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Tell lawmakers to limit unsafe, unfair arrests at traffic stops!

Clock is ticking — session ends this month!

If police were not allowed to arrest a driver at a traffic stop for a simple traffic violation, Sandra Bland would still be alive today. HB 2754 would limit arrests on fine-only infractions like failure to signal, while allowing officers to arrest in the case of any urgent public safety issue.

What police do now creates dangers for both officers and residents. Jail is not an allowable punishment for a traffic violation, yet an estimated 75,000 Texans are arrested and booked in jail each year for such minor infractions. People — like Sandra Bland or Breaion King — don’t believe they can be arrested for a traffic infraction. If they seem to resist, a simple traffic violation can escalate. New data indicates thousands of injuries occurred at Texas traffic stops last year.

This week, a Dallas reporter released Sandra Bland’s cell phone video definitively showing that at the time of her arrest there was no issue of officer safety, only a simple traffic violation. If she had not been arrested, she would be alive today.

Reforming traffic stops has bipartisan support

The following organizations support HB 2754: Texas Public Policy Foundation, Young Republicans, Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, Faith in Texas, NAACP Texas, Texans for Accountable Government, ACLU of Texas, Austin Justice Coalition, Grassroots Leadership, Texas Appleseed, Just Liberty and many more.

Take a moment right now to tell your Representative to vote YES today and tomorrow on the Texas House floor.