Is it illegal to flash your headlights at other drivers in Kansas and Missouri?
.JPG "File photo. Traffic is seen on Interstate 35 at 75th Street in Overland Park.")
Has another driver ever flashed their headlights at you on the road?
If so, it could mean one of a few things.
They could be signaling that you forgot to turn your headlights on. Or that you need to slow down and be aware of what lies ahead: a sharp turn, debris in the road or police waiting to pull someone over for speeding.
For all of these reasons and more, flashing headlights is one way drivers communicate with each other on the road.
But can it be illegal? Here’s what the law says about flashing headlights in Kansas and Missouri.
Can you flash your headlights to warn other drivers in Kansas?
There is no statewide statute in Kansas that says it’s illegal to flash your headlights to warn other drivers.
If you are using your high beams, you must lower them when you are within 500 feet of another vehicle or following another vehicle within 300 feet, according to Kansas law.
Chris Brennan, a criminal defense attorney based in Overland Park, said you could be pulled over if you flash your headlights within these boundaries.
Brennan said Kansas municipalities are free to enact traffic ordinances that are different from state statutes, provided they do not infringe upon someone’s rights, like expressing and communicating to other drivers.
Can I flash my headlights at other drivers in Missouri?
It used to be illegal to flash your headlights at other drivers to warn them about a speed trap in Missouri, but that changed in 2014.
A federal court in St. Louis ruled that drivers can flash their lights to warn drivers of nearby police and speed traps. The court ruled that it’s a First Amendment right.
The ruling came from an April 2013 case in Ellisville, where the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri filed a lawsuit for Michael Elli He was pulled over by an Ellisville police officer and issued a citation for flashing lights to warn other drivers of the police.
“Expressive conduct is protected whenever a particular message is present and the likelihood is great that the message would be understood by those who viewed it,” Tony Rothert, legal director of the ACLU of Missouri, said. “Even new drivers understand that an oncoming car with flashing headlights means they should either slow down, turn on their headlights, or otherwise use caution.”
The ACLU of Missouri also filed a lawsuit in December 2014 in Grain Valley on behalf of a Kansas man for the same reason.
Grain Valley Police stopped issuing tickets to drivers who flash their headlights as a way of communicating with other drivers as a result of the settlement reached in the case in 2015.
