Trial begins after TPD chief condemns viral bodycam video accusing officer of misconduct

THE LATEST UPDATE: 'Mistake' or misconduct? After viral DUI body camera video, courtroom spectacle unfolds

Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell blasted a report that appeared online with a viral narrated body-camera video alleging an officer "planted" evidence on a man who was arrested on a DUI charge.

The trial of Calvin Riley Sr. began Friday morning, but in an official statement issued Thursday on social media, the police department said it "thoroughly reviewed" the case against him and found no evidence of officer misconduct.

"We are confident with the charges and we respect the judicial process and believe it is vital for a fair trial," the statement said. "Therefore, we will make the full video available for release after the trial has concluded."

On Thursday, the eve of trial, Assistant Public Defenders Eric Henely and Desiree Goodfellow filed a motion to dismiss the charges due to "egregious government conduct." The motion said the officer’s decision to open a liquor bottle and throw it back in the defendant’s car "lacks any reasonable explanation" and that the other officer who arrested him relied on that bottle as evidence of intoxication.

Judge Jason Jones denied the request to dismiss charges.

“This is ultimately a decision that should be left to the jury,” Jones said.

But while TPD defended the officer's investigation Thursday, Prosecutor Emma Hirschy said in her opening statement Friday that the officer “made a mistake” when she opened and dumped out a bottle of alcohol found in Riley’s car. She argued it wasn't the main evidence that led to the arrest, and that Riley was already under arrest at that time.

Assistant Public Defender Desiree Goodfellow fired back in his own statement that “Calvin Riley is innocent. This case involved an officer planting evidence. I’m not going to sugar coat it. Police created a crime where none existed.”

How the viral video surfaced

Our Tallahassee, a left-leaning and electioneering online outlet founded by Max Herrle, a political operative and former local lobbyist, posted edited video on its website and social media feeds of the May 7, 2023, arrest of Riley. It was viewed more than 2.5 million times on Twitter/X alone.

Herrle, who operates three state political committees and has campaign ties to City Commissioners Jeremy Matlow and Jack Porter and County Commissioner Brian Welch, narrated the footage himself. The two-and-a-half-minute video, with the headline "TPD Officer Plants Evidence in DUI Arrest," shows an officer open a sealed bottle of what is purported to be alcohol, pour it out and throw it back in Riley's car during his arrest.

Tallahassee Police chief defends officer's actions, won't release unedited body camera till after trial

Revell said it was "reprehensible" that video "intended to sway a jury" was released, and in the way that it was. The Tallahassee Democrat requested a copy of the video before TPD isued its statement.

“We are committed to adhering to and enforcing the law while conducting ourselves in an ethical and moral manner," Revell said. "Additionally, we condemn any attempts to manipulate or impede the judicial process as seen with the release of this video. We assure the public that we will continue to do our part to ensure justice is served while upholding the principles of fairness, transparency, and integrity."

The arrest report says Officer Kiersten Oliver stopped Riley after observing his white Mercedes driving around 2 a.m. on South Monroe Street "at a high rate of speed" and with no headlights on. Riley said he had been to Pockets, a local bar, where he'd had a couple of beers. His license was suspended, the report says, and he refused a field sobriety test.

Another officer who conducted the arrest wrote that the smell of alcohol came from the vehicle and that Riley had "extremely watery, bloodshot eyes" and "extremely thick and slurred" speech.

"A search of Riley's vehicle yielded a small (approximately 5 fluid ounces) bottle of vodka that was opened, in a pocket on the driver's seat cover," Officer Margaret Mueth wrote. "Located in the center console of the vehicle I observed there was as cup that smelled of an alcoholic beverage."

Later, while Mueth was taking him to jail, the report says Riley repeated numerous times that TPD "had only arrested him because he had gone to the club and had drinks." Court records show he has a history of citations for driving on a suspended license and other arrests, most more than a decade old.

Defense points to 'a fundamentally flawed stop and search'

The defense maintains the arrest was “tainted” by the officer’s actions.

"The bottle was open because Officer Oliver opened it," the defense motion says. "By engaging in that behavior, Officer Oliver irreparably tainted the stop. Nothing so far has suggested that any of the officers did anything to rectify this action. Rather, they turned off their cameras, arrested Mr. Riley, and handed him over to their partners at the State Attorney's Office for prosecution based on a fundamentally flawed stop and search."

Matlow, who has long been at bitter odds with Revell and management at City Hall, called the footage "troubling to watch" in a post on X and said he will be requesting "a full review and explanation" of the incident by the city manager. He also said TPD's finding of no misconduct "without any explanation of what we can plainly see with our own eyes further strains credulity."

Bill Helmich, a GOP state committeeman, said in a tweet that he doesn't often agree with Matlow but that "he is right" in his take on the DUI arrest.

"Even the most basic review of that footage says that cop should be fired and case dropped," Helmich wrote.

State Attorney Jack Campbell and a TPD spokesperson did not return phone calls Thursday, but Public Defender Jessica Yeary issued a statement to the Democrat.

"We are aware that concerning body camera footage in this case has gained significant attention," Yeary said. "Our team’s focus right now is to defend Mr. Riley to ensure that no further injustice is done to him."

One juror removed after he said TV news report changed his mind about the case

Judge Jones is presiding over the trial, which began at 9 a.m. Friday at the County Courthouse. A jury was picked on Tuesday, according to online court records.

Jones earlier ruled against a defense motion to suppress the bottle from evidence along with several statements Riley made on the other officer's body-worn camera. Both the defense and prosecution stipulated that his refusal to perform field sobriety tests will be excluded and that statements he made after Mueth's attempts to read him his Miranda rights will be admitted.

As the trial began Friday morning, two jurors said they saw coverage of the case in the media. Assistant State Attorney Emma Hirschy maintained “we can’t have a fair and impartial” trial as a result. Assistant Public Defender Eric Henely argued otherwise.

The judge ultimately ruled the trial could proceed after striking one juror who saw a TV news report and said it had changed his mind about the case.

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee police chief slams release of edited DUI video before trial