Sovereign citizen gets dose of reality in Florida police stop

A run-of-the-mill traffic stop quickly escalated when a Florida driver claiming to be a sovereign citizen was pulled over.

Volusia Deputies pulled over a blue Ford truck on 11 November after noticing it had a “sovereign citizen tag,” the sheriff’s office wrote in a statement on Facebook.

In body camera footage posted by the sheriff’s office, the tag is visible, hanging in place of a state license plate on the back of the truck. The tag mentions “Global Postal Union Treaty” and “Geneva Convention neutral zone transport vehicle.” The tag also says “do not stop” and “do not detain” and features an American flag in the upper left corner.

“The reason why I’m stopping you, boss, is I didn’t recognise the tags on your vehicle,” the officer said. He asked for his licence and registration. The driver handed the officer a laminated piece of paper with the American flag in the upper left-hand corner.

When the officer pressed for the licence again, the driver pointed to the laminated paper and replied, “I have it right there.”

The driver was talking on speakerphone to a woman throughout the entire traffic stop. At this point, the woman on the other end of the line said, “Do not show him anything.” The driver told her that he was just showing the officer his paperwork, to which the woman shouted: “No, he doesn’t get to see any f***ing paperwork.”

The driver pointed the phone to the officer, who told the woman the man had to identify himself or “there’s gonna be an issue.” The woman then replied, “He’s a national of the neutral powers state. As you know, that removes him from your jurisdiction.”

“It doesn’t matter who he’s identified as. He’s operating a motor vehicle in the state of Florida, ma’am,” the police officer retorted. He then explained the situation to the woman, saying that given his lack of proper tags, it appears “unregistered,” and since he hasn’t provided a licence, it appears the driver is operating a vehicle without one.

She kept insisting that he signed a “treaty” and that the officer was violating it. She then mentioned “the terms of the Geneva Convention.”

The officer checked the vehicle before telling the driver that it was unregistered. The driver said “Right there is all I got” when the deputy asked about having a Florida or out-of-state driver’s licence.

Fed up, the officers apprehended the driver. Moments later, the woman on the phone rolled up in a red truck. Officers ordered her to get out of her vehicle but she didn’t comply, so they smashed her driver-door window’s glass and arrested her as well, the footage shows.

Detry Wogerman was arrested on charges of driving an unregistered motor vehicle, driving with a suspended/revoked licence and resisting an officer without violence, the sheriff’s office wrote. Laralynne Nabozny was arrested on charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting an officer with violence, the statement added.

“Attention sovereign citizens: In Florida, the law is real, and deputies really will enforce it,” the sheriff’s office wrote.