A Texas social worker was handcuffed and charged with resisting arrest after calling 911 during a traffic stop to inform the dispatcher she was afraid. Earledreka White, 28, was pulled over by Officer Gentian Luca of Houston's Metro Police Department for allegedly "crossing a double white line," the Houston Chroniclereports. But it's what happened after White was pulled over, her lawyer says, that should raise additional questions surrounding modern police tactics.
"I'm as pro-law-enforcement as they come, but that's not good police conduct," attorney Zack Fertitta told the Houston Chronicle. "You can't escalate a situation and then claim someone is 'resisting arrest.' That's ridiculous." Footage of the March incident, first released to the Chronicle by White's attorneys this week and combined with audio of the 911 call, shows White speaking with a dispatcher and pleading for police back-up for her own safety.
"I would like another officer to come out here," White is heard telling the dispatcher. "My heart is racing. I'm really afraid." According to White, the officer threatened to tase her and "literally" tried to break her arm. Footage of the incident was used in the department's internal investigation, which the Washington Postreports cleared Luca of any alleged violations back in May. The Houston Metro Police Department did not immediately respond to Complex's request for comment.
White, however, had to spend two days in jail on a misdemeanor resisting arrest charge and was ultimately released on $1,000 bail. "This officer escalated the situation from a peaceful encounter over a traffic stop to this sort of confrontation that was completely unneeded," Fertitta told the Post Friday. "He should have just written her a traffic ticket. He never even started to write her a traffic ticket."
Fertitta, who did not immediately respond to Complex's request for comment, is currently working to have the charge dismissed so it doesn't impact White's career.
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