It can help the situation. It can help how y'all decide to deal with it. >> was a motor vehicle stop, yes, but the fact that we got a call about you being asleep behind the wheel, that doesn't >> asleep. I was not asleep behind the wheel. I was not asleep. I was not asleep. >> So, let us do our investigation. >> No, I'm really getting I'm really getting upset. I'm really getting upset. I can't even breathe. This is ridiculous. I'm so [ __ ] nervous. I can't even breathe. >> take a deep breath. >> No, I can't even [ __ ] breathe. >> Do you need any medical attention? >> No. >> Okay. >> No, I need my dad. I need my dad. >> All right. >> I need my dad. >> Put your right foot out. No, not right now. How old are you? >> 24. >> Okay. All right. Put your right foot in front of your left. >> Dad is a cop. My dad is a cop. >> That doesn't get you out of a DWI. >> But that officer, I could have I could have did this in the past. I 100% could have did this in >> We gave you plenty of opportunities. >> I used to. You did it. You did it. >> Edward, please. Officer Edward sure did. >> Officer Edward, but my DAD IS A COP. I CAN'T say my dad is a cop. >> There's a moment in this body cam video where a 24-year-old woman reaches for something to get herself out of a drunk driving arrest. Not an excuse, not an apology, a badge. It isn't hers. She says it belongs to her father, a detective, and she offers it to the officers over and over like a password that's going to open a door. It doesn't because 40 minutes later a machine is going to give a number that no last name can argue with. And then, on the ride back, she's going to make an accusation that the body cam itself quietly destroys. Wildwood, New Jersey. >> [music] >> A Jersey Shore town in Cape May County. Boardwalk, beach, summer crowds. On August 13th, 2024, Wildwood [music] police get a call that's unusual enough to stand out even in a busy shore season. The caller reports two people unconscious inside a vehicle, not parked, stopped in traffic. And the detail that makes it alarming is this, that car has sat through two to three complete traffic light cycles without moving. Green, [music] yellow, red, green, yellow, red. Nobody inside is reacting. Think about what that call actually means for a dispatcher. It could be a medical emergency, an overdose, a cardiac event, two people who need an ambulance right now. Or it could be exactly what it turns out to be. Either way, somebody is behind the wheel of a running vehicle and not responding to the world around them. Patrolman Edwards of the Wildwood Police Department responds. And when he arrives, the situation has already changed. By the time the officer gets there, the 24-year-old woman and her male passenger are both outside the vehicle, which for a moment diffuses things. Nobody is slumped over a wheel. Nobody needs CPR. And then, she does something you rarely see. >> Hi. What's going on? >> I don't know. They just asked me if I fell asleep in the middle of my car and I said, "No." Then I asked my boyfriend, "Did I fall asleep?" He said, "No." >> Okay. Where are you guys from? >> From here. >> Uh Pennsville. Did you stay in Wildwood last night? >> We're not staying Wildwood. We were We were just out last night. >> Okay. Did you stay in a hotel? >> His family lives down here. >> Oh, you stay with them. Are you just leaving or are you going back to Philadelphia now? >> We're going back to his family's house. >> To his what? >> His family's house in Wildwood. >> So, where are you going? >> Thank Hilton hotel. Oh, you're going where? Okay. So, you're not going back >> don't know why I would get pulled over right now. This is crazy. >> I got a call about someone that was asleep behind the wheel, so >> Who was in the car with me? My boyfriend. >> Yeah, well, he didn't let >> He wouldn't have let me sleep behind the wheel. Like, this is crazy. >> Well, ma'am, we got a call >> Call me out or respond or figure things out. >> Whoa, whoa, whoa. Whoa. >> Who was in this house? You wouldn't let me sleep on that >> Okay. >> Wait, my No, no, no. On some real gang you talk to me >> My dad My dad My father is a homicide detective. >> I don't care. >> Yeah, that doesn't mean anything. >> But, the thing is I have my badge on. I have my badge on. I have my badge on. >> No, it does, though. It does. >> It doesn't when you're asleep behind the wheel. >> I wasn't asleep behind the wheel. That's the thing. >> Okay, well, we got a call saying that you were asleep behind the wheel, so we still have to investigate. >> the wheel. He wasn't driving. He wasn't driving. Over. Over. Taylor, where are we going? We can't be walking out in the middle of the road. >> This is my car. This is my car. >> I get it. >> I'm not doing nothing. I'm not doing nothing. >> car now. >> My boyfriend He leaves to go to Italy today. Okay? Today. I didn't do nothing. I didn't do nothing. I didn't do nothing. Like I said, I