Drivers with darkly tinted windows may find themselves attracting more police attention. The Louisiana State Police issued a news release this past month reminding motorists of the state’s window tint laws. Stephen Lafargue, LSP public information officer in Lake Charles, said officers have noticed an increase in violations in southwest Louisiana. Lafargue said dark windows are a safety concern to both the officers who cannot see inside the vehicles and the drivers who may experience reduced visibility. He said he has seen some car accidents that were likely influenced by illegal tint. While police are more likely to stop a vehicle with darkly tinted windows, Lafargue said he does not see a correlation between tint violations and other offenses. But some stops can lead to the discovery of separate law violations, he said. “If an officer sees it, and he thinks it’s too dark, that gives him probable cause to stop that vehicle and check it,” Lafargue said. He said there has been a shift in the types of drivers violating the tint law. “It used to be like younger college kids and high school kids putting the tint on,” Lafargue said. “We saw an increase in recent years in all types of vehicles.” Melinda LaBauve, secretary for Auto Image of Baton Rouge, said she receives about three calls a day with requests for illegal window tint. “It’s mainly the younger crowd that wants it,” Labauve said. She said Auto Image has never been fined and will only overtint windows for customers with a medical exemption from the state police. According to the release, window tint on passenger cars is limited to light transmissions of 40 percent for the front side windows, 25 percent for the rear side windows and 12 percent for the rear windshield. The tint gets darker as the percentage decreases. LaBauve said most callers are seeking limousine tint, which is 5 percent. She said callers usually ask for a recommendation to another business that is willing to illegally tint a vehicle. “There are people that do it, but we’re not putting names out,” she said. Lafargue said a vehicle owner is not always aware of the tint level of the windows because many have bought their car from an individual. He said he suggests concerned drivers have their windows checked at an inspection site because vehicle owners are responsible for violations, even if the tint was illegal at the time of purchase. The driver fine for illegal tint in Baton Rouge is $127.25. Sellers, installers, manufacturers and distributors can be held accountable, as well. Businesses that violate tint limitations can be fined $1,000 for a first offense and $2,000 for a second offense. They can be prohibited from conducting business if convicted of a third offense. Lafargue said his office works to find out who applied or approved the illegal tint so the state can fine them.
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