This happens more often than the police want to admit. Some innocent family threatened, put in real jeopardy and tramatized over misread plates, plates being entered wrong, wrong information in database, etc.
Even if a car comes back as stolen, I don’t think using a high risk stop should be standard procedure unless they have more information that confirms that it’s stolen or there is mminent risk.
I’ve seen too many videos of families with kids being put in handcuffs, made to lie face down on the ground only to find out it was a big “oops”.
There were two guys back in college (70’s) on Spring Break heading back home. They got pulled over as they were driving a car similar to a murder suspect.
There was just one cop that pulled them over. The one cop started roughing up the one guy pretty bad. The other guy took the cop’s pistol out of his holster and told him to stop.
Just about the time the other cops showed up.
I was really surprised to see them both in school the next year. Good guys, smart and probably upper-middle class or higher families that could afford decent lawyers.
Or perhaps it was a police force that didn’t want a lawsuit. Although I think back then nobody would think of suing the police.
I don’t think it was a tall tale. I heard about it from the sister of one of the guys.