Cesar Baldelomar: Harvard Graduate Pulled Over For Playing ‘F**k Tha Police’ On His Car Stereo

Cesar Baldelomar is a Harvard graduate who spent the last year studying law at Florida International University, so when a cop in Hialeah, Florida pulled him over for playing the N.W.A. song “F**k Tha Police,” Baldelomar knew immediately that it wasn’t legal.

He let the police officer know it too, and now, the case is making national headlines as the latest story about police overreaching their authority. The story is gaining national attention thanks to coverage from the Miami New Times, which gave Baldelomar’s account of the incident.

Baldelomar said he was driving to his mother’s house on Thanksgiving morning with his car stereo turned up. He pulled up to a stoplight near where police officer Harold Garzon was standing, and at that moment, the song “F**k Tha Police” happened to come on the radio (Baldelomar said it was just a coincidence).

Garzon instructed Cesar Baldelomar to pull over, but the Harvard graduate then schooled the cop about Florida’s laws.

The Miami New Times described the encounter.

“Garzon is a buzzcutted cop with sleeve tattoos and sunglasses. He’s also a 17-year veteran with 16 internal affairs cases against him, according to records. (It’s unclear how many were sustained; Hialeah PD didn’t respond to New Times’ requests for comment.)”

“But Baldelomar is no Hialeah bro. He’s a double Harvard graduate now studying law at Florida International University. So when Garzon told him it was illegal to play loud music within 25 feet of another person, Baldelomar called bullshit.”

“In 2012 the state supreme court struck down any law banning loud music,” he says. “I knew that because it was a case I had actually studied in law school.”

Officer Harold Garzon ended up issuing three tickets to Cesar Baldelomar — for not having a physical insurance card (Baldelomar noted that the state is now supposed to accept digital versions, which he had), for having an out-of-state license plate, and for not wearing a seat belt (Baldelomar claims he had his belt on the entire time).

The case comes as protests against police abuses have grown nationwide. The shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri sparked months of protests, which grew even more intense when officer Darren Wilson was not indicted for the shooting. Similar protests have arisen after killings of Eric Garner in Staten Island and 12-year-old Tamir Rice in Cleveland.

Baldelomar said he plans to fight the tickets, and hopes the case highlights the way police can trample on the rights of others.

“I’m educated. I know my rights. And I speak English, so I can fight this,” he points out. “But what about when this happens to someone who’s not so lucky? Policing has to change in this country.”

Cesar Baldelomar said he also plans to file a complaint against officer Harold Garzon.