasonable doubt indicating they are intoxicated or partaking in some other illegal activity?

According to a Virginia Supreme Court ruling, a police officer is allowed to follow a car but cannot stop the suspected drunk driver based on a tip called in until the officer observes the driver doing something suspicious, such as swerving in a lane.

Although this may seem unfair to certain people, we believe that officers need something more than a tip from an anonymous caller to pull someone over, such as reasonable doubt from a first-hand witness experienced in observing drunk drivers. Although drunk driving is a deadly offense, suspicion is not reasonable doubt and must be investigated.

Illustration by Jon Harguindeguy/For the Daily Titan

The consequences of drinking and driving are so severe that cops should be sure that the driver is intoxicated rather than simply assuming and pulling over someone who may or may not have been drinking. Though the ruling in Virginia does not have to be followed in other states, it will hopefully lead others to speak out against police officers being allowed to take action without justification.

Chief Justice John Roberts wanted to go against the lower court ruling, submitting the case to the U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 20 for review, because even “one free swerve” may be one swerve too many when dealing with a person’s life. Roberts also stated that allowing an officer to simply pull over a driver with an anonymous tip does not violate the Fourth Amendment (illegal search and seizure); it still seems highly unreasonable for an officer to pull someone over based on an average citizen’s untrained judgment call.

Citizens calling in with tips on suspected drunk drivers are a great help to officers, but there are many indicators officers can observe to determine if someone may be driving under the influence; a tip should not be the only reason someone is pulled over.

Officers serve the community by observing, responding and then reporting. Officers are here to uphold the law by responding to a call and then, after justifying it by seeing the wrongdoings, they act and enforce our laws and do what needs to be done to protect the other citizens.

Although protecting citizens from drunk drivers is a major concern for officers, they need to observe suspicious behavior before they can be allowed to pull someone over.

If police are allowed to pull someone over without taking the time to assess the situation themselves, then not only would that be unfair to the driver, it would also waste the police departments’ time and resources.

By the officer not waiting to observe something suspicious happening with the car, there is no justification for pulling the driver over, only suspicion.

Not only should the Supreme Court uphold the ruling, but other states should also implement laws that restrict officers from pulling someone over without seeing suspicious activity for themselves.