An altercation between a woman and her family and a ‘Karen’—which resulted in the ‘Karen’s’ arrest—recently went viral after being posted on TikTok.
In the original video, TikToker Bianca Figueroa (@esposatoxica) stands on a sidewalk next to another woman, later identified as Sandra “Sandy” Jean Allen. Allen screams “help me” and “fire” before questioning why the interaction is being filmed.
She then asks if someone should call ISIS, later correcting herself to ‘I.C.E’ (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement). Figueroa understands this as an indication that the confrontation was, at least in part, racist in nature. Allen follows this by questioning if Figueroa and her family are “triggered.”
Someone off-camera then claims that Allen is a kindergarten teacher. The Daily Dot has confirmed that Allen was previously a kindergarten teacher but is currently retired.
The video currently has over 2.4 million views.
@esposatoxica Another day, another racist Karen 🥴
♬ original sound – Bianca Emma Figueroa
In a series of follow-up videos, Figueroa provides further insight into what happened.
According to Figueroa, she was walking down the street with three of her younger siblings and her foster child when she encountered Allen.
Figueroa says she moved out of the way so Allen could go around her on the sidewalk, at which point Allen allegedly responded, “as you should.”
Hearing this, and knowing that several young children were watching her, Figueroa says she decided to calmly confront Allen.
“I said, ‘That was not kind. You should not say that, and the kind thing to do is that we both move out of each other’s way,’” Figueroa recalls.
This purportedly resulted in a standoff between Figueroa and Allen. When Figueroa affirmed again that she would not move and made a joke about the situation, she claims Allen punched her in the neck. The punch can be seen in a clip posted to Figueroa’s Instagram.
Figueroa says she quickly retaliated and a fight broke out. The police were called and, according to the next video, Figueroa’s mother helped to break apart the fight, which resulted in the situation on view in the original video.
At this point, Allen allegedly attempted to leave the scene, shoving Figueroa’s brother-in-law in the process. Allen then allegedly began to scratch Figueroa.
After more arguing, the Tiktoker says Allen entered a restaurant, at which point Figueroa and her family waited outside. The manager of the restaurant then allegedly came out and accused Figueroa and her family of harassing Allen. The family responded by informing the manager that the police were on their way and Allen had assaulted Figueroa.
When the sheriff arrived, he allegedly asked Figueroa, “So, are you guys the problem?”
In another video, Figueroa continues her story. When the police came, Figueroa and her husband realized that they would need to approach the situation carefully if they were to be believed, she says.
“My husband pulled me to the side, and he’s like, ‘Babe, I need you to wipe those tears. You do not have the privilege to break down right now. Your family needs you. If you were white…you could cry, you could do whatever you want. But you are not white. You are brown, and he’s not going to listen to you if you are an emotional wreck,’” Figueroa says.
“As heart-wrenching as that was, I knew he was telling the truth,” Figueroa admits. “Because it was true! I knew I was not going to be listened to if I was an emotional wreck.”
Figueroa then allegedly told the officer that she had video documentation of the fact that they did not start the fight. At that moment, another man, who was white, approached the officer as well and said that they had witnessed the entire event and could verify Figueroa’s claims.
At this point, Allen was allegedly running away from the scene.
The officers eventually caught up with Allen and interrogated her for “a good hour,” Figueroa says.
After the conversation concluded, the TikToker says the sheriff and an officer from the city came and spoke with her and her family. The sheriff allegedly noticed that Figueroa’s family was filming the interaction and chastised them for it, to which Figueroa and her family responded that they were doing it for their own safety.
The officer and sheriff then pulled Figueroa aside and allegedly told her that Allen had claimed Figueroa and her family were harassing her. She says they then stated that there was no evidence that the crime Figueroa alleged to have happened actually took place.
Hearing this, Figueroa informed the officers again that she had recorded the assault—a fact the sheriff had allegedly omitted from the officer. When the officer asked to see it, Figueroa says she showed her the footage, which she claims resulted in the immediate arrest of Allen.
The aforementioned post on Figueroa’s Instagram shows Allen’s arrest record. According to that same post, Allen was later convicted of assault, to which she pleaded guilty.
In a final video, Figueroa says the officer apologized. Still, Figueroa claims the ordeal reminded her about the injustice present in the American legal system.
“For me to have to go through all of this to get this done literally puts it in perspective…why brown people do not get the justice they deserve,” she details. “They have to jump through fucking hoops in order to get there, and that’s taking away the consideration that I have the mental, emotional stability to really calm myself down, ground myself, and be able to hold a conversation with an officer to explain and defend myself on a situation I did not cause. Whenever I realized this, it made me so, incredibly angry for the justice system.”
She attributes the success of their case to the family’s ability to communicate with the officers, which she notes many do not have the ability to do.
“We all knew the language. We all knew how to defend ourselves,” she explains. “We all knew how to ground ourselves from our emotions and be able to hold an actual, educated conversation with the officers, and we didn’t lose our shit. That’s how we got a conviction.”
Viewers were overwhelmingly supportive of Figueroa.
“You did an amazing job sharing this story,” wrote one user. “Puts so much into perspective and I’m happy you got the justice you deserve.”
“Finally!!!! A good outcome !!” added another. “So sorry this happened to you and your family but I’m glad she didn’t get away with it!”
“And this is exactly why filming helps,” shared a third. “So sad that it has to get to this.”
We’ve reached out to Sandy via Facebook message, Figueroa via Instagram direct message, and the Henderson County Sheriff’s Department via email.
