Viral bodycam captures Florida deputy's traffic stop unravel as he accuses one-handed driver of holding phone

A Florida sheriff's lawman is facing aggravated net backlash aft viral assemblage camera video captured him doubling down and ticketing a pistillate for utilizing a telephone successful her close manus — adjacent aft she revealed her close limb stops astatine the elbow.

The roadside hiccup went down successful Lake Worth Beach, Florida, successful February, erstwhile a Palm Beach County sheriff's lawman pulled implicit 36-year-old Kathleen Thomas. The serviceman insisted she was clutching a cellphone successful her close hand.

But assemblage camera footage released this week captures the infinitesimal the deputy’s lawsuit blew up.

As the serviceman began lecturing her astir the dangers of distracted driving, Thomas did not adjacent fuss to argue. Instead, she flashed her close arm, which ends astatine the forearm.

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Newly-released assemblage camera video shows a pistillate with 1 manus being cited for allegedly holding a telephone portion driving. (Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office /TMX)

"So evidently not," Thomas said, bursting into laughter successful the present viral clip. "So you privation to conscionable telephone this a time or…?"

"I don't privation to telephone a day. You had a manus manipulator," the lawman said. "I thought I saw your hand."

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"Well you didn't," Thomas replied.

The lawman past appeared to backtrack, saying, "With the close hand, possibly not," earlier continuing the stop.

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The lawsuit drew wide attraction aft the operator posted video of the postulation halt connected TikTok, wherever she questioned the deputy’s assertion that helium saw a instrumentality successful her "right hand." She said she does not person a close hand. (Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office /TMX)

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The unnamed serviceman continued to importune that helium saw a phone. Thomas, erstwhile again, showed her close arm. At 1 constituent during the exchange, the serviceman appealed to a higher power.

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"Hand to God, you did not person your telephone successful your hand?" helium was heard asking her successful the video.

"Hand to God," Thomas replied, holding up her close hand.

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"Other manus to God," the serviceman said, arsenic Thomas lifted her near arm.

During the viral postulation stop, the woman, identified arsenic Katie, has an uncomfortable enactment with a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s lawman aft helium accused her of holding a telephone successful her close manus portion driving. (Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office /TMX)

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The awkward enactment has since exploded online, generating millions of views crossed Instagram, TikTok and X arsenic users criticized the halt and questioned wherefore the lawman continued issuing the summons aft the evident mistake.

Sheriff's section responds

In a connection to Fox News Digital, Palm Beach Sheriff Department's Public Information Officer/Director of the Bureau of Public Affairs Terri Barbera said that the section is "committed to enforcing Florida postulation laws."

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Barbera said that Thomas' citation was yet dismissed.

"In this peculiar case, the lawman initiated a postulation halt based upon his ocular reflection astatine the clip of the incident. After further reappraisal of the Florida State Statutes progressive and based upon the totality of the circumstances, specifically the deficiency of clarity connected however violations are labeled successful our citation software, the determination was yet made to disregard based upon the quality successful wording betwixt Florida State Statute 316.305 and 316.306," Barbera said.

Barbera said that officers are required to marque decisions "based connected observations made successful existent time."

"As with immoderate enforcement action, motorists person the close to contention citations done the judicial process, wherever each facts and grounds tin beryllium afloat evaluated."