delivered the Opinion of the Court.
Wе granted certiorari to review the court of appeals' judgment in People v. Jackson,
Defendant was a passenger in a car that was lawfully stopped for a traffic violation. The driver of the car produced a valid driver's license, registration, and proof of insurance. The police officer conducting the stop *1178 also requested Defendant's identification. The only reason for this request was that Defendant was a passenger in the car; the police officer did not suspect that Defendant was engaged in any criminal activity. Then, instead of returning Defendant's identification, the police officer instructed Defendant to remain in the car while be ran his identification for warrants.
The court of appeals held that requesting Defendant's identification without reasonable suspicion constituted a seizure in violation of the Fourth Amendment. Jackson,
However, when the officer retained Defendant's identification and instructed him to remain in the car while running the identification for warrants, what began as a consensual encounter escalated into an investigatory stop needing reasonable suspicion to justify it. Because the officer lacked the reasonable suspicion necessary to justify an investigatory stop, ordering Defendant to stay in the car while retaining his identification constituted a violation of Defendant's Fourth Amendment rights. Accordingly, we reverse in part and affirm in part.
I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
On October 24, 1997 at approximately 1:27 a.m., Defendant, Derek Lavan Jаckson, was a passenger in a car being driven eastbound on Colfax Avenue. Officer Brant Harrold was on routine patrol heading westbound on Colfax. He observed that the car had only its parking lights on, not its headlights as required. See § 42-4-204, 11 C.R.S. (2001). Officer Harrold therefore signaled the vehicle to stop by turning on the overhead lights on his patrol car. The driver pulled the vehicle to the side of the road. Officer Har-rold turned on his spotlight, aimed it at the driver's side-view mirror, and approached the driver's side of the car. After telling the driver why he had had been stopped, Officer Harrold requested to see the driver's license, registration, and proof of insurance. Still located on the driver's side of the car, Officer Harrold also asked Defendant if he had identification, - Defendant said that he did and provided it to Officer Harrold.
Officer Harrold testified that the only reason he asked to see Defendant's identification is that Defendant happened to be a passenger in a car stopped for a traffic infraction. Defendant did not make any furtive gestures nor did Officer Harrold suspect that the vehiclе had been stolen or involved in any crime other than the traffic infraction. Thus, Officer Harrold testified that he had no reason to believe that Defendant was armed or involved in any criminal activity whatsoever. Indeed, the trial court expressly found that Officer Harrold would have let Defendant leave the car and be on his way had he desired to do so. (R. at vol. IV, p. 19.)
At both the suppression hearing and at Defendant's trial, Officer Harrold testified that he requests passengers' identification as a matter of routine procedure and that his tone was conversational throughout his encounter with Defendant. Officer Harrold did not display a gun or weapon of any type and did not indicate in any way that Defendant was required to comply with his request for identification. In fact, the trial court found credible Officer Harrold's testimony that had Defendant declined the request compliance would not have been required. (R. at vol. IV, p. 19-20.)
After obtaining their identification cards, Officer Harrold told Defendant and the driver, "[Hlang tight in the car, I'll be back with *1179 you in a minute." (R. at vol. IV, p. 9.) He then took their identification cards back to his patrol car and performed "a routine clearance check." (Id. at 5.) Officer Harrold testified that the purpose of this check was to ensure that the driver had a valid license and to see if either occupant had active warrants for their arrest. The check revealed that Defendant had three outstanding traffic warrants. Accordingly, Officer Harrold placed Defendant under custodial arrest. Approximately ten to fifteen minutes elapsed between the time Officer Harrold first contacted Defendant and when Defendant was taken into custody.
Subsequently, Officer Harrold transported Defendant to the Aurora City Jail in his patrol car. During the intake procedure, Officer Harrold discovered two small pieces of crack cocaine weighing .098 grams in Defendant's jacket. - Defendant was later charged with possession of a controlled substance.
Defendant moved the trial court to suppress the cocaine seized from him as well as statements he had made to officers after his arrest as fruits of an illegal seizure. Viewing Officer Harrold's request for identificаtion and Defendant's compliance therewith as a consensual encounter, the trial court denied this motion. Ultimately, the jury convicted Defendant of the charge, and Defendant appealed. The court of appeals reversed, holding that Officer Harrold violated Defendant's Fourth Amendment rights by asking for his identification without reasonable suspicion that he was engaged in criminal activity. We granted certiorari to consider whether police officers must always have reasonable suspi-clon in order to question passengers of a stopped vehicle, or whether under some circumstances such questioning should be viewed as a consensual interview.
