10/15/2026
Searcy Police Department Official Statement
The Searcy Police Department is aware of the allegations and edited video circulating on social media regarding an incident involving one of our officers. The department has completed an internal investigation and determined that the officer did not violate department policy.
The following is a summary of the incident based on the investigation:
Our officer observed a red/maroon passenger vehicle turn onto Beebe Capps Expressway, crossing both lanes of traffic and causing another vehicle to apply its brakes to avoid a potential collision. The officer initiated a traffic stop based on this observed violation.
While speaking with the driver, the officer observed an unlabeled medicine bottle containing various medications in plain view inside the vehicle. The officer asked the driver to exit the vehicle. Although the driver initially became argumentative, he eventually exited.
While speaking with the driver, the officer instructed him several times not to reach into his pockets. The driver repeatedly reached into his pockets despite these instructions, creating an officer-safety concern. After the driver continued to disregard these commands, the officer decided to detain him. At that point, the driver began resisting arrest.
The officer took the driver to the ground using what the department determined to be minimal force. During the struggle, the officer's body-worn camera was dislodged from his uniform.
While on the ground, the driver continued to refuse to place his hands behind his back. The officer then deployed his TASER once, for approximately one second. Contrary to allegations circulating on social media that the driver was subjected to multiple TASER deployments, the body-worn camera audio captures one brief deployment. Following the deployment, the driver complied with the officer's commands and placed his hands behind his back, allowing the officer to apply handcuffs.
The driver was then helped to his feet and escorted to the patrol vehicle. Within five minutes of the struggle ending, an ambulance was called to the scene to evaluate the driver. The body-worn camera footage also shows the officer turning on the vehicle's air conditioning shortly after placing the driver inside.
The department has included the officer's body-worn camera footage, along with the forward-facing patrol vehicle camera footage, which captures the initial traffic violation and portions of the driver's resistance and the subsequent physical encounter. We did blur and mute the video when the driver is in the ambulance to protect his privacy.
The Searcy Police Department takes allegations involving officer conduct seriously. The department has reviewed this incident and, following its internal investigation, determined that the officer's actions did not violate department policy.
