Dallas ticket for not speaking English called a rookie mistake | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Breaking News for Dallas-Fort Worth | Dallas Morning News
Officer Gary Bromley issued a citation Oct. 2 to 48-year-old Ernestina
Mondragon after stopping her for making an illegal U-turn in the 500 block of
Easton Road, near East Northwest Highway, according to a copy of the
citation.
"That's a charge that does not exist here in the city of Dallas," said
department spokesman Sgt. Warren Mitchell. "Although we believe it was a
sincere mistake ... there's no excuse for it."
He said that charge and a charge of failure to present a driver's license were
dropped.
Bromley, 33, is a trainee officer in the Northeast Patrol division. His trainer on
the date the ticket was issued was Senior Cpl. Daniel Larkin, 53, said Deputy
Chief Tom Lawrence, Northeast Patrol commander.
Mondragon's daughter Brenda Mondragon said her mother was rushing to take
her younger sister to school that day and did not see the "no U-turn" sign.
Records show Ernestina Mondragon has a driver's license, but her daughter
said she had forgotten it. She said her mother, a native Spanish speaker, speaks limited English.
"She was very mad; she was very upset," Mondragon said of her mother's
reaction. "We ended up taking her to the [emergency room] because she was
nervous; she was just stressing over the ticket."
Dallas cop tickets mom for not speaking English | Crime | WFAA.com
DALLAS — A Dallas police officer, just out of the academy and still under
SUPERVISED TRAINING, ticketed a woman recently for leaving her drivers license
at home, making an illegal U-turn, and being a "non-English speaking driver."
"At first I thought it was a joke," said Brenda Mondragon about the ticket
issued to her mother, Ernestina. "We moved from California two years ago, so
I thought maybe it's a law here."
Ernestina Mondragon got the ticket as she took her youngest daughter
Vanessa to elementary school on October 2
"She was upset and worried," Vanessa, 11, remembered about the traffic stop.
Officer Gary Bromley issued three citations to Mondragon, the first for failing
to carry her drivers license. She said she left it at home darting out the door.
Bromley also cited her for making an illegal U-turn in the 500 block of Easton in Northeast Dallas.
Finally, the rookie policeman ticketed her for being a "non-English speaking driver."
The City of Dallas has no such law on its books
Mitchell said the department believes the rookie policeman was
likely confused. There is a federal law under 49 CFR 391.11 which states
drivers must speak English to operate a commercial vehicle, b ut no such law
exists for a private vehicle.
Sgt. Mitchell said that specific federal law was never adopted by either Dallas or Texas.