A Los Angeles man has escaped serious charges after being exonerated by police body camera footage which showed officers planting a baggy of cocaine into his wallet. Thanks to a persistent local media station out of Los Angeles, this body camera footage was released publicly and played a major role in the charges being dropped against 52-year-old Ronald Shields.
Attorney Steve Levine said he believed that
body camera footage from his client's arrest shows LAPD officers planting drugs. He also noticed several inconsistencies in the video that contradict statements the officers made in their police reports. The footage stems from Shields' arrest last year after he panicked at an accident scene and fled.
On Wednesday, the case came to an end as the charges of felony hit and run, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and drug possession were all dropped. Because he did admit to fleeing the scene of an accident, Shields pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor hit and run.
Levine told reporters that the body camera footage has a "very big bearing" on the outcome his client's case. Indeed it did as Shields was facing the possibility of years in prison.
As TFTP previously
reported, according to Levine, the body cameras can be turned on and off by officers, but the recording actually starts proactively and will pick up the 30 seconds of activity that takes place in front of the camera prior to it being turned on.
Levine said that the drugs were planted in this 30-second timeframe when the officers did not know that they were being filmed.
Comment: It sounds like the Home Office screwed up, knows it, and is now stonewalling.