Police to probe protocols during Scheffler arrest

Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg on Tuesday said the city’s police department will investigate whether its officers followed proper protocols when world No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler was arrested Friday outside Valhalla Golf Club, the site of last week’s PGA Championship.

Louisville police chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel said in a statement Tuesday that an update on the investigation will be provided Thursday.

“The internal investigation is still ongoing. Any policy violations that are revealed through the course of the investigation will be appropriately addressed according to LMPD’s disciplinary protocol,” she said in the statement.

Greenberg said he thought it was “critically important” that police address its investigation, “not just in high-profile events like [those that] took place on Friday, but on a regular basis.

“And if policies are not being followed, there will be transparency about that. There will be action taken,” he said, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal.

An LMPD spokesperson confirmed to ESPN on Saturday that Det. Bryan Gillis failed to activate his bodycam video recorder before Scheffler was stopped, handcuffed and arrested.

The department’s standard operating procedures for body-worn cameras (BWC), which were revised in December 2022, states that officers are required to “maintain their BWC in a constant state of operational readiness.”

The procedures further state that officers “will immediately activate their BWC in recording mode prior to engaging in all law enforcement activities or encounters.”

“From my understanding, based on the facts I am aware of right now, I understand why bodycam may not have been turned on at the initial contact between Officer Gillis and Mr. Scheffler,” Greenberg said Tuesday. “I still have questions about why it was not on during Mr. Scheffler’s arrest.”

Greenberg previously said that footage of the incident was captured from a fixed camera across the street, which the city planned to release.

In a police report, Gillis alleged that when he attempted to stop Scheffler’s SUV to give him instructions, the SUV accelerated and dragged him, causing injuries to his left wrist and knee.

Scheffler called the incident a “big misunderstanding” and a “chaotic situation.” Scheffler was attempting to pass backed-up vehicles to enter the course. Traffic was stopped because of an unrelated fatal crash that killed a 69-year-old man up the road.

Scheffler was booked on four charges, including second degree assault of a police officer, a felony.

Scheffler was booked in a downtown detention center and released less than two hours before his second-round tee time. He carded a 5-under 66 in the second round and tied for eighth at 13 under on Sunday, 8 strokes behind winner Xander Schauffele.

An arraignment is scheduled for 9 a.m. ET on June 3.