didn't do nothing. I don't know why all these cars are here. I didn't do nothing. I didn't do nothing. Listen, like I said, that messed up my car. Okay, I won't get in my car. I won't get in my car. I didn't do nothing. Taylor, look at me. I didn't do nothing. me out. Look at me and hear me out. Cuz you're not You're not listening. The last night, my boyfriend's in the city. Just the last night, the last night. My boyfriend's going to Italy today. Okay. Today, so yes, we did We did have a All right. We Listen, we hung out tonight, like You're not You're allowed to have a good time, but you're not listening to me. I did not I did not drive I'm trying. I'm You did not drive behind the wheel, so but you were just You just said you were driving behind the wheel. Well, did I fall asleep? That's what we got called for. Like I said, when we get a call, we have to respond to that, all right? So, you're not letting me explain anything. So, All right. Right now, I'm just going to stop talking to you cuz it's pointless at this point, cuz you're not listening. All I'm saying is To me, you guys don't care. My dad's a homicide detective. I have my badge on me. It's stressing me out that y'all I tried I tried to I tried to show you fear of your dad. I tried to show you guys, but you guys simply say I don't care. Yeah, we don't. Okay, so it's like Yes, now I'm freaking out because That doesn't get you out of everything. But it not drunk driving. Okay. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not drunk driving. You can determine right now. Okay, okay. >> With a uniformed police officer standing right there, an officer who was dispatched specifically because people were unconscious in this car. She gets into the driver's side and starts the engine. Patrolman Edwards immediately tells her to shut it off. And that single moment is, legally speaking, [music] enormous. Because in New Jersey, the offense isn't called driving under the influence. >> [music] >> It's operating under the influence. Operation can include being behind the wheel with the engine running and the intent [music] to move. She didn't just possibly drive there impaired. She demonstrated it on camera in front of the officer investigating her. >> Like I said, well, Taylor We got a call, >> This is crazy >> We got a call, >> What is we got to There's only three of us. It was only three of us. >> You're the male. You're the male. >> It's a female first. >> Listen to me first. >> I don't understand what's me being a female >> It's a female first. Listen to me. >> So, what does it mean me being a female have to do with anything? >> Like besides being a cop, My boyfriend leaves for Italy today. >> Okay. >> Today was today. >> I still don't understand. >> Like today was today was the last day that I got to hang out with him. >> Mhm. >> Did I fall asleep behind the wheel? >> No. >> I don't remember falling asleep behind the wheel. Yes. >> Don't fall asleep behind the wheel now. You guys can't talk. Okay? >> We were out here, right? >> And like I said, we got a call. We have to respond, right? >> let me fall asleep behind the wheel. >> I'm telling you >> You wouldn't let me like it it it just didn't happen. Like I know where we was at tonight. Like it just didn't happen. >> Okay. >> I'm not going to argue with the cops. Listen, my dad is a detective. The blood alcohol I've tried to get my badge a couple times out this car. For some reason y'all seem to not care. >> I'm telling you that no one is allowed in the car. >> telling you like I have the best friend reason. >> Okay. >> I have the best friend reason. Just let me at least pull it out. Let me >> That doesn't That's not a get out of jail free card. >> It's It's not. It's not. But it can help the situation. It can help how y'all decide to deal with the situation. >> vehicle stop, yes. But the fact that we got a call about you being asleep behind the wheel, that doesn't >> asleep. I was not asleep behind the wheel. I was not asleep. I was not asleep. >> Okay. Let us do our investigation. >> No, cuz can I I'm really getting I'm really getting upset. I'm really getting upset. I was not asleep. I'm being patient, but I was not asleep. >> I appreciate your patience, but you just have to let us >> not asleep. I was not asleep. >> Let us do our investigation, all right? >> This is a Let me show my badge. Let me show it. >> do our investigation. No one's going in the car right now. Kayla, you got to stay over here. Kayla, you got to stay over here. You have to stay over here. No, we're going to No, we're not. You're not going to be able to see your boyfriend. Come on. >> Let me show my [ __ ] badge. Let me show my badge. >> point of that? That's not going to do anything right now. >> I was not behind the wheel. You I was not >> How many times have you told me that your dad was a detective? Me you showing a badge right now is not going to do anything. >> What's