The top-ranked golfer in the world, Scottie Scheffler, was arrested halfway through the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla. He later finished tied for seventh.
The chief of police in Louisville has promised to look into and “appropriately address” any policy infractions that may have resulted from last week’s detention of world champion Scottie Scheffler. On his way to the US PGA Championship at Valhalla on Friday, the reigning Masters champion was involved in a fatal road accident and was charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disobeying traffic signals from an officer directing traffic.
It then surfaced that, despite regular operating practice, arresting officer Bryan Gillis had neglected to turn on his bodycam before stopping, handcuffing, and detaining Scheffler. Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel, the police chief of the Louisville Metro Police Department, issued a statement saying, “The internal investigation is still ongoing.”
“Any policy infractions found during the investigation will be dealt with in accordance with the disciplinary procedure of the LMPD.” On Thursday, May 23, 2024, the department plans to give a further update on the inquiry.
During his weekly press conference, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg emphasized that “action will be taken” if policies were not being followed generally. The Louisville Courier-Journal quotes him as adding, “I think that’s critically important that we do that, not just in high-profile events like took place on Friday, but on a regular basis.”
And there will be clarity regarding any instances in which policies are not being implemented. Something will be done about it. Based on what I now know, I believe I can see why Officer Gillis and Mr. Scheffler may not have had the bodycam activated during their initial interaction. Regarding why it wasn’t on at the time of Mr. Scheffler’s arrest, I still have questions.
Scheffler’s court appearance has been rescheduled for Monday, June 3. He has called the incident a “big misunderstanding,” but his attorney has already stated that he is ready to go to trial if the charges are not dropped.
After his arrest, Scheffler spoke out on Instagram. A few hours earlier, he had also given his respects to the victim of an accident outside Valhalla.
He posted on Instagram on Friday, saying, “This morning, I was proceeding as directed by police officers.” “There was a major misunderstanding of what I felt I was being asked to do, and it was understandably a highly chaotic environment given the horrific disaster that had occurred earlier.
“I never meant to ignore any of the guidelines. I hope to set this aside and concentrate on playing golf today. Naturally, the entire tournament team sends its sincere condolences to the family of the individual who lost his life in the earlier accident this morning. It really does put things into perspective.
