Detective Bryan Gillis is taking some serious, law enforcement pun-intended heat in the aftermath of a pole camera video that shows the scene where Scottie Scheffler was arrested.
Gillis wasn’t professional enough to switch on his body cam, and claimed that Scheffler’s car dragged him down the road, causing irreparable damage to his $80 pants. If the pole camera footage is all we have to go off of, it sure seems like Gillis’ version of events is hyperbolic at best.
Now that folks are digging into Gillis’ background, well, what’s that saying about not throwing stones in glass houses? Because while Gillis was convinced that the No. 1 golfer in the world, family man, new father, and all-around good guy deserved a f*****g felony charge among other demerits, it turns out he doesn’t exactly boast a squeaky-clean record as a law enforcement officer.
Read: Former Officer/Promoted Detective Gillis was basically Bill Hader’s character from Superbad at one point in time, taking an inebriated civilian pal of his for a spin in the ol’ police cruiser and doing donuts in a business parking lot. I swear I’m not making this up. WDRB dot com criminal justice reporter Jason Riley is doing the damn job by unearthing this precious information.
Louisville Police Det. Bryan Gillis has been disciplined several times for wrecking his vehicle & missing court, according to his personnel file. He was also suspended 5 days for doing "donuts" in his police vehicle while on duty with an intoxicated civilian in a "Code 3" fashion pic.twitter.com/WsW9SlqGxy
— Jason Riley (@JasonRileyWDRB) May 23, 2024
I love how, after providing a rap sheet of Gillis’ medley of other offenses, Riley posts a simple picture of the guy. Based on the devilish smirk in his official photo, hints at a man who likes a little mischief if you ask me.
— Jason Riley (@JasonRileyWDRB) May 23, 2024
Like of course that guy does donuts in the parking lot. Of course he feels like he’s above court appearances. Of course he thinks he’s above the law, because technically speaking, he is.
The Louisville Metro Police Department hasn’t dropped the charges against Scheffler yet. Now that there’s a clear history of Gillis’ lack of professionalism — remember, after or during all of these incidents, he was promoted! — how can we possibly take him at his word on anything? Especially when there’s video to strongly suggest what he said about his encounter with Scheffler was complete bogus?
I guess we can be fair to Gillis and present an example of when he actually seemed to do his job well.
Gillis also has commendations in his file, including this one for issuing a "staggering 108 citations" during a four-hour period. Credited for his "strong work ethic, perseverance and positive attitude." pic.twitter.com/2iUHB85Iba
— Jason Riley (@JasonRileyWDRB) May 23, 2024
But there’s even a major caveat with this commendation, in the context of all the other unbecoming conduct he’s engaged in. First of all, I don’t know how Gillis rifled through 201 citations in a four-hour span. Is that an unquenchable thirst for justice, or a massive power trip/gross incompetence of oversight? I’m sure I don’t know. What I do know is that Scottie Scheffler isn’t a criminal. Nor should he be prosecuted as one. He will not see a prison cell for the rest of his life. There is a zero point zero percent chance.
Put it this way: I’d put my life savings on Scottie not getting into any more legal trouble, and maybe a generous dime that Gillis won’t get written up again by internal affairs.
Good luck with your farce case, Bryan.
Officer Gillis after Scottie Scheffler drove by him going 2 mph pic.twitter.com/85QmHtQnOK
— Tony Roundtree (@Tonywithyy) May 23, 2024
…Or should I say, Knock-Off Officer Slater.
