Picture this: You’re driving along late one night when you hear a siren. You look in the rearview mirror and see flashing lights. A police officer is trying to pull you over. But you’re on a rural road, it’s late, and you’d rather continue to a well-lit parking lot. Do you really have to pull over immediately? The truth is yes, you need to stop as soon as you’re signaled. If you’re in an unsafe location, the police officer may order you to move your car.

Ebony Washington learned this lesson firsthand when a police officer signaled her to stop for speeding on a Florida road. She had three kids in the backseat of her minivan and was pregnant with a fourth. Concerned about stopping on a dark road, she put on her hazard lights, slowed down, and continued to a gas station.

When she did stop, Deputy Jacob Desue of the Bradford County Sheriff’s Office immediately handcuffed her for eluding the police. Eluding can be a felony if you’re endangering other motorists. Because Ms. Washington had slowed down, she faced only a misdemeanor eluding charge, but it was still a serious matter.

So what should you do if you’re afraid for your safety? First and foremost, if you have any doubt that the person trying to stop you is a police officer, you should call 911 immediately. Describe your situation, and the dispatcher can tell you whether they have an officer matching that description currently completing a traffic stop.

Then, follow the dispatcher’s instructions closely. Not following the dispatcher’s directions may still land you with an eluding the police charge.

Second, if you’re simply concerned about the location, you can stop and explain your wishes to the police officer completing the traffic stop. Deputy Desue may have reacted more harshly toward Ms. Washington because he didn’t know who was in the car or why she continued driving. If she had stopped and politely requested to move to a well-lit area, he might have allowed her to do so. But there’s no guarantee. Ensuring your safety is part of a police officer’s duty during a traffic stop, but their methods may vary.

You can see a lawyer break down how Ms. Washington responded to Deputy Desue’s traffic stop in the video below: