See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy WILKO MARTÍNEZ-CACHERO, US REPORTER Published: 06:36 BST, 28 May 2026 | Updated: 14:00 BST, 28 May 2026
A Florida police officer issued a ticket to an amputee for apparently holding her phone in a hand she does not have.Kathleen Thomas, 36, was pulled over on a highway and accused of having driven 'holding the phone with your right hand, manipulating that phone,' according to bodycam footage.But as soon as the county sheriff said that, Thomas held up her right arm, showing a stump where her limb would be and laughing hysterically.'Obviously not,' she said, still cracking up. 'So you want to just call this a day or?'However, the officer did not budge while Thomas insisted that he could not have seen her holding a phone in her right hand.He then bizarrely asked her to put a 'hand to God' and repeat that she had not been texting while driving in Lake Worth Beach, about one hour north of Miami, on February 11.'The other hand to God,' the officer responded when Thomas lifted up her stump. Kathleen Thomas, 36, was pulled over in Lake Worth Beach, Florida, and accused of holding her phone in her right hand However, Thomas does not have a right hand, as she promptly showed the police officer who stopped her on February 11Thomas then raised her other hand before the officer asked her for her license and registration.The citation listed Thomas's charge as 'Wireless Comm. Device/Handheld While Driving - First Offense' with a civil penalty of $116, according to CBS 12.In an Instagram video uploaded to a now–deleted personal account, Thomas said she was getting ready for court this week and had been sent the body camera footage.Thomas added that she had entered a not guilty plea remotely, according to Complex.However, Thomas ended up not having to appear in court.Records showed her citation was dismissed at the request of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office deputy who issued it.The scheduled court hearing was canceled when the case was dropped. Thomas was cited for her first offense and given a $116 ticket, which she was going to appeal, until her citation was dismissed at the request of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office deputy who issued it The unusual incident happened in Lake Worth Beach, about one hour north of MiamiFlorida law makes texting while driving a primary offense, meaning drivers can be pulled over for just that violation.Drivers cannot manually type or enter multiple letters, numbers, symbols or other characters into devices, according to state law.That includes texting, e–mailing and instant messaging.However, it includes several exceptions, as drivers can use devices for navigation, GPS, safety and emergency purposes.Still, that means that merely holding a phone is not illegal under current Florida law.'Whether she's holding it in her right hand or her left hand, it really doesn't matter,' traffic attorney Ted Hollander told CBS 12. 'If you are not in a school zone or a construction zone, you are allowed to hold a cell phone.'The Daily Mail has reached out to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office for comment.