II. ANALYSIS
The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that the people shall "be secure in their ... persons against unreasonable searches and seizures." U.S. Const. amend. IV. It is enforceable against the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. - Colorado v. Bannister,
Following the lead of the United States Supreme Court, Colorado has recognized three categories of police-citizen encounters: (1) arrests; (2) investigatory stops; and (8) consensual interviews. Paynter,
*1180 We begin our analysis by reviewing the precedent from both the United States Supreme Court and this court that discusses the distinction between consensual encounters and investigatory stops. With this framework in mind, we then consider whether-and if so at what point-the encounter between Officer Harrold and Defendant rose to the level of an investigatory stop. Specifically, we analyze whether any of the following events occurring that evening constituted an unconstitutional seizure of the Defendant: (1) the stop of the vehicle; (2) the request for Defendant's identification; and (8) the retention of Defendant's identification coupled with Officer Harrold's instruction to Defendant to remain in the car.
We note that at a suppression hearing, the defendant, as the moving party, has the burden of going forward. Outlaw,
We agree with the court of appeals that this case involves a mixed question of law and fact. Jackson,
A. The Difference Between Consensual Encounters and Investigatory Stops
1. United States Supreme Court Precedent
Justice Stewart's opinion in United States v. Mendenhall,
We conclude that a person has been "seized" within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment only if, in view of all the circumstances surrounding the incident, a reasonable person would have believed that he was not free to leave. Examples of cireumstances that might indicate a seizure, even where the person did not attempt to leave, would be the threatening presence of several officers, the display of a weapon by an officer, some physical touching of the person of the citizen, or the use of language or tone of voice indicating thаt compliance with the officer's request might be compelled. In the absence of some such evidence, otherwise inoffensive contact between a member of the public and the police, cannot, as a matter of law, amount to a seizure of that person.
Mendenhall,
Royer involved facts similar to Menden-hall. Undercover agents approached the defendant in an airport terminal, identified
*1181
themselves, asked to see his identification and airline tickets, and then requested that he accompany them to a small room approximately forty feet away. Royer,
[When officers identified themselves as narcotics agents, told Royer that he was suspected of transporting narcotics, and asked him to accompany them to the police room, while retaining his ticket and driver's lhieense and without indicating in any way that he was free to depart, Royer was effectively seized for the purposes of the Fourth Amendment. These cireumstances surely amount to a show of official authority such that "a reasonable person would have believed that he was not free to leave."
Id. (quoting Mendenhall,
Immigration & Naturalization Service v. Delgado,
The Court articulated the test in a slightly different way to accommodate the factual cireumstances of Florida v. Bostick,
When police attempt to question a person who is walking down the street or through an airport lobby, it makes sense to inquire whether a reasonable person would feel free to continue walking. But when the person is seated on a bus and has no desire to leave, the degree to which a reasonable person would feel that he or she could leave is not an accurate measure of the coercive effect of the encounter.
Id. at 435-36,
In sum, the United States Supreme Court instructs that, "[In order to determine whether a particular encounter constitutes a seizure, a court must consider all the circumstances surrounding the encounter to determine whether the police conduct would have communicated to a reasonable person that the person was not free to decline the officers requests or otherwise terminate the encounter." Id. at 439,
2. Colorado Supreme Court Precedent
Our precedent is consistent with the Supreme Court's analysis. See Paynter,
In H.J., the defendant was a passenger in a vehicle stopped for a traffic violation. H.J.,
We began our analysis by distinguishing between the driver and passengers of a lawfully stopped vehicle. Id. at 1181. An officer causing a vehicle to pull over in transit is conducting an investigatory stop of the driver. Id. In a "full-blown" traffic stop, the driver is yielding to the officer's show of authority. The officer must therefore have reasonable suspicion that the driver is violating the law in some way to conduct such a stop. Id. If he does, he may compel the driver to produce identification and registra *1183 tion information in connection with that stop. Id.; § 16-3-108, 6 C.R.S. (2001) ("A peace officer may stop any person who he reasonably suspects is committing, has committed, or is about to commit a crime and may require him to give his name and address, identification if available, and an explanation of his actions.")
In contrast to the сonstitutional seizure of the driver stopped for a traffic infraction, an officer need not have reasonable suspicion that the passengers of a vehicle are engaged in criminal activity in order to justify a stop of the vehicle. H.J.,
In Paynter, the police officer approached two occupants of a parked car and, without any suspicion that they were engaged in criminal activity, asked for identification.
The trial court held that there was no difference between a request for identification and a demand for identification, and thus concluded that the officer's request constituted a seizure of the defendant. Id. at 78. Reasoning that such a rule was "contrary to the Supreme Court's traditional contextual approach," we held that "the trial court erred when it concluded that a police officer's request for identification, alone, constitutes a seizure implicating Fourth Amendment protections." 2 Id. (internal quotation marks omitted). Instead of deciding ourselves whether a seizure had occurred, however, we remanded the case to the trial court and directed it to assess the Fourth Amendment implications of the encounter under the totality of the circumstances if it engaged in further proceedings. Id. at 76.
