The wife of NFL linebacker Zach Thomas says she, too, was mistreated by Dallas police Officer Robert Powell, who wrote her five tickets and arrested her during a July 2008 traffic stop.

But Dallas police say it is not unusual for an officer to arrest someone who is issued three or more citations during one traffic stop.

"If there are so many violations that it could be viewed that it's an egregious situation, that person can be arrested," said Assistant Chief Floyd Simpson, who oversees the department's seven patrol divisions.

Simpson said he did not know the details of Powell's encounter with Maritza Thomas on July 27, 2008, after the officer pulled her over for an illegal U-turn near NorthPark Center.

The Thomases went public with their story after recognizing Powell on a video that shows him detaining Houston Texans running back Ryan Moats outside a hospital this month while Moats' mother-in-law was dying inside.

In addition to a ticket for the illegal U-turn, Powell wrote Thomas four other tickets. They were for failure to show proof of insurance, running a red light, improper address on her driver's license and not having a registration sticker on the windshield.

Based on those citations alone, an arrest would not be required, but it also generally would not be inappropriate, Simpson said.

"It's a judgment thing on the cops at that moment," Simpson said. "The core of what we do is just discretion, and it needs to be that way."

Judge C. Victor Lander, the city of Dallas' chief municipal judge, called it "relatively rare" for an officer to arrest someone on the spot.

"It really is giving the individual a break by issuing them a ticket. But it's a break most people get," Lander said.

In Thomas' case, all the citations except for the illegal U-turn one were dropped. A pharmacist with no prior criminal record, she accepted deferred adjudication for that charge, and her record will be cleared next month.

The Thomases said Powell was dismissive, but they did not accuse him of using abusive language. They did not file a complaint at the time, but they say they plan to now.

According to the Dallas police Web site, complaints against an officer must be made within 60 days of an incident, except in special cases, including criminal misconduct or when good cause can be shown by the person making the complaint.