Black Woman Ticketed For Allegedly Walking On Wrong Side Of Road
‘Can’t Walk While Black’ — Pregnant Woman Ticketed For Walking On ‘Wrong Side’ Of The Road — But Her White Husband Wasn’t
Akia Townes was searching for her dog near Madison Boulevard in Groves, Texas, when she was allegedly ticketed for walking on the wrong side of the road, an act she called “an excessive show of power,” according to a report by local news station 6 KFDM. Townes’ husband, Brad Townes, filmed the now viral incident.
In April, Townes, who was pregnant at the time, was just two houses down from her home, while searching for her dog, when officers from the Grove Police Department “stopped” her for walking on the wrong side of the road, which is the right side, according to Texas Law.
“Two cops stopped me. They walked out with their hands on their guns, and then they asked me to see my ID,” Townes told 6 KFDM on April 4.
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Brad Townes, who is white, began recording on his phone as his wife interacted with police officers. In the video, he could be heard repeatedly saying, “Can’t walk while Black in Groves,” while filming the exchange.
As the officers spoke with her, Akia Townes shouted in frustration as police allegedly threatened to arrest her.
“They got crackheads, robbers, all this other stuff, but they want to arrest a Black person — a pregnant Black woman — for looking for her dog.”
Under the Texas Transportation Code, pedestrians are required to walk on the left side of the road, facing oncoming traffic, if there’s no sidewalk. While there’s no penalty listed on this specific chapter, general misdemeanors, which are outlined in Section 542.401 of Texas’ transportation code, are punishable by a fine of not less than $1 and not more than $200.
According to a video shared by Brad, the encounter grew tense, with voices raised on both sides, prompting officers to call for backup. Four officers ultimately arrived, which the Groves Police Department later explained was because two of them were in field training. Akia was reportedly given a ticket for the incident. Brad was not ticketed.
Reflecting on the incident, Akia Townes said, “It’s just very an excessive force of power for me just trying to go and find my dog.” The couple retained an attorney to contest the ticket, believing it represented an abuse of power over a minor matter.
“You could have easily said ‘hey ma’am,’ and I could have explained to you what I was trying to do, but then you threatened my husband and threatened me to go to jail,” she added.
Brad Townes added, “I feel like they looked and saw an easy target, and nobody was going to come and defend, and nobody was going to come help.”
Groves City Marshal Chris Robin responded to the situation, stating that the department does not tolerate racism and that safety was their top priority during the incident.
“We’ve seen so many different minor ordinance violations turn into something tragic, and we don’t want that to occur. We want to be able to make a difference in making our community safer,” Robin added.
Attorney Langston Adams told 6 KFDM that he reviewed the stop and the citation with the couple.
“It’s not a question of whether she was breaking the law,” Adams said. “We believe it’s selective enforcement and racial profiling. Why didn’t the husband get a ticket? He was also walking on the wrong side of the road, and he’s white. I believe they used her walking on the wrong side of the road as a pretext to stop her.”
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