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Black Woman Detained For Walking On Wrong Side Of The Road, White Man Walks Free In Viral Video
A Black pregnant woman was ticketed by Texas police for walking on the wrong side of the road while her white husband remained unbothered, according to a now-viral video detailing the interaction.
Brad Townes and his wife, Akia, were out in their neighborhood in Groves, Texas, just two houses down from where they lived on the right side of Madison Boulevard, and were looking for their missing dog when the latter was stopped.
Highlights
- A black pregnant Texas woman was ticketed for walking on the wrong side of the road while her white husband remained unbothered.
- Akia was ticketed for violating the Texas Transportation Code.
- Many people, including the hired attorney, believe it was a racially motivated situation.
“Two cops stopped me,” Akia recounted to KFDM. “They walked out with their hands on their guns, and then they asked me to see my ID.”
Perhaps noticing the situation could go sour, her husband pulled out his phone and started filming, saying, “Can’t walk while Black in Groves.”
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A Black pregnant woman was detained and ticketed for walking on the wrong side of the road while her white husband walked free
Image credits: Pixabay/Pexels (Not the actual photo)
In the video, a female police officer could be seen talking to Akia before approaching Brad with the traffic law pulled up on her cellphone, stating that under the Texas Transportation Code, a pedestrian must walk on the “left side of the roadway” unless that side is obstructed.
“She was not walking on this side of the road,” the officer said.
“What does it matter?” Brad replied.
When the police said, “It’s a traffic violation,” the husband merely responded with, “No, it’s not.”
Akia could later be heard telling Brad, “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.”
Image credits: Akia Townes/Facebook
Image credits: Akia Townes/Facebook
The couple tried protesting, but the two responding officers called for backup. The Groves Police Department stated four officers ended up at the scene, two of whom were in-field training and shadowing others.
Akia was then ticketed for a traffic violation.
As Brad later sat down with the outlet, he explained, “I feel like they looked and saw an easy target that nobody was going to come and defend and that nobody was going to come help.”
Officers showed them the Texas Transportation Code, which stated that pedestrians must walk on the left side of the roadway unless it is obstructed
Image credits: Smash Da Topic/Facebook
Echoing his sentiment, Akia said it just felt like “an excessive force of power” on their part.
“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 said, adding that she’s since hired an attorney to fight the ticket she received.
She also wrote on Facebook on Friday, April 4, “The excessive use of force on a small black pregnant woman was [too] much, I will forever be traumatized from this situation. I don’t feel safe in my own neighborhood, not from people but from the police department.”
Image credits: Smash Da Topic/Facebook
Her attorney, Langston Adams, remains firmly on her side, believing the incident was racially motivated.
“It’s not a question of whether she was breaking the law,” he told KFDM. “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.”
Despite these claims, however, Groves City Marshal Chris Robin has addressed any “concerns” that have arisen, reassuring citizens that their department does not tolerate any discrimination in a statement.
He wrote, “We understand the concerns raised regarding recent enforcement actions by our officers and want to take this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to transparency, accountability, and equal treatment for all members of our community.”
Akia believed it to be a case of racial profiling and hired an attorney to protest the ticket she received
Image credits: Smash Da Topic/Facebook
Image credits: Smash Da Topic/Facebook
According to the message, all officers are required to “ensure public safety and apply the law fairly” without any bias or prejudice.
“In this particular case, officers were enforcing provisions of the Texas Transportation Code, a responsibility they are legally and ethically required to perform. Enforcement of the law is not selective, and no one is above it.”
He added, “Allegations of misconduct are taken seriously and thoroughly investigated through appropriate channels.”
But a statement from the police department assured citizens that it was not a case of discrimination
Image credits: Brad Townes/Facebook
But some on social media think this was an insincere attempt to save their own skin.
With the video having circulated among countless people, it appears as if the majority believe the officers had no right to ticket Akia.
“It’s kinda insane how this white man is being so openly confrontational with the police, and they’re still continuing to harass a black woman minding her own business and walking,” one person commented on Instagram. “And people still don’t believe white privilege is real.”
Image credits: Brad Townes/Facebook
Image credits: Akia Townes/Facebook
We understand the concerns raised regarding recent enforcement actions by our officers and want to take this opportunity…
Posted by Groves Police Department on Wednesday, April 2, 2025
Another angrily asked, “This why people dont go outside anymore what the f*ck is walking on the wrong side of the road? They’re just making sh*t up.”
