All right, I stopped you cuz when you drove by me back there, you stuck your middle finger up the whole time you were driving by me. You think I didn't see you? >> Yeah, I knew you seen me. >> What was that for? >> I mean, is it against the law? I can flip you off all I want to. You see that right there? >> You're driving this vehicle and you're distracted driving by doing that. >> I was looking at the road. I can do this all day long, sir. I want you officers to know every Commerce police officer that I I pass, I'm going to give them the finger. >> Okay. >> And if they want to pull me over and we keep going through this, keep going through this, they can. >> In this video, driver passed a Commerce police officer and flipped him off while continuing down the road. Instead of ignoring the gesture and moving on with his day, the officer followed him through traffic and initiated a stop over nothing more than a bruised ego. What started as a simple act of protected speech quickly turned into an argument about constitutional rights as the driver challenged the officer to explain what law had actually been broken. The officer struggled to justify the stop, then doubled down by writing a citation anyway. Even after being told that flipping someone off is protected by the First Amendment, the situation only got worse when multiple officers arrived to back up a ticket that never should have existed in the first place. But, the story did not end when the traffic stop was over. The driver later filed an official complaint against the officer and followed up directly with department leadership demanding answers about the stop. That complaint process and the department's response were also documented on video and included at the end of this same footage providing a major update on what happened after the citation was issued. >> How you doing, driver, sir? >> I'm all right. >> You're with the Commerce Police Department. Do you have your driver's license on you, please? >> What did you stop me for? >> All right, I stopped you cuz when you drove by me back there, you stuck your middle finger up the whole time you were driving by me. You think I didn't see you? >> Yeah, I I knew you seen me. >> What was that for? >> I mean, is it against the law? Is there a law against that? >> aggressive driving, you know. aggressive driving. as >> No, sir. You you can't be a complaining party in that. >> I can't be a complaining party in aggressive driving. Where's that written in the statute? >> You want to get your your supervisor out here? >> I'm the supervisor, just so you know. >> Oh, then I'm going to need somebody No, I didn't see you then. >> But this is who you get. So >> Okay. >> If if you want to tell me what the statute is, go ahead and recite me what the statute is. >> need to recite the statute. I need to tell you your job? >> What No, you don't need to tell me >> flip you off all I want to. You see that right there? >> You're driving this vehicle and you're distracted driving by doing that. >> I was looking at the road. I can do this all day long, sir. >> Okay. So you want to tell me what did I >> I'll tell you what, I don't have to give you my ID. >> Okay, you did. >> I don't have I don't I don't have to give you my ID because this is an unlawful stop. >> It's not an unlawful >> 100% unlawful stop. I can flip you off all day long. >> All >> All day long. >> Like what did I do to deserve that from you? >> All of y'all deserve that. >> All of us deserve that? >> That until I know different, yep. >> All of us as long as >> I was kidnapped and held for ransom for 2 and 1/2 years by cops. Until until the jury of my peers set me free. >> Okay, so what did I do? >> doesn't matter what you did or not. I will do this all day long if I want to. >> Okay. You're not going to do that. >> 100% right. You want to write me a ticket for it? >> But I can. I don't >> No, no. Write me I dare you to write me a ticket. License, insurance, registration's on the back. Write me a ticket, mother >> See, look at the language >> Write me a ticket, mother Write me a ticket. Write me a ticket. >> the whole thing by calling me a mother >> Go in? >> You cannot get out of car. >> Okay. Let's go. Get get Get out of the way. >> Now now you're being >> Freedom of speech. You can't be a complaining party in a disorderly conduct. >> I can't be a >> You absolutely cannot. I can cuss all day in front of you. There's no kids around, there's nobody else. You cannot be a complaining party in the state of Georgia on a disorderly conduct. Go check the law. Well, you said I changed the stop. Write me a ticket. >> You did because now >> Write me a ticket. >> and you're calling me a mother for no reason whatsoever. >> You stopped me unlawfully. I can flip you off all day long. >> Okay. >> There it is again. >> Like I'm saying to you, like I'm trying to educate you if you give me an opportunity. >> You're the one who needs an education, obviously, Sarge. >> Okay. So, all right, then let me know which part I need to educate on so that I can educate myself. >> That anybody can flip you off. This is 100% the First Amendment. As I will sit here and do it with my car running and driving past you as I did. I do it all the time. I do it to state troopers just to see if a mother going to be stupid enough to stop me for it. So, there it is. Write me my ticket and let's get this stop over with. I'm home. >> Okay. >> I got fries here. My old lady. Thank you. Write my ticket. >> Good lord have mercy. All right. So, very hostile. All