What happened to Agueda de Dominguez de Flores during a traffic stop in Manassas Park in February boiled down to miscommunication, her attorneys said Thursday.
Flores claimed she was assaulted by a Manassas Park police officer during a traffic stop Feb. 2, when she was charged with driving without her license, driving with a broken headlight and resisting arrest. The resisting arrest charge was later amended to obstruction of justice.
After a hearing in Prince William General District Court on Thursday, a judge found Flores not guilty of obstruction of justice.
The judge dismissed the other two charges before the trial, said defense attorney Stuart Sears.
The driving without a license charge was dismissed because Flores proved she has a valid license but just didn't have it with her that day. The broken headlight charge was dismissed because she proved she fixed it, Sears said.
During the hearing, the judge watched a videotape of the Feb. 2 incident, recorded by video equipment in the police car.
Sears said the video showed that the main problem between Flores and the officer, Lt. P.R. Prinz, was one of miscommunication. The police officer did not speak much Spanish and Flores did not speak much English, Sears said.
"It was pretty clear ... that there was a communication problem," Sears said.
The video showed Prinz ask Flores to turn on her high beams and tell him her address. Flores did not understand either request, Sears said.
"At various times, [Prinz] had to repeat himself," Sears said. "The main circumstance was that they had a very difficult time communicating with each other."
Flores was pulled over for driving with a broken headlight on Manassas Drive about 6:30 p.m.
The police officer asked for her driver's license, but Flores, who had a valid license, said she had left it at home, according to news reports at the time.
Prinz wrote a traffic citation, but Flores said she refused to sign it, because she did not know English.
According to the lieutenant's testimony today, no Spanish-speaking officers were available at that time.
Flores alleged that after she refused to sign the citation, Prinz sprayed some kind of chemical in her face, pulled her from the car and threw her down to the ground.
She said she suffered a swollen eye and other facial injuries.
The judge ruled today that Flores' actions did not amount to obstruction of justice.
"She is very grateful and happy with the judge and with the court decision reached today," said Ricardo Juarez, general coordinator of Mexicans Without Borders, who said he was acting as Flores' spokesman because she does not speak much English.
Juarez said Flores also wanted to thank the community for supporting her.
In February, Mexicans Without Borders led a march from Manassas Park to the Prince William County courthouse in support of Flores.
State police are investigating to determine whether Manassas Park police acted improperly, but information about the status of that investigation was not available today.
Simon Moshenberg, a lawyer Flores hired to represent her in any civil matters, said he believes the Virginia State Police investigation is ongoing.
He said his client will wait to see the outcome of that investigation before deciding whether to pursue any civil action against the police department.
Amanda Stewart is a staff writer at the Woodbridge/Manassas News & Messenger.
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