What is a sovereign citizen?
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On March 1, a Farmington police officer spotted an unusual, illegitimate license plate on a blue BMW. A traffic stop ensued, ending in a hail of gunfire that killed 25-year-old Chase Allan, who police say was reaching for a gun as officers attempted to pull him from the car.
Farmington Police Chief Eric Johnsen told reporters on Wednesday the license plate in question was a “sovereign” plate that is not legitimate in any state. Video from KUTV news shows what appears to be a license plate on the back of Allan’s car with a Title 4 flag, an iteration of the American flag with red, vertical stripes. The flag is a common symbol among sovereign citizens.
Sovereign citizens belong to a fringe political movement that believes the federal government holds no jurisdiction over them and that they do not have to abide by U.S. or state laws.
The FBI lists the group as a domestic terrorist movement, and describes them as “a loose network of individuals.”
“This group maintains that the Constitution of the United States provides for the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and that means the right to travel freely, and without restriction,” said Greg Skordas, a lawyer and former Democrat candidate for Utah attorney general. “This is somewhat true if a person is walking down the street. But our Constitution has repeatedly been defined to indicate that to operate a motor vehicle on a road, the driver must meet certain criteria.”
Content retrieved from: https://www.deseret.com/utah/2023/3/10/23632303/what-is-a-sovereign-citizen-farmington-police-shooting.
