Woman involved in controversial Fairfax County traffic stop calls for police accountability
Woman involved in controversial Fairfax County traffic stop calls for police accountability
A Department of Defense worker who was pulled over by a Virginia State Trooper who then dragged her out of her vehicle and handcuffed called for police accountability Thursday during a press conference in Fairfax County.
FAIRFAX, Va. - A Department of Defense worker who was pulled over by a Virginia State Trooper who then dragged her out of her vehicle and handcuffed called for police accountability Thursday during a press conference in Fairfax County.
Juanisha Brooks was joined by members of the criminal justice reform, Justice Forward Virginia, when they discussed details of the incident that happened around 2:30 a.m. on March 6.
VIRGINIA STATE POLICE BODY CAMERA REVEALS CONTROVERSIAL FAIRFAX COUNTY TRAFFIC STOP
Brooks previously told FOX 5 that she was on the Beltway when the Trooper turned on his lights. She pulled over only after she found what she believed was a safe location.
According to Brooks, the Trooper refused to tell her why she'd been pulled over, and instead dragged her out of the car and handcuffed her.
When Brooks was finally released from custody, she was told her car was in a tow lot with all of her belongings inside – it took her five hours with no phone or money to get to the lot and retrieve her belongings – despite asking the trooper for help.
The Commonwealth's Attorney dropped the charges citing a new law that went into effect on March 1st prohibiting officers from pulling people over for dark taillights – but the State Police are standing by the Trooper's actions, saying he followed protocol when Brooks declined to comply with his requests.
In April, the Commonwealth's Attorney's office wrote a letter indicating that Brooks' traffic stop was "without proper legal basis."