A TikTok video posted by content creator @aleksandrebialous has attracted more than 2.1 million views and 1,645 comments after she shared a story about challenging a police officer in court when she was just 18. The creator, who goes by Ola, explained how she decided to represent herself after receiving a fine for allegedly using her phone while driving. Despite having no legal representation, she ultimately won the case.
Ola explained that it all began one night around 11 p.m., when she was driving to visit her boyfriend, who lived about an hour away. As she approached a red light, she stopped behind three vehicles. When the light turned green, she decided to overtake all three cars but noticed orange lights flashing in the parallel lane.
Despite seeing the flashing lights, Ola continued driving and overtook the vehicles ahead of her. As she passed the orange lights, she noticed a police officer jump in front of her car and signal for her to pull over. The officer was conducting a random breath test (RBT) stop.
Ola denied the officer's claim that she had been speeding. He then asked her to take a breath test, which came back negative for alcohol. Next, the officer asked to see her driver's license. As she tapped her phone screen to find it, Spotify appeared on the screen.
The officer questioned why she had been using Spotify while driving. Ola explained that she had been listening to music before she started driving.
According to Ola, Australian road rules prohibit drivers from using a handheld phone while driving, including for activities such as accessing Spotify or Google Maps. She explained that a phone must be secured in a fixed holder to use certain functions while driving.
Ola then said that, after unlocking her phone, another app appeared: Apple Maps. This ultimately became the basis of her court case. When the officer questioned her about the app, she explained that she had forgotten it was open after using it to check the estimated arrival time for her destination.
TikToker Recalls the Police Officer's Advice Before Her Court Hearing
Despite Ola's explanation, the officer told her that Apple Maps had been active on her phone and that she would receive a $600 fine and five demerit points for using a mobile device while driving.
Initially, Ola accepted the fine, but her mother encouraged her to contest it. She did so and received an email a few days later informing her that she had still been found guilty. However, she was given the option of taking the matter to court, which she decided to do.
One commenter questioned the rules around using navigation apps, writing, "I genuinely can't believe they don't allow maps. Like what do you do if you get lost?"
Six months later, on the day of the scheduled hearing, Ola said the same police officer who had fined her approached her. According to her, he said, "I really think that you should play guilty because we have all this video evidence. We have a transcript of what happened on the night, and you said that you were guilty because you were using Apple Maps. . . It would just save us a lot of time, and you, a lot of money if you just played guilty."
Ola said the officer convinced her to change her plea to "guilty with reason" rather than "not guilty." However, after reviewing the officer's body-camera footage and hearing Ola's plea, the judge reportedly told her that she should have pleaded not guilty.
Ola then changed her plea. When it was time to question the evidence in the officer's written report, she said she noticed that his account of the incident was inaccurate. In particular, she disputed his claim that Spotify had been active on her phone.
She proceeded to question the officer about the report. According to Ola, the judge supported her questioning and criticized the officer for including what she described as inaccurate information in his report.
Reacting to the video post, many commenters were excited that she won, and applauded her for standing her ground. One commenter wrote, "The fact that he KNOWS that police reports can only have facts and not assumptions and he still added it in! So glad you won girl!"
Another commenter advised her to become a lawyer because of her bravery and integrity. They wrote, "Oh sis, become a lawyer or better yet a judge! Standing up for justice at such a young age proves you were born for this! So proud of you!"
A separate commenter couldn't believe multimedia apps were prohibited while driving in Australia. They wrote, "Sitting here as an American FLOORED that you can't listen to Spotify, use Apple Maps or utilize either of those things via hands free car play."
The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the events described by TikTok creator @aleksandrebialous, which are based solely on her personal account shared in the video.
