Viral Indiana Traffic Stop Facebook Post Used to Educate Others

An Indiana motivational speaker’s viral Facebook post about a traffic stop is now being used to set an example.

Indiana State Trooper Aaron Weller pulled over Dwayne Bryant on Aug. 30th, 2015, while he was headed to a speaking engagement.

Bryant admitted he had been speeding, but when Weller handed him that speeding ticket, Bryant praised the trooper for treating him with respect.

“He came over and asked the questions do you know why I stopped you," Bryant said. "And we were able to have a really good quality dialogue. It allowed me to be able to be more understanding that these are human beings.”

Then, the trooper did something unexpected.

“I asked him to give me the ticket back and just felt it my heart it was the right thing to do and ripped the ticket up and wrote him a warning,” Weller said.

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Bryant immediately wrote about his experience on Facebook and it caught the attention of people around the country, including the Indiana State Police who turned the experience into a training video.

“The Indiana State Police, they’re making a concerted effort to train their officers to make sure they understand verbal judo and how to deescalate a situation,” Bryant said.

Trooper Weller hopes people learn from the story behind the traffic stop.

“There is no reason for them to show us disrespect we are not going to show them disrespect,” Weller said.