There was no reason for them to stop her. I continue to support the police but doing things like this is not helping. I walk everyday in my neighborhood and never once was stopped by police.
Did you see the video? Apparently, she was near an intersecton although she DOES end up in the middle of the street?!?!
The cops were polite enough but there was no reason to ask for ID.
The “tea party crusaders” article links to an article at “the blaze”,
which finally sources the information at “the Dallas News”.
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http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/latest-columns/20151028-dorothy-bland-i-was-caught-walking-while-black.ece
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Which includes this response from the police:
Officers observed Ms. Bland walking in the roadway wearing earbuds and unaware that there was a pickup truck directly behind her that had to almost come to a complete stop to avoid hitting her.
The driver of the truck looked at the officers as they passed and held his hands in the air, which implied “aren’t you going to do something about this?†The officers turned around and drove behind Ms. Bland.
They activated their in-car video camera, which shows her again walking in the roadway impeding traffic. They activated their emergency lights — no siren was ever sounded — they exited their patrol vehicle and contacted Ms. Bland.
They immediately advised Ms. Bland about the pickup truck and the fact that it was safer for her to walk against traffic so she could see the cars and jump out of the way if necessary. The interaction between Ms. Bland and the officers was very cordial and brief.
Ms. Bland had been observed earlier by these same officers, but she was not in the street and impeding traffic, so she was not contacted.
Impeding traffic is a Class C misdemeanor, and it is our policy to ask for identification from people we encounter for this type violation. I am surprised by her comments as this was not a confrontational encounter but a display of professionalism and genuine concern for her safety.
Please review the video and I’m sure you will agree the officers’ intent was simply to keep her safe. Ms. Bland never contacted the police department to voice her concerns regarding this encounter and has not returned my phone message left at the number provided by the mayor.
It is illegal and dangerous to walk in the street when a sidewalk is both provided and usable.
You need to learn to walk slowly, with instead of against traffic, and hassle drivers. Then maybe you, too, can be stopped by the cops.
But it looks like you are buying into ‘Black Lies Matter’.
Apparently, you didn’t watch the video.
Do you walk on the wrong side of the road, veer into the middle of the road, and purposely not used sidewalks while waving your arms in an effort to draw attention to yourself? She was fishing for the police “check” and probably knew that they cruised this street at this time of day.
Did you watch the video? They were concerned because she was walking on the wrong side of the street facing away from oncoming traffic. That is what they said from the very beginning. They had come up behind her and she hadn’t noticed them, nor had she noticed a truck that had had to stop behind her to avoid hitting her as she veered out towards the center of the street. They were right to stop her and she was very defensive instead of responding to their courteous concern.
I have stopped to caution a neighbor on my street for the same thing. The sun blinded me momentarily and I had a scare when he came up suddenly on a dip in the road. Its not safe to walk on the side of the road in the same direction as the traffic and she should have already known that but when she needed to be reminded she should have thanked them.
Actually there was every reason to stop her....she was a danger to herself and others. Walking in the middle of the street is not only stupid and childish it can be a sign of mental illness. I have seen tweeters approached by police to assess the situation many times.
As a driver I don’t want some crazy ass person wandering around on the roads (try the side walk okay?) waiting to get hit so they can sue some one.
Did you watch the video?
I walk every day, too. I always walk on the side to face oncoming traffic, and on the sidewalk whenever there is one. I never flop my arms like a wounded goose.
The cops couldn't see what her race was before they stopped her. They were polite and friendly. She was nothing but a race pimp.
There was every reason to stop her. They told her they stopped her for walking out in the street and on the wrong side to see oncoming traffic. A truck had to stop because she was impeding traffic. She’s so worried about her tax dollars, then use the safe sidewalks she paid for instead of acting like a crazy person flapping their arms down the middle of the street clueless to what’s going on around her. If she had been hit by a truck, she’d have sued the driver despite it being her fault.