your name? >> Taylor. >> Taylor. >> Can you come over here and stand over here, >> The officer does what he's supposed to do next. He offers her the standardized field sobriety tests, the roadside exercises that exist in part to give a driver a chance to demonstrate they're fine. It's an opportunity, not a trap. She doesn't take it. Instead, according to the report, she repeatedly tells officers that her father is a police detective and she asks numerous times to show them his badge. It's worth sitting with why that doesn't work because a lot of people genuinely believe it does. A badge isn't a transferable pass. It doesn't extend to family. It doesn't cover a passenger seat and it definitely doesn't cover a driver's seat. What she was really saying underneath the words was, "I'm not the kind of person this happens to. You should know who I'm connected to." She refuses to complete the walk [music] and turn test. >> All right, listen Taylor. You're suspected of being DWI, okay? >> For what? >> You're sus >> For what? >> You're suspected of being under the influence while operating a vehicle. Can you step on the sidewalk? So, I'm going to run a few tests to see if you're able to drive. Do you understand? >> Yes. >> All right. >> This is crazy. >> What's your highest level education? >> I have my diploma. >> All right, so you can read, write, speak English? >> Mhm? >> You can read, write, speak English? >> Can you look at me? >> I'm looking at you. >> Crazy. >> Can you hear what I'm saying? >> my No, no, listen. My dad is a My dad's a homicide detective. >> Taylor. Are you listening? >> This is crazy. What? >> Taylor. >> What? What? What? >> Do you understand English? >> I have my >> Just take like one step forward. Right there. Stand with your feet together. Hands out to your side. Do Do have any problem with your eyes? >> No. >> Just stand in that position. >> I wear glasses. It's It's not that bad, but I can Yeah. >> Yeah. But you can see this pen right here? >> I can see it clearly. >> All right. So, you're going to follow this with only your eyes, okay? You're not going to move your head at all. >> Okay. >> Do you understand? >> Mhm. >> Try not to move your head, okay? Keep your head straight. >> I'm sorry. I wear glasses on a regular >> That's all right. Just keep your head straight, okay? Stop kind of like turning your head a little bit. >> Okay. >> All right, good. Now, we're going to do a walk and turn test, okay? I do need you to face me. All right, stand right there. All right. So, I tell you to So, I want you to put your right foot in front of your left, hands down to your side. >> It's crazy. >> Can you do that for me? >> It's crazy. Yeah, I can do it for you. Who called this out? I was sleeping on the wheel. Who called this in? >> Tell her. >> No, I don't Who called this in? I I was not by myself. >> You want me to tell her? >> I was not by myself. It's the fact that somebody called me asleep sleeping at the wheel. >> Yeah. Can you put your right foot in front of your left? Heel to toe to your toe. So it should look like this. Look at my feet. >> I know. >> Here. Hands out to your side. And just stand in that position. >> This is crazy. >> Just stand in that position until I'm finish explaining the test, okay? >> Ready to start? >> Well, you just got to get back in that position. I got to explain the test to you. >> Okay. >> So stay right there. If you like step out of there, just put your foot right back, okay? >> Mhm. >> Do you understand? >> Mhm. >> Yes? >> Mhm. >> Okay. All right. When I tell you to, I want you to take nine heel-to-toe steps forward. I'm counting each step out loud. Okay? On your ninth step, you're going to take a series of small steps to turn around and take nine steps back. Heel to toe. >> This is crazy, bro. >> You're going to keep your hands out to your side the whole time. >> [ __ ] face you, okay? >> You understand, Taylor? >> Yeah. >> All right. I'm going to demonstrate it. Look at Look at me, okay? >> Can I step like this? >> Nope. Get right back in the starting position. >> I can't even breathe that fast. I'm so [ __ ] nervous. Like I can't even breathe. >> Take Take a deep breath. >> No, I can't even [ __ ] breathe. >> All right. Do you need medical attention? >> No. >> Okay. >> No, I need my dad. I need my dad. >> All right. Put your right foot No, not right now. How old are you? >> 24. >> Okay. All right. Put your Put your right foot >> [laughter] >> in front of your left. >> This is crazy. >> Taylor? >> I want to call my [ __ ] dad. I just want to call my dad. Oh my god. I want to call my dad. My dad is going to kill me. Please just let me call my dad. Let me just call him. Let me just call him, please. >> Taylor. >> Can I just call him so I can what's going on? >> Can you put your right foot in front of your left? You'll get a chance to call him. >> No, y'all not driving me off. I didn't No, y'all not driving me