Austin Police Officer Tackles Deaf Woman From Behind, Then Arrests Her For Ignoring His Commands To Stop

Austin, Texas

Esther Valdez is deaf. On June 16, 2009, the 24-year-old found herself in trouble with the Austin Police Department – booked into jail for resisting arrest, a charge punishable by up to a year in jail – because she could not hear Officer Steven Willis yelling at her to stop as she walked along a North Austin sidewalk with her girlfriend, Ceci Bermudez. Note: Valdez is the one on the left.

Officer Willis, who doesn’t seem to understand sign language, mistook the intense hand communication as a public disturbance, he says.

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Hey moron, it's sign language!