Distracted driving is a dangerous issue that police officers take seriously. But when Katie Thomas, who runs the social media page Slightly Off Balance, was pulled over in Florida for the offense, she had questions. A Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputy writing the citation insisted that she was driving with her phone in her right hand. That didn’t make sense to her.
The woman uploaded a clip of the interaction in which she asks the deputy for clarification. According to the deputy, he witnessed Katie committing the driving infraction. Katie asked for clarification several more times because it would be impossible for her to hold a phone in her right hand. Why? She doesn’t have one.
In the video, which has been viewed over 40 million times on TikTok, Katie pokes fun at the situation. “Turns out you can still get a ticket for driving with a device in your right hand, even if you don’t have a right hand,” she says, holding up her arm. Clearly, the entire lower part of her right arm is missing.
After cutting to the bizarre interaction between herself and the deputy, Katie shows herself attempting to hold a phone with her nonexistent hand. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t work. In the video, the deputy can be heard saying, “If you want to take it to court, option five on the back of the ticket. That’s how you take it to court.”
Taking it to court is exactly what she planned to do.
The internet had a field day
One person begs, “Please take us to court with you, I want to hear the judge.”
Another writes, “I’m glad you recorded him saying it was the right hand otherwise I guarantee he would have lied later on and claim he never said that.”
“Ok but how would you be able to drive with a phone in ur LEFT hand anyway,” someone questions.
“Oh I wanna see a part 2. I know it sucks tho, cause you shouldn’t have to take time off work/life just to prove a cop wrong,” a person laments.
One commenter shares a cheeky way Katie could have handled the situation, writing, “I would have said ‘ok I’ll see you in court’ and waved with your right hand to get his reaction. And then still gone to court to let the judge know he was lying.”
Some people wonder why she didn’t tell the deputy on the spot that she didn’t have a right hand. But others argue that the deputy had already proven to be untrustworthy and would likely change his story. Katie didn’t respond to those questions, though some commenters noted that the deputy was standing right at her car window.
Katie appears to have a sense of humor limb difference, liking several comments that joke about her missing hand.
“I would have held my right hand out for the ticket. So glad you got that admission recorded,” someone writes.
“Cutting your hand off to get out of a traffic ticket is wild,” another jokes.
No court for Katie
As it turns out, the court date never happened. Days before her scheduled hearing, the deputy requested that the citation be dismissed, and on May 27, 2026, Katie confirmed on social media that the case was dropped, citing a lack of evidence. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office later said it dismissed the citation after reviewing state statutes and unclear violation labels in its citation software. In an interview with CBS News, she expressed compassion for the deputy, saying, “I would hope that he gives himself grace for the interaction.”
It’s a strange kind of vindication: no dramatic day in court, just a dismissal and an agency review of the case. Commenters had been gobsmacked from the start that she could be cited for this particular infraction, and plenty stuck around for the payoff. It’s proof that speaking up, and having the video to back it up, can sometimes get results.
This article originally appeared in March. It has been updated.
