A police chief in Texas promises not to hide from his department’s mistakes after a bodycam video shows a distressing incident. On July 23, the Frisco Police Department conducted a “high-risk traffic stop on the Dallas North Tollway.” They stopped a black Dodge Charger, suspecting it might be stolen. However, it was later revealed that the information entered during a license plate check was incorrect, causing the mistaken identity. The video captured the emotional moment when the family was held at gunpoint due to the law enforcement error.
Fox News reports:
“Y’all pulled a gun on my son for no reason!” a distraught father is heard telling responding officers after they admitted wrongdoing, mentioning how he and his family were from Arkansas and were traveling to a youth basketball tournament that morning. “That’s my baby boy. We are good people. We are from Little Rock, Arkansas. We got a game at 9 o’ clock,” the father says at another point in the footage, identifying himself as the head coach of a sixth-grade boys team.
Frisco Police say the incident began when they noticed the vehicle leaving a hotel with an out-of-state license plate.
“Due to recent burglaries and vehicle thefts in which Chargers are frequently stolen, [an] officer conducted a computer check of the vehicle’s Arkansas license plate. However, when entering the information, the plate was mistakenly entered out of Arizona,” the department said. “The error resulted in an incorrect registration return, leading the officer to believe that the vehicle was possibly stolen.”
Police say a traffic stop then was conducted and the driver and a backseat passenger, seen on video to be a juvenile, were ordered out of the vehicle.
“About that time, a Frisco Police sergeant arrived,” police continued. “The sergeant realized the mistake and immediately ordered officers to ‘stand down’ and ended the high-risk stop.”
Fresno Police Chief David Shilson said in the wake of the incident that “we made a mistake” and “our department will not hide from its mistakes.” “Instead, we will learn from them. The officer involved quickly accepted responsibility for what happened, which speaks to integrity. I’ve spoken with the family. I empathize with them and completely understand why they’re upset,” he said in a statement.
