Woman arrested over 'speed trap' sign

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HOUSTON, June 28 (UPI) -- A Houston woman said she was wrongfully arrested by police for holding up a "speed trap" sign near where an officer was pulling over motorists.

Natalie Plummer said she wrote "speed trap" on a grocery bag and held it at the roadside on West Dallas June 21 after she spotted an officer pulling motorists over while she was riding home on her bicycle, KTRK-TV, Houston, reported Thursday.

"I felt like he was just pulling random cars over," Plummer said.

Plummer said an officer drove up to her after a few minutes, searched her backpack without consent and placed her under arrest.

"He was telling me he was taking me to jail for obstructing justice, that was an automatic three to five years," Plummer said.

However, she was only cited with a misdemeanor count of walking in the roadway where there is a sidewalk present.

"I for sure did not step into the street," Plummer said. "(I stayed) on the sidewalk the entire time."

A police representative said Plummer, who spent 12 hours in jail, was "in the roadway" and "was a danger to herself and others ... the sum total of which was is an arrestable offense."