The police detective who arrested golfer Scottie Scheffler as the World No. 1 attempted to enter Valhalla Golf Club last Friday went through “corrective action” because his body-worn camera was turned off, chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel of the Louisville (Ky.) Metro Police Department said Thursday.
Det. Bryan Gillis was in violation of department policy, she said in a news conference.
“Detective Gillis did not have his body-worn camera operationally ready as required by our policy,” Gwinn-Villareal said. “He was performing a law-enforcement action as defined in our policy. … Detective Gillis should have turned on his body-worn camera but did not. His failure to do so is a violation of LMPD policy on uniforms and equipment.”
Gwinn-Villaroel said documentation of the violation was put in Gillis’ personnel file and that he received counseling from his supervisor.
“We understand the seriousness of the failure to capture this interaction, which is why our officer has received corrective action for this policy violation,” Gwinn-Villaroel said.
Also Thursday, the department released video footage from a local fixed security camera and from a police car dashboard camera, but the Louisville Courier-Journal said the altercation between Scheffler and Gillis is largely obscured.
The incident ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship occurred when Scheffler attempted to enter the course property around 6 a.m., an hour after a pedestrian was struck by a shuttle bus and killed. Traffic was tied up, and Scheffler tried to go around the back up when he encountered Gillis.
In a police incident report, Gillis said Scheffler didn’t follow an order to stop and that the golfer drove off after Gillis attempted to stop him, knocking the detective to the ground. According to police, Gillis was taken to a hospital for evaluation of pain along with swelling and abrasions to his left wrist and knee.”
Scheffler has said the incident was a result of a “misunderstanding” but nevertheless faces a felony charge of second-degree assault of a police officer as well as lesser charges of third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving and disregarding traffic signals from an officer directing traffic.
The 27-year-old Scheffler is scheduled to be arraigned June 3, and his Louisville-based attorney, Steven Romines, previously said Scheffler would plead not guilty. In a statement Thursday, Romines said Scheffler would not accept a plea deal.
“Our position remains the same as it was last Friday,” Romines said. “I am not negotiating, as we have no interest in settling. I am prepared to litigate as needed and the case will be dismissed, or we will go to trial because Scottie did absolutely nothing wrong.”
–Field Level Media