The Rodney Reese lawsuit question has no clean public answer. In early 2021, civil rights attorney Lee Merritt said the family of the 18-year-old arrested by Plano police during Winter Storm Uri believed his federal civil rights had been violated and was “seeking federal civil rights action on his behalf.”1NBC DFW. Texas Bill Aims to Change Sidewalk Law Sparked by Arrest of Plano Teen During Winter Storm The available reporting does not confirm whether a federal suit was ultimately filed or whether a settlement was reached.
What Reese’s Lawyer Announced
Merritt said in the weeks after the February 2021 arrest that he was in “ongoing conversations with the City of Plano” and that the family was also working to have Reese’s arrest record expunged. By April 2021, the Plano Police Department had stopped commenting on the incident, citing “potential litigation.”1NBC DFW. Texas Bill Aims to Change Sidewalk Law Sparked by Arrest of Plano Teen During Winter Storm After that, the public record goes quiet on the civil side.
The Arrest Behind the Claim
On the night of February 16, 2021, with Dallas-Fort Worth temperatures in the teens, someone called police to report a Black man “stumbling and walking on Hedgcoxe Road” in North Plano in a short-sleeved shirt.2NBC DFW. Police Investigating Incident of Teen Arrest During Winter Storm3Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Charge Dropped Against Black Teen Arrested Walking Home in Snow
After about seven minutes, when Reese tried to keep walking and told officers, “I don’t care. I’m going home,” they handcuffed him.4NBC News. Charge Dropped Against Black Teenager Who Was Walking Home From Work He was booked on a Class C misdemeanor charge of “pedestrian in the roadway” and spent the night in jail.3Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Charge Dropped Against Black Teen Arrested Walking Home in Snow
Why the Charge Was Dropped
On February 22, 2021, Plano Police Chief Ed Drain announced that the charge was being dropped. Drain said officers had “insufficient evidence” and that “the arrest wasn’t consistent with the reason officers were there, to provide assistance.”4NBC News. Charge Dropped Against Black Teenager Who Was Walking Home From Work He added, “They should’ve taken him home, is where he should’ve gone.”5FOX 4 News. Plano Police Say Charge Dropped for 18-Year-Old Arrested While Walking Home From Work in the Snow
Reese was blunt about what he thought drove the stop: “Just ’cause I’m Black, that’s it. I don’t even think the call would’ve happened” otherwise.5FOX 4 News. Plano Police Say Charge Dropped for 18-Year-Old Arrested While Walking Home From Work in the Snow Drain said he did not believe race was a factor but acknowledged, “I can’t get inside people’s hearts, I can’t get inside people’s heads.”6KERA News. Charge Dropped Against Black Man Walking on Icy Texas Street
What Plano Changed
Drain opened an administrative inquiry into the department’s policies and procedures after the arrest.7CBS News Texas. Plano Texas Police Chief Initiates Administrative Inquiry Into Arrest of Black Teen Rodney Reese A department public information officer later said the officers “followed all department policies” as they existed at the time. The department did adopt one concrete change: officers now need supervisor approval before making most arrests involving Class C misdemeanors.8KRIS-TV. New State Law Allows Walking on Roads When Sidewalks Are Blocked or Unsafe
The Law the Case Produced: Texas HB 1277
The most tangible result tied to Reese’s arrest came through the Texas Legislature. An initial attempt, House Bill 3925 in the 87th session from Rep. Nicole Collier and Rep. Briscoe Cain, cleared the House transportation committee unanimously but did not pass that session.1NBC DFW. Texas Bill Aims to Change Sidewalk Law Sparked by Arrest of Plano Teen During Winter Storm
In the 88th Legislature, House Bill 1277, authored by Rep. Cain and carried in the Senate by Sen. Royce West, succeeded.9Texas Tribune. Texas New Law Pedestrian Walking Roads Sidewalk It repealed Section 552.006(b) of the Texas Transportation Code, which had required pedestrians to walk on the left side of the roadway facing oncoming traffic when no sidewalk was available, and it allows pedestrians to walk on roadways when sidewalks are obstructed or unsafe.10Texas Legislature Online. HB 1277 Bill Analysis The House passed it 142-2 on April 20, 2023, and the Senate approved it 30-1 on May 16, 2023. The law took effect on September 1, 2023.11Texas Legislature Online. HB 1277 Enrolled Bill Text
West said the measure was meant to “disincentivize police officers from ‘messing with’ people of color” and “reduce the chances of people being targeted because of the color of their skin.” Of Reese specifically, he said, “The only thing [Reese] was guilty of is walking while Black.”8KRIS-TV. New State Law Allows Walking on Roads When Sidewalks Are Blocked or Unsafe For a searcher looking for a courtroom resolution, that statute, not a verdict or a settlement figure, is the public outcome on the record.