*Aramis Ayala, Florida’s first and only Black State attorney was pulled over by two police officers who stuttered and stumbled once they realized their oops! I can only imagine the dinner conversation at Ayala’s table that night.
Husband: Honey, how was your day?
Wife: Oh fine. Except I was racially profiled.
In the video below, Ayala can be seen searching in her purse for her license as the officers approach. They get to the car, she hands them the license, and the conversation goes something like this…
Officer: What agency do you work for.
Ayala: I’m the State Attorney.
Stumble #1… the officer, in his best attempt at game-face, immediately launches into why she was stopped.
“Your tag didn’t come back. Never seen that before.”
Her looks says what her mouth doesn’t, and we see a slight you’re full of sh*t smile on her face as she continues to look forward.
I guess Mr. Cop didn’t bank on her asking the next question. Not to mention her cool as a cucumber stance.
What was the tag run for? Ayala asks, barely above a whisper.
“Excuse me?” asks the officer.
She repeats the question in the exact way. No louder.
Stumble #2:
?Oh we run tags through all the time, whether it’s a traffic light and that sort of stuff; That’s how we figure out if cars are stolen and that sort of thing.?
He then had the nerve to add, ?Also, the windows are really dark. I don’t have a tint measure but that’s another reason for the stop.?
When the State Attorney, not pleased at all with their responses, asked for the officers? cards and neither of them had any available, she had them write their contact information on a piece of paper.
Talk about role reversal.
Ayala, who was elected in November of 2016, and serves as the chief prosecutor of the Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida, has filed no complaint about the stop as of this writing, and the Orlando Police dept, who says they do allow “the running of tags for official business only, and this is done routinely on patrol,” released a statement last month about the June 19 incident.
“In regards to the video, the officers stated the tag did not come back as registered to any vehicle. As you can see in the video, the window tint was dark, and officers would not have been able to tell who, or how many people, were in the vehicle,” a statement said.
First of all, Ayala says her vehicle is registered, and secondly, and I want readers to look at the video and pull my coat if I’m wrong, but I can’t tell that the windows are darker than any other tinted windows.
Ms. Ayala is said to have run a transparent race for her position as state attorney; with a goal to bridge gaps with communities of color. In a statement to The Independent, Ms Ayala said she has “violated no laws”.
“The license plate, while confidential was and remains properly registered… The tint was in no way a violation of Florida law… Although the traffic stop appears to be consistent with Florida law,” the statement read.
“My goal is to have a constructive and mutually respectful relationship between law enforcement and the community, Ms Ayala added. “I look forward to sitting down to have an open dialogue with the Chief of Orlando Police Department regarding how this incident impacts that goal”.
Go to Yahoo News to learn about the controversial decision that recently put Ms. Ayala in the headlines; and what she received in the mail for standing her ground.
Scroll down to see the video.