Although we did not decide whether the defendant in Paynter had been seized, we did identify certain factors relevant to a determination of whether the cireumstances surrounding an encounter between a police officer and an occupant of a vehicle are so
*1184
intimidating as to demonstrate that a reasonable, innocent person would not feel free to decline the officers' requests or otherwise terminate the encounter. Bostick,
The dissenting justices in Paynter agreed with the majority that the encounter was consensual when the officer asked the defendant for identification but felt that there was sufficient evidence in the record to permit the court to decide whether the defendant had been seized under the totality of the cireumstances. Id. at 76 (Hobbs, J., concurring in part and dissenting in part). In their opinion "when [the officer] left [the defendant] and ... walked to his patrol car with their licenses to run a warrants check ... the encounter ceased to be consensual and escalated into a detention or seizure for Fourth Amendment purposes." Id. Thus, the officer's retention of the defendant's identification was crucial to the dissent's conclusion that a seizure had occurred. Id. at 76-78. Because of its decision to remand the case, the majority did not decide whether retention of the defendant's identification effected a seizure. In dicta, however, it acknowledged that "the sequence of events that occurs after a citizen voluntarily provides an officer his identification, including the length of time that the officer retains the identification card ... could result in such a restraint that a citizen is not free to leave."
III. APPLICATION
We hold that Defendant was not seized within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment when the vehicle in which he was a passenger was stopped for a traffic violation.
*1185
H.J.,
A. Defendant Was Not Seized When The Car He Was Riding In Was Stopped For a Traffic Violation
Our precedent recognizes that the flashing lights and overhead sirens used to effect a "full-blown" traffic stop are a display of authority and control indicative of an investigatory stop. Paynter,
Accordingly, although it may "strain credulity to imagine" that the driver of an automobile, "directly on the heels of having been pulled over to the side of the road by armed and uniformed police officers in marked patrol cars, would ever feel 'free to leave' or 'at liberty to ignore the police presence and go about his business," " such is not the case with a passenger of an automobile. H.J.
In HJ., we implicitly recognized that passengers, unlike drivers, are not seized within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment when we noted that an officer need not initially have reasonable suspicion as to all the occupants in the car and that the detention of passengers is merely coincidental with the detention of the driver. H.J.,
HJ. is consistent with the United States Supreme Court's decision in Maryland v. Wilson,
The incidental delay of a passenger stopped "as a practical matter ... by virtue of the stop of the vehicle" is not a seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment. In fact, there was no "encounter" between Officer Hаrrold and Defendant until Officer Harrold requested Defendant's identification. We now consider whether this request subjected Defendant to a seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment.
B. A Request For Identification By The Police Does Not, By Itself, Constitute a Fourth Amendment Seizure
Although we have concluded that the traffic stop did not itself implicate Defendant's Fourth Amendment rights, it is still a factor in determining whether the totality of the cireumstances surrounding Officer Har-rold's request for identification was so intimidating as to demonstrate that a reasonable, innocent person in Defendant's position would not have felt free to decline the officer's request or otherwise terminate the encounter. Bostick,
Offiсer Harrold testified that he asks to see passengers' identification as a matter of routine procedure. He also testified that his tone of voice was conversational throughout his encounter with Defendant and that he did not indicate in any way that compliance with his request for Defendant's identification would have been compelled. In fact, the trial court found eredible Officer Harrold's testimony that he would not have required compliance if Defendant had declined his request for identification. (R. at vol. IV, p. 19-20.) The trial court also expressly found that Officer Harrold would have let Defendant leave the car and be on his way had he desired to do so. (R. at vol. IV, p. 19.) These findings are supported by the record. See D.F.,
Additional facts also support our conclusion that Officer Harrold's request for identification and Defendant's compliance therewith was a consensual encounter. First, Officer Harrold was the only officer present. He approached in a non-threatening manner. He did not display a weapon of any kind. The duration of the encounter up to the request was quite brief, He did not physically touch Defendant and did not impede Defendant's ability to terminate the encounter-either verbally or physically. 5 *1187 And, as we have already pointed out, the trial court expressly found that Officer Har-rold would have let Defendant leave the car and be on his way had he expressed a desire to do so. (R. at vol. IV., p. 19-20.)