off. >> And at that point, the officer has everything he needs. She's placed under arrest for operating under the influence of liquor. And here's the thing about the badge she kept offering. Her father, whoever he is, didn't do anything wrong that night. He wasn't there. The one person leaning on that badge was the one person it couldn't help. >> Are you going to do a test? Taylor. >> This is so crazy. >> All right. You're going to be under arrest for DUI, okay? Turn around, put your hands behind you. It's okay. It's not the end of the world. One in custody, 450. You notified Bob. Also notified of crash. >> Please let me go, please. Please don't arrest me. >> Taylor, look at that. Taylor, look at that. Taylor. I'm coming to get you. Taylor, baby, look at Babe. Babe. Taylor, please look at me, please. Her father's a homicide >> Please let me take the test, please. like I can't stand it. Let me, please. Please, please show me my badge. My badge, please let me show you my badge. It's in the car. It's in the car. My badge is in the car. Please let me show YOU MY BADGE. I'VE NEVER BEEN ARRESTED. >> SHE'S under arrest. You can't talk to her. You have any identifying details? >> My dad is a cop. My dad is a cop. My dad is >> That doesn't get you out of a DUI. >> But but oh my but I could have I could have done this in the past. I 100% could have done this. >> He gave you plenty of opportunities to >> You did it. You did not. >> Edward, please. Officer Edward sure did. >> Oh please, stop playing with me. MY DAD IS A COP. I CAN'T STAND IT. MY DAD is a cop. I can't stand it. My dad is a cop. >> Mine is >> I can't stand it. My dad IS A COP. MY DAD IS A COP. >> YOU'RE UNDER ARREST. YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO GO BACK TO MY CAR. >> SARAH! >> LOOK, SARAH. HEY. This [ __ ] is crazy. I can't stand it. My dad is a cop. >> Like I said, it doesn't get you out of a DUI. >> My dad is A COP. I CAN'T stand it. I can't stand it. My dad is a cop. >> My dad's a cop, too, but I never seen the police like this ever when I got pulled >> What Did I disrespect you guys? >> Yes. >> I got arrested. This is my first time getting arrested. This is my first time ever getting arrested. I can't believe I'm getting arrested right now. >> [sighs and gasps] [panting] >> Stay >> over there. Stay over there. Stay over there. >> Over there last night. >> Taylor, I'm coming to get you, okay? Taylor, baby, look at me. >> We don't need him, right? >> Yeah. >> Babe, babe. >> to go to the station? >> Yeah, I'll take it. >> Taylor, can you look at me, please? >> She just wanted me to get her out of here. >> Bro. Bro. >> Her father is a homicide detective of Wildwood, you work in [ __ ] Wildwood. There's no crime here, bro. Her father is a homicide detective. Let me talk to her. That's all I'm asking. I'm from Wildwood, bro. Like, what the [ __ ] >> want to show you my license and registration. >> Taylor, Taylor, babe, babe, babe, babe, look at me. That's like, what are you doing? Her father is a homicide detective. Yes, she's wrong. >> the red light already. >> Bro, yes, she's wrong. I just want to talk to her and let her calm her down. >> We're taking her back to >> I want her right now. You heard me talking to my aunt in the car. What the >> So, are you getting arrested? >> What do you want me to do? You want me to stop yelling? >> Yeah. >> For yelling? You can come with me. You don't like me yelling? >> I can't believe I'm [laughter] getting arrested right now. I can't believe I'm getting arrested right now. Like, let me go. Please, let me go. Please. Hello. Ma'am. >> Taylor, is your phone in the vehicle? >> I don't know. Look, ma'am. >> I'm asking you a question. Yes or no, is your phone in the vehicle? >> In the Jeep? >> Yes. >> It has to be. I'm not in the Jeep. It has to be. How are we acting? Yes, I am pressing. This is my first time ever being in handcuffs. I am I am scared. Like, I don't I've never This is a I'm in a box. I'm in a box. I'm getting arrested right now. I've never been arrested before in my life. No, it's not It's not that you get it. Like I I don't do nothing wrong. >> I'm talking to my homie and the other cop, bro. Y'all have to talk to me. That's your job, bro. Y'all have to talk to me. >> Your car being towed. You can pick it up at the station. >> me, bro. I don't give a [ __ ] bro. Talk to me, bro. >> You have your side? >> I have to talk to >> Yeah, I got it right here. Let me see. >> My name is Devonte Hall. >> All right. >> Y'all have to [ __ ] talk to me, bro. Bro, I don't >> We're getting in this one, right? >> Which one did I get in? >> Uh the car's out here. It's back at the station. I'll check when we get there. >> My hand bracelet is in that car. >> All right, well come on. >> has to be like >> All right, let's go check. >> Bracelet, [ __ ] bracelet. At first, I'm going to think like, okay, like y'all going to have Y'all have my bracelet somewhere, but