united-states california police massachusetts
What is a police car?
<p>Is a police department allowed to duct tape lights and a siren to a private vehicle and start using it as a police cruiser? If the only law in question is whether one is &quot;impersonating an officer,&quot; can any car drive around with lights and sirens blaring so long as there's a public or private police officer in it?</p>
<p><em>I'm really curious about how this applies everywhere, but considering I split primary residence between California and Boston, I'm including tags for California, Massachusetts, and the US.</em></p>

<p>A &quot;police car&quot; doesn't necessarily have a special legal status, so a police officer can theoretically drive a beat-up pickup truck and &quot;be legal&quot; (but not in Washington, see below). What matters is whether others have to give special attention to the vehicle. The pertinent question is, what are the requirements for being an authorized emergency vehicle. I'll give you Washington state law, and you can apply this to other states fairly easily.</p>
<p><a href="https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=46.37.190" rel="noreferrer">RCW 46.37.190(1)</a> mandates that</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Every authorized emergency vehicle shall, in addition to any other
equipment and distinctive marking required by this chapter, be
equipped with at least one lamp capable of displaying a red light
visible from at least five hundred feet in normal sunlight and a siren
capable of giving an audible signal.</p>
<p>(3) Vehicles operated by public agencies whose law enforcement duties
include the authority to stop and detain motor vehicles on the public
highways of the state may be equipped with a siren and lights of a
color and type designated by the state patrol for that purpose. The
state patrol may prohibit the use of these sirens and lights on
vehicles other than the vehicles described in this subsection.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Given these restrictions, a driver knows whether they must get out of the way, and whether they have to &quot;pull over&quot; (stop driving and get ready for a brief traffic detention).</p>
<p>The manner of attachment of &quot;stuff&quot; on the outside of the vehicle falls under general state patrol safety rules, whereby for example you can't balance a rocking chair on the roof and speed down the highway. The state patrol has reasonable discretion to deem that a particular mode of attachment is &quot;unsafe&quot; – this won't be like building-code minutia. Duck tape would probably be deemed to be an insecure means of attachment.</p>
<p>There can be some statutory provisions regarding use of private vehicles, for example <a href="https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=46.37.185" rel="noreferrer">RCW 46.37.185</a> allows green lights on firefighter's private care:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Firefighters, when approved by the chief of their respective service,
shall be authorized to use a green light on the front of their private
cars when on emergency duty only. Such green light shall be visible
for a distance of two hundred feet under normal atmospheric conditions
and shall be of a type and mounting approved by the Washington state
patrol. The use of the green light shall only be for the purpose of
identification and the operator of a vehicle so equipped shall not be
entitled to any of the privileges provided in RCW 46.61.035 for the
operators of authorized emergency vehicles.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Flashing blue lights are prohibited by <a href="https://apps.leg.wa.gov/WAc/default.aspx?cite=204-21-230" rel="noreferrer">WAC 204-21-230(c)(4)</a> &quot;other than a law enforcement vehicle as defined in <a href="https://app.leg.wa.gov/WAC/default.aspx?cite=204-21-020" rel="noreferrer">WAC 204-21-020</a>&quot;, which is &quot;a publicly owned or leased vehicle operated by a law enforcement agency and which is used for the law enforcement functions of the agency&quot;. That means that in Washington, the town sheriff cannot use his personal car as a law enforcement vehicle. I expect there to be some variation on that point across the US.</p>
<p>The lights-and-sirens law is what keeps ordinary people from putting lights and sirens on their vehicles.</p>
