DALLAS (Oct. 24) -- Dallas police officers have improperly cited drivers for not being able to speak English 38 times in the past three years, Chief David Kunkle said Friday. The discovery came after a woman was pulled over earlier this month for making an illegal U-turn and was given a ticket for being a "non-English speaking driver." The police chief said the citations are disappointing for Dallas, a city where the Latinos make up 44 percent of the more than 1 million residents and nearly 45 percent speak a language other than English.
Kunkle said his department's computer system for citations has a pull-down menu that includes a law requiring drivers of commercial vehicles to speak English. The chief said he believes the federal law was misapplied to local drivers of private vehicles.
At least six officers wrote the citations, including one who wrote five of them, Kunkle said at a news conference. The officers and their commanders are under investigation, and Dallas police also plan to look beyond the last three years to see if other citations turn up, Kunkle said.
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