An Alabama driver is making headlines after refusing to write an apology letter to an officer who he told to get out of his way during a traffic stop.
Reginald Burks, who is a 39-year-old black man was taking his kids to school on December 13, 2023 when a police officer pulled him over for speeding. According to Al.com, the officer who pulled Burks over informed him that his Radar gun was broken but he was able to make an estimate on how fast he was going when he used cruise control, which Burks believes was a lie. “I told him he was full of crap because there’s no way that he clocked my speed by cruise control,” Burks said. That’s when things began to take a turn for the worst, the officer eventually gave Burks a speeding ticket then stood in front of his car forcing him to reverse his car and drive around him.
“I said, ‘Get your a** out of the way so I can take my kids to school,’” Burks said. “My daughter’s like, ‘Daddy you cursed.’ And I said, ‘I’m sorry boo.’” Jenny Carroll, a professor of criminal law spoke out about the situation and said threatening Burks with up to 30 days in jail doesn’t seem to fit the crime because its freedom of speech. “I think it is one of those judicial orders that is sufficiently questionable that we ought to say, is it really proportional to give a 30-day sentence if he won’t say he’s sorry?” Carroll said.
“That’s a long time for what he allegedly said,” she added. “And my guess is, we could stop most adults on the street, and they would admit that in a moment of frustration, he said something that may be regrettable but doesn’t deserve a 30-day sentence.”
Although Burks was initially ticketed for speeding, he was not accused of disorderly conduct or any other misconduct in connection with his encounter with the officer. Burks mentioned that he has relatives and acquaintances who serve as police officers, and based on their advice, he decided not to contest the ticket.
Burks planned to plead guilty and settle the fines upon his court appearance. However, he was surprised to discover that the judge required him to issue an apology for using profanity towards the officer.
“I was like, I’ll just pay the ticket, but I’m not going to apologize,” Burks said.
Burks continues to fight for his rights and state that his free speech didn’t cross the line. Carroll stated that Alabama law does indeed prohibit public cursing, but he believed that Burks should have been formally charged with that offense and granted the opportunity for due process if the judge intended to penalize him for his speech.
Instead, it seems the judge is using his power to try and make an example out of Burks.
“He’s not able to make a choice about whether or not he wants to apologize,” Carroll said. “And he’s not a child, he’s an adult man. He’s not being allowed to exercise his own decision-making process about whether or not his behavior warrants issuing an apology to the officer.”