(Comstock Photo)
Last year, a Black driver in Des Moines, Iowa was pulled over for a hard to read temporary tag.
Lonnie Porter, 41, who says the officer pulled him over without reason, will be paid $25,000 to settle a lawsuit in a case that provides further evidence of racial profiling within the Des Moines Police department, reports the Des Moines Register.
Porter was reportedly never issued a ticket or citation during the stop. Officer Sean O’Neill, who pulled over Porter, says on the video that he made the stop because a temporary license on the vehicle wasn’t fully visible.
The video shows that the paper license, common on a new cars, was displayed in the back window of the vehicle.
“You can’t see the date?” Porter asks the officer on the video before looking into his cell phone, streaming the stop live on Facebook. “I get it. I get it. I get it. You see what I’m talking about, Facebook?”
According to the Register, police deny wrongdoing in the matter.
The Register reports, “O’Neill has an outstanding performance record and has no pending complaints or administrative reviews,” Des Moines Sgt. Paul Parizek said. “… For what it’s worth, I know Sean and have seen his work. He is professional, acts with integrity and is sincere in his commitment to serving our community.”
