FORT BEND COUNTY, TX (KTRK/CNN) – A truck owner with a message to President Donald Trump and his voters that included the F-word was released on bond after she was arrested for an outstanding warrant.
“F--- Trump and f--- you for voting for him” reads Karen Fonseca's controversial truck decal, which also shows a hand giving the middle finger.
Fonseca was arrested Thursday after the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office says they received a tip about an outstanding warrant.
Records show the woman was accused of fraud.
One day prior to her arrest, Sheriff Troy E. Nehls posted on Facebook, saying he’d received complaints about the Trump sticker and that it may be illegal.
Fonseca’s husband, Mike Fonseca, says she was arrested at their home in front of her 6-year-old daughter, and he questions the timing of the arrest.
"I think it's for the sticker. I think 'cause, if Nehls wants to talk to us, we're not going to call him and talk to him. I think that's the only way he can talk to her is to have her picked up and put in jail, so he can talk to her,” Mike Fonseca said.
Karen Fonseca’s bail was set at $1,500. She was released late Thursday night.
The woman says she didn’t know she had a warrant.
"People abuse the badge in my opinion, and money talks – money on that end and people with money on the other end. This was the first time today I turned around, and he said, 'We have a warrant.' And I go, 'Can I see it? What is it for?' And I said, 'I've never even known I had one,’” Karen Fonseca said.
The Fort Bend County district attorney says having the sticker is not a crime, and he would not take up the case.
In his since-deleted Facebook post, Nehls said he wanted to speak to the truck’s owner to see if they could agree on a modification to the message. Otherwise, the driver could be charged with disorderly conduct.
Karen Fonseca says she’s surprised Nehls couldn’t reach her, as she’s open to sitting down with him, but she insists she has no plans to remove the sign.
The woman says she had the decal custom made 11 months ago for $25. Her main issue with the president is she disagrees with his promised border wall.
The case has sparked debate about the nature of free speech.
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