CHP Law Enforcement Procedures 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following is NOT one of the three standardized field sobriety tests approved by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)?
- Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN)
- Walk-and-Turn (WAT)
- Finger-to-Nose test (Correct answer)
- One-Leg Stand (OLS)
Correct answer: Finger-to-Nose test
The three NHTSA-approved standardized FSTs are HGN, Walk-and-Turn, and One-Leg Stand; the Finger-to-Nose test is not a standardized NHTSA FST.
Question 2: Under California Penal Code Section 148, resisting, delaying, or obstructing a peace officer is classified as:
- An infraction punishable by fine only
- A misdemeanor (Correct answer)
- A felony
- A wobbler that can be either misdemeanor or felony depending on circumstances
Correct answer: A misdemeanor
PC 148(a)(1) resisting, delaying, or obstructing a peace officer is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in county jail.
Question 3: When completing a CHP 555 (Traffic Collision Report), which collision must be reported to DMV within 10 days?
- Any collision resulting in property damage over $500
- Any collision involving injury, death, or property damage over $1,000 (Correct answer)
- Any collision on a state highway regardless of damage amount
- Any collision where a citation was issued
Correct answer: Any collision involving injury, death, or property damage over $1,000
California Vehicle Code Section 16000 requires drivers to report collisions to DMV within 10 days when there is injury, death, or property damage exceeding $1,000.
Question 4: During a vehicle pursuit, CHP policy requires officers to continuously reassess and communicate which information to dispatch?
- Only the suspect vehicle description at pursuit initiation
- Location, direction, speeds, reason for pursuit, and road/traffic conditions throughout (Correct answer)
- Speed only, updated every 60 seconds
- Location updates only when changing direction
Correct answer: Location, direction, speeds, reason for pursuit, and road/traffic conditions throughout
CHP pursuit policy mandates continuous radio communication of location, direction of travel, speeds, traffic and road conditions, and the reason for pursuit throughout the chase.
Question 5: A CHP officer makes a lawful traffic stop and smells marijuana inside the vehicle. Under current California law, what does this odor alone establish?
- Probable cause to search the entire vehicle and all containers within it (Correct answer)
- Probable cause to search the passenger compartment only, not locked containers
- Reasonable suspicion to extend the stop but not probable cause to search
- No lawful basis for a search, as marijuana is now legal in California
Correct answer: Probable cause to search the entire vehicle and all containers within it
California courts have held that the odor of marijuana, combined with other circumstances, can provide probable cause to search a vehicle under the automobile exception.
Question 6: When serving an arrest warrant, CHP officers are required to knock and announce their presence before entering a residence UNLESS which of the following applies?
- The warrant is a felony warrant
- Officers have specific articulable facts that announcement would be dangerous or allow evidence destruction (Correct answer)
- The suspect has prior felony convictions
- The arrest involves a narcotics offense
Correct answer: Officers have specific articulable facts that announcement would be dangerous or allow evidence destruction
Under Richards v. Wisconsin, no-knock entries are justified only when officers have reasonable, articulable suspicion that announcement would be dangerous or allow destruction of evidence.
Question 7: What does the California TIMS (Traffic Injury Mapping System) database primarily track?
- Officer-involved shooting incidents statewide
- Traffic collision locations, causes, and injury severity data (Correct answer)
- Stolen vehicle recovery data
- DUI checkpoint locations and outcomes
Correct answer: Traffic collision locations, causes, and injury severity data
TIMS is a statewide database that maps traffic collision data including location, causes, and injury severity to support traffic safety analysis and resource allocation.
CHP Law Enforcement Procedures 3
Which of the following is NOT one of the three standardized field sobriety tests approved by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)?