“Walking on the wrong side of the street hmm?” a third chimed in. “Wonder if they’ll start arresting people for using the wrong water fountain next? There’s no defending this sh*t. Blatant racial profiling.”
Anti-police sentiment, also known as negative attitudes and distrust directed towards law enforcement or individual police officers, isn’t a new phenomenon. It has always floated around, with its roots being traced back to the early days of policing.
Image credits: dechevm/Adobe Stock (Not the actual photo)
Groves Couple Alleges Racial Profiling After Ticket for Sidewalk Violation
Groves Couple Alleges Racial Profiling After Ticket for Sidewalk Violation
A Groves couple, Akia and Brad Townes, is alleging racial bias after officers ticketed Akia for walking on the wrong side of the road while trying to retrieve her dog near their home. The incident escalated when police approached with their hands on their guns, prompting Brad to record the confrontation. They argue that the aggressive response was excessive for a minor violation and suspect selective enforcement, as Brad was not ticketed despite also walking on the prohibited side. The couple has since hired an attorney to contest the citation and advocate against what they view as an abuse of power… via: satyricon323/tt
Posted by Smash Da Topic on Tuesday, April 8, 2025
But after the m*rder of George Floyd in 2020, where a 44-year-old white police officer named Derek Chauvin suffocated the 46-year-old black American man with his knee, it’s become a crucial topic of conversation once more.
Protests and outrage sparked under Floyd’s name as a wave of racial unrest followed. A surge of anti-police attacks were reported as the FBI stated in 2021, “103 ambush-style attacks on law enforcement officers [took place] this year, which was an increase of 115% from 2020, and resulted in 130 officers being shot.”
Comments slammed the police department for their actions
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What do you think ?
Bernd Herbert 7 months ago
Ah yes, the land of the free strikes again. “Walking while black” is a thing, regardless of the fact that the current administration would kikely to ignore these things
Nova Rook 7 months ago
In America they will now ask you to show your papers. America is an emerging f*****t state with a f*****t nation clamoring for more of it.
Tamra 7 months ago
I agree with the first part of your statement, but not the last. We recently had massive protests, with over three million people participating across the entire country, in nearly every state. And that's just the beginning. Many of us see what's happening, and plan to fight every step of the way.
Load More Replies...
Tabitha 7 months ago (edited)
The immediate OTT escalation toward OP, while ignoring the husband and not stopping him for the same thing, are what are suspect, and make it obvious that the stop was racially motivated. Even if walking there actually was against the law to walk in that side of the road (maybe prompted by too many people getting hit by cars for walking there or something, I don’t know), a law that’s obviously not common knowledge, then OK make the stop, but just politely inform them of the law and let them off with just a warning. Simple warnings happen all the damned time, especially if it’s the first time someone has been stopped for something, as we are not all aware of every obscure and long unenforced law still on the books. FFS, it took until 1995 for another southern state, Mississippi, to finally officially abolish all their old slave laws that they hadn’t enforced in 130 years—-and thank goodness no shyster lawyer or politician ever tried to resurrect during that time.
Bernd Herbert 7 months ago
Ah yes, the land of the free strikes again. “Walking while black” is a thing, regardless of the fact that the current administration would kikely to ignore these things
Nova Rook 7 months ago
In America they will now ask you to show your papers. America is an emerging f*****t state with a f*****t nation clamoring for more of it.
Tamra 7 months ago
I agree with the first part of your statement, but not the last. We recently had massive protests, with over three million people participating across the entire country, in nearly every state. And that's just the beginning. Many of us see what's happening, and plan to fight every step of the way.
Load More Replies... Tabitha 7 months ago (edited)
The immediate OTT escalation toward OP, while ignoring the husband and not stopping him for the same thing, are what are suspect, and make it obvious that the stop was racially motivated. Even if walking there actually was against the law to walk in that side of the road (maybe prompted by too many people getting hit by cars for walking there or something, I don’t know), a law that’s obviously not common knowledge, then OK make the stop, but just politely inform them of the law and let them off with just a warning. Simple warnings happen all the damned time, especially if it’s the first time someone has been stopped for something, as we are not all aware of every obscure and long unenforced law still on the books. FFS, it took until 1995 for another southern state, Mississippi, to finally officially abolish all their old slave laws that they hadn’t enforced in 130 years—-and thank goodness no shyster lawyer or politician ever tried to resurrect during that time.
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