Recently a woman in Texas accused Officer Daniel Hubbard of making sexual advances during a routine traffic stop. According Sherita Dixon-Cole’s statement, she accused Hubbard of sexually assaulting her in his police cruiser after she had been given a field sobriety test, which she failed. In her statement, Dixon-Cole stated that Officer Hubbard then continued to make even more advances on the way to the station along with promising to set her free in exchange for sexual favors.
The Body Cam Never Lies
However, despite the woman’s accusations, the officer’s body cam contained two full hours of footage that clearly discredited every accusation that Dixon-Cole made against Officer Hubbard. Even the woman’s lawyer made a statement to the effect that the lies she had told were “appalling.”
He went on to say, ” Officer Daniel Hubbard seems to comport himself professionally during the duration of the traffic stop and arrest and – without more – should be cleared of any wrongdoing. It is deeply troubling when innocent parties are falsely accused, and I am truly sorry for any trouble these claims may have caused Officer Hubbard and his family. I take full responsibility for amplifying these claims to the point of national concern.”
Not the First Time
This is not the first time body cam footage has been used to successfully defend an officer who had been accused of misconduct. In South Carolina, the Rev. Jerrod Moultrie, a local NAACP chapter president, accused an officer of racial profiling during what was a routine traffic stop. According to the statement he made, the officer “accused him of having drugs, asked him what he was doing in the neighborhood, and threatening to put him in jail.”
If this wasn’t bad enough, Moultrie then went on Facebook and posted, ” Tonight, I was racially profiled by Timmonsville Officer CAUSE I WAS DRIVING A MERCEDES BENZ AND GOING HOME IN A NICE NEIGHBORHOOD.” Thankfully, once again the officer in question’s body camera footage clearly showed the entire encounter in which none of the actions the officer was being accused of ever happened. Timmonsville Police Chief, Billy Brown made the following statement to a local ABC station, ” When I saw the video, I was shocked that someone who is supposed to be a community leader, a pastor, and head of the NAACP would just come out and tell a blatant lie.”
This is not to say that all body cam footage can be used to exonerate the officer being accused, there are times when the footage has been used to prove misconduct and allow the appropriate level the appropriate punishment. It is hoped that in the future, the continued expansion of body cam use throughout law enforcement at all levels will lead to better protection for both members of law enforcement at all levels. But at the same time, it will help departments to weed out officers who are not behaving appropriately. Which would go a long way towards reducing the amount of anti-police activity and false accusations.