Woman gets stopped for speeding. Cop shows mercy and gives her a ticket for a nonmoving violation. As police officer pulls away, however, woman gives him the finger – or, as a U.S. District Court puts it, “flips him the bird.”
Cop takes offense, switches on lights and siren and stops her again, ploughing into her car in the process and then, on top of that, changing the original ticket to a moving violation.
She sues the officer for violating her constitutional rights.
Did he?
more here
ht/ fdr in hell
He should have followed her till she violated the vehicle code.
Nope. She could have exercised her civil right to free speech in such a way as to not express contempt for the officer and the law.
This another example of how ignoring a law infraction (such as entering a country illegally) is a gateway crime.
Nope.
Unfortunately, yes.
“Unfortunately” for the umpteen people who now won’t get a break when they’re stopped.
YES HE VIOLATED HER RIGHTS
She has the right to communicate her displeasure, and using body language is her right, even if it offends the officer.
The Supreme Court also ruled that flashing your lights to other drivers to indicate speed traps is LEGAL and a form of 1st Amendment communication, while police tried to violate everyone’s rights by claiming that people were “interfering.”
But as usual, the oppressive police-state goes by the mantra, like all big government liberals do, “It’s not illegal unless the Supreme Court tells me it’s illegal.”
These are not the king’s servants, and we don’t have sedition laws anymore.
What kind of passive subject (not citizen) would think disrespect and contempt for our paid public servants is not legal and the officer has a right to make people behave in the way that pleases them?
F*A*S*C*I*S*M
I make a habit of speeding through known speed traps too.🤪
I’m an ugly old white guy. I never get out of tickets. The last time I got pulled over the trooper asked me, “Mr. Davy, do you know why I pulled you over?” I said “yes, to give me a ticket” Turns out I was correct.
The cop is a snowflake
Every cop has an internal John Wayne attitude just wanting to break out to show others he has the power over them. Most have the ability to harness the urge to be a prick, but even they can be overcome by the circumstances.
If the cop didn’t figure on being shown a middle finger, he’s an imbecile.
And if burning an American flag is an “expression” protected by the First Amendment, then, so, surely, is displaying a finger.
izlamo delenda est …
Gosh, sounds like she micro-aggressed the officer. And as we are all being told, micro-aggressions are violence; therefore she committed an act of violence against a police officer and got what she deserved.
Was the woman ugly? Then no.
Betcha she was black; white folks know not to lip off to cops
I thought at first that was Apples new logo?
What @Mithrandir said, with more emphasis.
Like it or not, courts have decided that flipping anybody off is free speech protected by the 1st Amendment. And that enforcer has an attitude that should disqualify him forever from having a badge and carrying a govt gun.
I always flip the bird going under traffic cameras and through toll booths with FU-Pass. So far, no letters.
I flip off train drivers that block intersections at rush hour! My bad!
Listen to the way that the way the antifa clowns talk to the police. This cop had a personal beef, he was offended, and used his position of authority to punish this woman. What if she had flashed the peace sign? In England that’s the same thing as flipping the bird. Perspective.
You can support cops without supporting ignorant or bad cops. This cop obviously has thin skin and doesn’t need to be a cop. Not condoning flipping him off, but I have met many cops in my day I had the urge to flip off.
Today I’m going to the local police station and stick the “bird” right into the faces of every cop there just to educate them.
Missing the point. Why would anyone be in Seattle??
Just because something is legal to do, does not mean it is the right thing to do. I bet the driver wasted a lot of time to get her day in court.
If you want to talk about the abuse of power, it is “no knock” police raids, especially with SWAT teams that needlessly endanger the public.
Billy Fuster, I have family members and friends who are retired cops and they never had thin skin and would probably have laughed at you.
They actually cringe at some of these cop stories where cops are shooting guys with their hands cuffed behind their back or drunk guys who can barely stand holding a hammer, two shootings ruled justified in our area within the past few years. They all got really hot under the color at the cop who beat the teenage kid who called him a pig and oinked at him. At least that one lost his job and was charged with assault, although most thought he deserved to be charged with more, the kid spent 6 months in the hospital and now has brain damage.
just because you can, and it’s not illegal to do so doesn’t mean you should. you can thump a grizzly in the balls… but you will probably have a bad day from that moment on.
You’re right Uncle Al, I remember the court ruling, but I can’t remember the names involved. IIRC, it was a case that started out in NW Arkansas, probably Fayetteville.
@rickn8or – There have been many such decisions, and the one I believe you’re remembering is Nichols v. Chacon, 110 F. Supp. 2d 1099, 1110 (W.D. Ark. 2000)
But don’t flip off a judge in his courtroom. He’ll whack you for contempt, and that’s been upheld a few times.