Collin County man ticketed for honking horn at deputy

By Kelsy Mittauer, Jason Allen

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    COLLIN COUNTY, California (KTVT) — A Collin County man is facing an extremely rare traffic citation after an encounter that was caught on video.

Marshall Petre said when he merged onto Highway 75 near McKinney, he did not see any signs of traffic, trouble, emergencies – or a motorcycle coming up behind him.

“I check my mirror, go to move over and… he comes swinging past me,” said Petre. It was a Collin County deputy who Petre said sped ahead before settling into the flow of traffic.

“He didn’t have lights, sirens, nothing – he was just driving down the road.”

Petre said it was a matter of safety for the deputy and everyone else on the road. “If he would have lost control of that motorcycle… if I would have just clipped the front of his vehicle and he had an accident and potentially could have died from it,” said Petre. “I would’ve had to live with that guilt. I don’t want to carry that.”

So when Petre saw the deputy take the next exit, he did, too. “It wasn’t that I want to follow this guy,” said Petre. “It was more of, why? Why is his driving the way that he is?”

He pulled up behind the deputy at a four-way stop, honked his horn, and began recording.

After the deputy drove away, Petre pulled over and stayed at the intersection, striking up a conversation with a construction worker who had witnessed the exchange. They were still chatting several minutes later when the deputy came back, and Petre turned on his camera once more.

The deputy ended up citing Petre for illegal use of a horn. According to state code, a driver “shall use a horn to provide audible warning only when necessary to insure safe operation.”

The I-Team pulled records and found the citation is extremely rare in Texas. The most recent data on traffic stops from the Texas Department of Public Safety showed approximately 3.9 million traffic violations issued in 2022. We requested data on that specific citation and found that law enforcement issued just eight tickets for illegal use of a horn in all of 2022.

The ticket comes with a $189 fine, but that was not the worst of it for Petre. Dallas County had just issued an arrest warrant for an unpaid speeding ticket he received over the summer.

The deputy arrested Petre and towed his truck. He spent 16 hours in custody and paid $600 to get his pickup out of the impound lot.

An expensive encounter, but Petre still feels he had the right to question the deputy. “He just wanted to come back and make a point – be proven,” said Petre. “And he proved it. He did what he wanted to do.”

When we asked the Collin County Sheriff’s Office about the encounter, a spokesperson would only tell us that it is “under review.” The I-Team made a public information request for the citation information and body camera footage. The CCSO maintains it should not be released and is appealing to the Texas Attorney General’s Office for a ruling.

Petre has entered a not guilty plea and requested a jury trial. His next court hearing is scheduled for October 29th.

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