right. So, I wanted somebody here when I issue him a citation. So, I pulled him over cuz he was driving by looking at me flipping me off when he drove by. So, I followed him around to the traffic stop talking about aggressive driving harassment completely blew up on me. Like talking about all his Amendment rights and I'm doing unlawful stops. He ain't got to give me IDs. All this craziness and I was like, "Look, man, I just I didn't do anything to you. I just want to know what your name is." He won't hear anything open mouth flipping me off in my face calling me a mother all kinds of like that. Write me my ticket. So, I just wanted somebody here when I go to give it to him cuz he's going to be All right, sir. So, I did you see how a couple of people? It's just for our safety, all right? So, look, I'm going to do as you said. I'm going to give you the ticket for aggressive driving. >> Appreciate it, sir. >> I went ahead and got a case number. >> You're going to let him write me a ticket for flipping him off? >> Excuse me, my sergeant. >> Sergeant. >> Yes. >> You're going to let me write He let him write me a ticket for flipping him off? >> driving, yes. >> Aggressive driving. Okay. It's not aggressive driving. We'll We'll see it in court. I'll see you in court. I don't I don't need a second. Let me sign and let's go. Let's get this over with. >> This is going to be my copy. I'll [clears throat] put a X right here for you if you just sign right there for >> Copy that. >> All right. Now, this is not an admission of guilt, like I said. >> No. >> So, you're If you want to go to court, the court date's right here. The time, date, and address, and everything is right there for you. >> And on the back right here is a website. If you want to view the ticket or whatever, the phone number for the police department's right there. >> No need to >> If you have any questions, you'll see on there in the remarks column I I put the actual case number on there. There's a case number on top. The video from our body camera footage will be >> available. All you have to do is call the police department and talk to them. >> You can call the patrol and they'll be able to help you out, okay? >> I need your body camera footage. >> All right. >> I flipped you off. >> All right. >> I'll see it through [clears throat] your body camera. I flipped them off. >> All right. So, here's Where is your insurance card and all? All right, man. You have a good evening, all right? >> My ID and then Oh, you got it back to you. I got it. Three of y'all cuz I flipped somebody off. Three of y'all for this. Three of y'all for this. It took three of y'all? It took three of y'all? I'm not getting myself in trouble. I can stand here all day long and do this. Kick rocks, Emerson. Kick rocks. You're dismissed. You're dismissed. You're dismissed. Back up. So, we're here at Commerce Police Department to see if we can get an update on a complaint where I was pulled over and ticketed for aggressive driving for giving the finger to the cop. Let's see how this goes. >> Hello. >> Are you Lieutenant Holly? >> Hey. >> My name is Shane. Um Shane Heroes. >> Yeah, you called me the other day. I didn't have a chance to call you >> I'm just wondering if there's been any update on that. >> looking into it. I've looked at the body cameras. I've talked to Corporal Emerson. So, his side of it. >> And I've never said that he he said or did anything or well no I never said that he said anything or acted inappropriately as far as his behavior. >> Right. >> Which his behavior was on point. >> It's all about whether or not he had reason >> Probable cause and all. So. >> So, we're still >> We're still investigating. >> on it because there's some things >> That's not that's that's not a hard >> Well, it is. It's very complicated because of the way the law is written for aggressive driving. So, we're trying to figure out and get some input. We're doing other case laws, looking at them and all that. And nothing no other case law that we found really fits this situation. There's plenty of them. >> There's Well, there's one about disorderly conduct. I know you've looked into it. Disorderly conduct and aggressive driving are both different, but free speech protected free speech is protected free speech for any any one of those laws. And I I I would hope that you would agree with that because if the Georgia Supreme Court, which the Georgia Supreme Court and the United States Supreme Court have both both ruled on disorderly conduct. Now, if we want to take this to appeals and everything else cuz I understand I get a bench trial for the for this case when we go to court. >> It Well, that's that's what's going to happen. >> can do a jury trial. >> Well. >> Jury trial, you have to transfer it to state court. So. >> My my >> That's that's your choice when you >> My thing is Emerson's become famous over the last 2 days. And he's made your department look bad. Would you pull me over? Can I ask you that? Would you pull me over if I flipped you off going down the road while you were illegally parked by the way running traffic? You can't >> I'm not going to discuss all that, man. >> Would you pull me over? >> I'm not going to tell you what I'm looking into. >> Would you pull me over? >> I'm not I'm not going there. >> Okay. I I respect that. I respect But now I'm I'm having to be put out by going to court. And I'm not hiring an attorney for this. And you can tell whoever handles I don't know what it it's not a solicitor that handles it for this