now I'm I'm getting upset. >> I got you. >> my bracelet? >> You weren't in this car, were you? >> In this zipline? >> Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just put your feet up. >> this? >> It's called a seatbelt. I got you. Just screw it in a little bit more. >> Oh, like What [laughter] the hell is this? >> Perfect. There you go. >> Oh, we got to >> Like, where is my bracelet? No, someone stole it. I will really report y'all. I will report report everyone in this [ __ ] district because where is my bracelet? I don't take my bracelet off. It's no way that I have my Cartier bracelet and not my Van Cleef bracelet. Like, what the [ __ ] And how far is it? Cuz this [ __ ] hurts my wrist. Is my boyfriend at the other at the other station? >> He was. >> What do you mean he was? >> I've been with you so I don't know if he's still there. >> And once I get there I can leave? >> No. >> What do you mean no? >> You got to get I told you you got to get a couple more paperwork and then then you'll be released. >> What the [ __ ] And where did he go? >> What? >> I'm ready to go. And I asked you to fix this part of my hair and you denied it. Like, I'm looking at it and this [ __ ] is sticking up. I cannot believe my night. I've never been arrested in my [ __ ] life. Like, yes, I have the reps. Sorry. You have to deal with it. I'm sick right now. The reps. I I'm talking a lot. Philly. Philly. Philly. Like, what the [ __ ] I just got here a day ago. Just to say goodbye. Just to say goodbye to my boyfriend I get locked up. Bro, this [ __ ] is crazy. I've never been locked up. I don't plan on ever getting locked up again. Like, this [ __ ] like, y'all can say yeah. Huh? But where's my bracelet? Yes. Can I make a phone call? >> I'll get you to the phone. >> Let's Let's do it now. I'm not going to snitch. Okay. >> Snitch on what? >> Just Where's my Was Was the car I was in? Where is my [ __ ] bracelet, bro? Like, ain't no way. Like, where is my bracelet? This is $5,000 bracelet. Ain't no [ __ ] way. >> She's transported to the Wildwood Crest Police Headquarters, where she provides a breath sample. And this is the moment the story stops being about who her father is. 0.18% more than double New Jersey's legal limit. That's not a borderline reading, not a she had two glasses of wine with dinner number. At 0.18, judgement, reaction time, and coordination are all significantly impaired, which is exactly why a car sat motionless through three green lights with two unresponsive people inside. A breathalyzer doesn't care about your last name. It doesn't recognize a badge. It's the one participant in this entire encounter that couldn't be talked to. On the ride back to the Wildwood Police Headquarters, she raises something new. She says a bracelet is missing. Not a cheap one. She puts the value at $5,000. Now, think carefully about what that claim implies when it's made in the back of a police vehicle after [music] an arrest about property that was supposedly on your body when officers took you into custody. It is, at minimum, a suggestion that something happened to it while she was in police custody. Accusations like that can end careers. So, officers did the one thing that settles it. They went back and reviewed the body camera footage from the moment they first encountered her. And according to the police report, the footage showed she was not wearing the bracelet when officers arrived but Anne. And that's the part of this story I think actually matters most. We usually talk about body cams as a check on police, a way to hold officers accountable. That's true. But it works in both directions. That night, the same camera that recorded a woman flashing someone else's badge is the thing that protected those officers from an accusation they'd otherwise have had no way to disprove. On April 23rd, 2025, the case ended the way the number always suggested it would. She pleaded guilty to operating under the influence. $690 in fines. Her license revoked for 7 months. And 12 hours at an intoxicated driver's resource center. No jail. This was a first offense. And in New Jersey, a DWI is a serious traffic offense, rather than a crime. She walked out of that courtroom with a suspended license [music] and a lesson that cost her a summer of driving. So, here's what I want to know from you. She had two [music] exits that night. She could have taken the field sobriety tests. She could have said nothing at all. Instead, she reached for a badge that belonged to somebody else. And then, when that failed, she reached for an accusation. What is it about being connected to power that makes people believe the rules are a formality? And be honest in the comments. Do you think the outcome would have been the same if her father actually had shown up? Tell me. >> [music] >> And if this made you think differently about who body cams really protect, subscribe and hit the bell. New case every week.