We acknowledge that this case is distinguishable from Paynter in that here, Officer Harrold used the overhead lights on his patrol car to effect a stop of the vehicle in which Defendant was riding. Moreover, we note that we have cited activation of a patrol car's siren or overhead lights as a factor relevant in determining whether a seizure has occurred. See Paynter
Officer Harrold did not demand that Defendant produce his identification; he simply asked to see it. See State v. Rankin, No. 45696-2-1 and No. 46739-5-I, 2001 Wash.App. LEXIS 2458, at *9,
*1188 not alter this conclusion. Faced with compa-rablé cireumstances, the court of appeals in O'Neal concluded:
Here, the police officer used his lights to stop the vehicle for a traffic violation, but that display of authority was clearly directed toward the driver. This is a common occurrence in everyday life and was no more or less intimidating to defendant than if the police officer had approached him on foot, a situation that has been repeatedly held to constitute a consensual encounter. -If defendants in the situations described in Bostick, Morales, and Payn-ter could feel free to decline the officer's request for identification, then defendant here, in less intimidating cireumstances, also could.
O'Neal,
C. Retaining Defendant's identification and ordering him to stay in the car while checking to see if he had any outstanding warrants constituted a seizure.
Notwithstanding our conclusion that Officer Harrold's request for identification did not implicate Defendant's Fourth Amendment rights, what began as a consensual encounter escalated to an investigatory stop when Officer Harrold ordered Defendant to remain in the car while returning to his patrol car with Defendant's identification. We, along with the United States Supreme Court, the federal appellate courts, and a number of other states, have recognized that whether an officer retains a defendant's identification is a critical factor in distinguishing, under the totality of the cireumstances, a consensual encounter from an investigatory stop. See, e.g., Cervantes-Arredondo,
Here, Defendant chose to comply with Officer Harrold's consensual request for identification. This choice did not implicate the Fourth Amendment. But when Officer Har-rold took Defendant's identification, ordered him to stay in the car, and, without asking, returned to his patrol car with it,
8
a reasonable person in Defendant's shoes would no longer have felt free to leave or otherwise terminate the encounter. See Paynter,
We acknowledge that many cases have concluded that the reason retaining a defendant's drivers license or travel ticket implies a seizure is because one cannot legally drive a car without a driver's license or board a bus, train, or plane, without a ticket. See e.g., Jordan,
However, we do not rely exclusively on Officer Harrold's retention of Defendant's identification in concluding that a seizure occurred. What was implicit in Officer Har-rold's retention of Defendant's identification-that Defendant was not free to leave-was made explicit by Officer Harrold's statement accompanying that retention. Upon obtaining Defendant's identification, Officer Harrold instructed Defendant to "hang tight
*1190
in the car" and told him that he would be back with him in a minute. (R. at vol. IV, p. 9.) Unlike Officer Harrold's request for identification, which was consensual in nature, this statement was a command phrased in mandatory terms. See Padgett,
IV. CONCLUSION
Our precedent makes clear that, "A request for identification by the police does not, by itself, constitute a Fourth Amendment seizure." Paynter,
However, when the officer retained Defendant's identification and instructed him to remain in the ear while running the identification for warrants, what began as a consensual encounter quickly escalated into an investigatory stop needing reasonable suspicion to justify it. Because the officer lacked the reasonable suspicion necessary to justify an investigatory stop, ordering Defendant to stay in the car while retaining his identification constituted a violation of Defendant's Fourth Amendment rights. Accordingly, we reverse in part and affirm in part and remand this case for further proсeedings consistent with this opinion.
Notes
. We granted certiorari on the following issue: Whether police officers must always have reasonable suspicion in order to question passengers of a stopped vehicle, or whether under some circumstances such questioning should be viewed as a consensual interview.
. In concluding that a request for identification does not, by itself, constitute a seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment, we were careful to distinguish the circumstances in Payn-ter from those in People v. Padgett,
. See, e.g., People v. Morales,
. - For instance, in addition to the overhead lights, Officer Harrold trained his spotlight on the driver's side-view mirror.
. The circumstances here are in this regard less intimidating than in Bostick In Bostick, the officers towered over the defendant while he was seated on the bus, impeding his egress therefrom.
. Similarly, in a routine traffic stop, the typical relevance of a patrol car's position in relation to a stopped vehicle is whether the position displays control or authority over the driver of the vehicle such that the driver would not feel free to drive the vehicle away.
. Since Defendant did not attempt to exit the vehicle and leave the scene, we do not сonsider whether the need for officer safety would have permitted Officer Harrold to require Defendant to remain at the scene. See Wilson,
. The record does not indicate precisely how long Officer Harrold held Defendant's identification before he was arrested. Officer Harrold did testify, however, that it was approximately ten to fifteen minutes from the time he initiated the traffic stop to the time Defendant was arrested.
. Defendant was not ordered to stay in the car for Officer Harrold's protection, but so Officer Harrold could check for outstanding warrants. Accordingly, the extent to which the need for officer safety would justify controlling the movement of passengers at the scene of a traffic stop beyond that permitted by Wilson is not before us. Certainly, we agree with the United States Supreme Court that the need for officer safety is both "legitimate and weighty." Wilson,