You can tell the solicitor I'll be there by myself and I'll be well prepared. But fully expect that I want this dismissed then. He cannot show up. He made a mistake and I think you guys know that he made a mistake. And your department I'm sorry, sir. I apologize for that. Your department's going to look one way or the other. And this video that I'm making now is simply for my documentation to show that I've gone through the proper channels of of of following a complaint. >> Right, you have. >> And my first, fourth, and 14th I didn't put my 14th on there, but my first, fourth, and 14th were all evaluated that day. He had no probable cause for that stop. And I I believe that you and any of your sergeants or corporals that may be listening know that there's no probable cause for that stop. I can put my middle finger up to anybody. I'm not going to do it to you right here because I'm showing level a level of respect. For me, it's about who's the good cop and who's the bad cop. If I throw my middle finger up at you and you wave at me or drive by and do nothing, you're a good cop. If you pull me over, you're a tyrant. >> There is no There's no dispute whether or not shooting a bird is free speech. We all know that it is. >> If it's free speech, then it's not against the law of aggressive driving. >> the thing about it is and I'll get into this with you later once we have all our ducks in a row. The thing about it is the way the statute >> waiting till after the court date? You got That's going to be probably after the court date before I find out, you know. >> What's your court date? >> It's August 1st. >> Oh, all right. I don't anticipate it to be after that. Okay. But >> I tried to give a reasonable amount of time before I called you. >> The That's That's our hangup is the interpretation of the way the law is written for aggressive driving. You could You could be exercising your free speech and still violate the statute for >> Well, that's And that's something for appeals. And that's something for appeals because the because it's vague. But we all know that that that statute was meant for using your car aggressively. And at the same time he wasn't even driving. He was parked illegally running patrol. He wasn't a driver on the road. >> Well, it doesn't the way And that's another thing about it is it doesn't say another driver, it says another person. So it could be a pedestrian and >> I can't flip my friend off going down the road? If I see my friend and I Hey! >> I'm not I'm not arguing whether you can flip the finger or not. I'm saying the statute applies to a person. It doesn't say a driver. >> Then this shouldn't be a long drawn out process as it has been and I'm not going to say cuz there's no statute of when you have to, you know, come to the the conclusion of the complaint. But this is cut and dry. And the fact that you won't tell me whether you would pull me over if I flipped you off. If I flipped The fact that you won't tell me that I'm trapped in the saying something. It's not trapped in saying something. I'm not going to I'm not going to use it against you. You know, you don't want me to use it against the department because you know that if I use that if you were to say that, I could say that in court that you whether you would flip me off You wouldn't pull me over. I can tell because you are a nice guy. I can tell you have Well, I'm getting a little bit aggravated. I apologize for that, but I think it's a cut and dry situation. >> You need to calm down. >> And I want you officers to know every Commerce police officer that I I pass, I'm going to give them the finger. >> Okay. >> And if they want to pull me over and we keep going through this keep going through this, they can. But at this point until I know differently and I I filmed three. I think one of them was out there the the lady that was just here just a second ago. I filmed three out there one night when they when they had somebody pulled over. I called and talked to somebody and gave them a compliment because they could have arrested me that night. And I and I and I filmed them drunk. They didn't. They come up, talked to me, didn't ask me my name. I called and made complimented them. I forgot who I talked to. I said, "Hey, it was you?" I said, "Hey, they did a great job. Those officers know the law." But and I could have walked by, flipped them off. I didn't I didn't any way I didn't cuss them or anything like that. I was just casually having a conversation when they decided to walk over to me while I was filming them. Emerson is a whole different The The fact that he's a corporal is is a travesty, but we'll leave it at that. I Again, all all I was doing was checking up and seeing if if if there had been any conclusion reached on it, but you know, we'll we'll see that. I also put in for >> at least of today and tomorrow to get back to you. >> The officer turned a middle finger into a traffic stop, then escalated it into a citation that could not survive scrutiny. Rather than simply paying the ticket or moving on, the driver filed an official complaint and continued pressing the department for answers. As more attention was placed on the case, the department was left trying to explain how protected speech became grounds for enforcement. In the end, the charge was dropped before court, and the complaint process helped expose just how weak the justification for the stop really was. What began as an officer reacting to a hurt ego ended with the department backing away from the case altogether.