All Members,
The Virginia State Police Association upholds the enforcement actions by Virginia State Police Senior Trooper R.G. Hindenlang in the early morning hours of March 6, 2021 in Fairfax County. A highly-respected and tenured sworn member of the Virginia State Police, Senior Trooper Hindenlang conducted himself in a very professional manner throughout the entire encounter. The facts of this stop, supported by the Trooper’s narrative and the in-car dashboard video, make it clear Senior Trooper Hindenlang did absolutely nothing wrong.
The following statement was released to the media by the Department in the wake of this traffic stop.
On March 6, 2021 at approximately 2:21 a.m., Virginia State Police Sr. Trooper R.G. Hindenlang initiated a traffic stop on a Honda sedan that was traveling on I-495. The trooper and a trainee had observed the Honda traveling on I-495 without any headlights or taillights, tailgating other vehicles and making unsafe lane changes, which are indicators of an impaired driver and provided reasonable suspicion for the trooper to initiate a traffic stop.
When the trooper activated his emergency lights and siren to initiate the traffic stop, the Honda continued a ways before pulling onto the right shoulder of the Exit 173 off ramp. The vehicle stopped and as the trooper pulled in behind, the Honda drove off. The Honda continued driving down the ramp onto South Van Dorn Street and then turned onto Oakwood Road, where it pulled to the right side of the road and stopped again.
The trooper and his female trooper-trainee walked up to the Honda to engage the driver, Juanisha Brooks, 34. The trooper repeatedly asked for Ms. Brooks to exit her vehicle, so as to prevent her from driving off a second time. Ms. Brooks refused to comply, despite the trooper's repeated requests for her cooperation. During Ms. Brooks' conversation with the troopers, she admitted to having consumed alcohol prior to driving. The trooper afforded her the opportunity to complete field sobriety tests to confirm her sobriety, but she refused.
She was transported to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, where her BAC was tested on a certified Intoxilyzer. She was taken before a magistrate and charged with one misdemeanor count of eluding, one misdemeanor count of obstruction of justice, reckless driving and for failing to have her headlights on. She was released on bond.
Ms. Brooks never filed a formal complaint nor directly contacted the Virginia State Police concerning the traffic stop. State police learned about her concerns through a third party and took it upon ourselves to contact her and follow up on her concerns. It was after that conversation took place that state police self-initiated an internal administrative review and investigation of the traffic stop. A secondary request for an administrative review was made by the Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney. The administrative investigation remains ongoing.
Taking Ms. Brooks into custody was due to her persistent refusal to comply with the trooper's requests. Her arrest was the result of Department policy:
Driving under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs
a. The sworn employee will observe the behavior of the operator to evaluate the ability to operate the vehicle safely, to include a field sobriety test if appropriate.
b. If the operator is believed to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs to the extent that further operation of the vehicle would pose a hazard, the sworn employee will place the operator under arrest and advise of the implied consent law §18.2-268.2 of the Code of Virginia.
c. If the operator refuses to be tested, the procedures described in §18.2-268.3 of the Code of Virginia will be followed.
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At no time during the traffic stop did any Virginia State Police personnel make a direct or indirect reference to Ms. Brooks’ race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, etc. The Virginia State Police adheres to strict policies regarding employee conduct and requires our employees to perform their duties with exceptional professionalism and integrity, and to treat the public with fairness and respect at all times.
For almost a year we have heard nothing but the police need to be held more accountable. What about citizens who choose to violate the law? At what point are they held accountable for their lawless acts? At what point are prosecutors held responsible for refusing to prosecute violations of the law? The “rule of law” in this country is quickly eroding. Whether we are talking about illegal drugs or even traffic offenses, too many individuals in Virginia have adopted an attitude of, “we don’t agree with the law, so we will ignore it” and even worse, “we don’t like law enforcement, so we will ignore them.” Such reckless abandonment of civility and a blatant disrespect for the laws that govern us will be the downfall of this country. For almost 90 years, the Virginia State Police and its members have always held themselves responsible for their acts and always will. However, when the day arrives that a Trooper cannot take appropriate enforcement actions when he/she observes a car in the middle of the night driving erratically and without any headlights on a busy interstate; has the driver disregard his lawful commands; and is then widely criticized and discredited for doing his/her job then we - as a society - are in serious trouble. It appears that day has arrived.
The VSPA Board of Directors
