“Yes.”
“Where exactly?”
“Colfax Road east of Mason.”
“At what mile marker?”
“I don’t recall.”
“Approximate distance?”
“Perhaps half a mile before the stop.”
“Was another vehicle endangered?”
“Potentially.”
“That wasn’t my question.”
“No.”
“Pedestrian?”
“No.”
“Cyclist?”
“No.”
“Collision?”
“No.”
“You issued a citation for failure to maintain lane?”
Mercer paused.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I chose to focus on the more serious conduct.”
“The alleged assault that occurred after the stop?”
“Yes.”
Naomi nodded.
“So there is no citation documenting the traffic violation you say justified the stop.”
“No.”
“Any dashboard-camera recording of the lane crossing?”
“Our patrol units do not use front-facing dash cameras anymore.”
“No roadside camera?”
“Not that I know.”
“No civilian witness?”
“No.”
“So the only evidence that Ms. Valemont crossed the center line is your testimony.”
Mercer looked irritated.
“Yes.”
Naomi walked toward her table.
“Now, you testified that you smelled alcohol.”
“Yes.”
“Did you write that in your initial incident report?”
A pause.
“I believe so.”
Naomi picked up a document.
“Would reviewing it refresh your memory?”
Mercer stared.
“Yes.”
She approached.
He read.
His expression changed slightly.
“Do you see the word alcohol?”
“No.”
“Intoxicant?”
“No.”
“Impairment?”
“No.”
“Did you request a breath test?”
“No.”
“Field sobriety test?”
“No.”
“Blood draw?”
“No.”
“Did you charge Ms. Valemont with DUI?”
“No.”
“Open container?”
“No.”
“Public intoxication?”
“No.”
Naomi tilted her head.
“Yet today, eight months later, you remember smelling alcohol.”
Mercer’s face tightened.
“It came back to me reviewing the case.”
“Convenient.”
Monroe stood.
“Objection.”
Judge Marlowe looked at Naomi.
“Counsel.”
“Withdrawn.”
Naomi turned a page.
“You testified your body camera malfunctioned.”
“Yes.”
“What model?”
“Axon Body 3.”
“Department policy requires activation before initiating an enforcement contact?”
“When practical.”
“Was it practical here?”
“The battery issue made that impossible.”
“You said low power.”
“Yes.”
“Not dead.”
“It was malfunctioning.”
“Did you document the malfunction before the stop?”
“No.”
“After?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“Equipment log.”
Naomi looked toward the clerk.
“Defense Exhibit C.”
A copy appeared on the screen.
“Is that the equipment log?”
Mercer looked.
“Yes.”
“Entry time?”
“1:14 a.m.”
“Approximately ninety minutes after the arrest?”
“Yes.”
“What does the entry say?”
Mercer read reluctantly.
“Camera failed to activate during arrest.”
“Does it mention low battery?”
“No.”
“Reset attempt?”
“No.”
“Equipment replacement?”
“No.”
“Did you turn the camera in for servicing?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“It worked later.”
Naomi paused.
“It worked later.”
“Yes.”
“So a camera you say was too malfunctioning to record the stop worked later that same shift.”
Mercer shifted.
“Yes.”
Naomi walked closer.
“Sergeant, did you know body cameras maintain diagnostic logs?”
His eyes changed.
Only slightly.
But Zuri saw it.
“No.”
“You didn't?”
“Not detailed ones.”
“Did you know they record button presses?”
Monroe stood.
“Your Honor, foundation.”
Naomi smiled.
“We’ll get there.”
Judge Marlowe nodded.
“Sustained for now.”
Naomi changed direction.
“You said Ms. Valemont unlocked her door.”
“Yes.”
“Your initial report states the door was unlocked when you approached.”
“I may have phrased it poorly.”
“Your supplemental report says you opened the door after she refused commands.”
“Yes.”
“Today you say she unlocked it herself.”
“I’m clarifying.”
“Three accounts?”
“No.”
“Three descriptions.”
“Of the same event.”
“Yes.”
Naomi let the silence work.
“Then she shoved you.”
“Yes.”
“With both hands.”
“Yes.”
“You were standing outside the driver’s door?”
“Yes.”
“She was seated?”
“At first.”
“Seat belt?”
“She had removed it.”
“When?”
“Before the door opened.”
“That’s not in your report either.”
Mercer’s face reddened.
“I cannot include every detail.”
“No.”
Naomi nodded.
“Apparently not.”
Monroe objected again.
Judge Marlowe sighed.
“Ms. Price.”
“Understood.”
Naomi returned to her table.
She picked up another photograph.
“Your injury.”
“Yes.”
“You said Ms. Valemont struck your left cheek.”
“Yes.”
“With a fist?”
“Yes.”
“Right or left?”
“Right.”
“She is right-handed?”
“I assume.”
Naomi turned toward Zuri.
“Ms. Valemont is left-handed.”
Mercer shrugged.
“People can punch with either hand.”
“Of course.”
Naomi looked at the photograph.
“Any swelling?”
“Some.”
“Broken skin?”
“The abrasion.”
“Medical treatment?”
“No.”
“EMS examination?”
“No.”
“Photographs taken when?”
“At the station.”
“After Ms. Valemont was booked?”
“Yes.”
“Approximately two hours after the stop?”
“Yes.”
Naomi put the photograph down.
Then asked:
“Sergeant Mercer, how did you receive the abrasion?”
He frowned.
“She struck me.”
“That is your testimony.”
“Yes.”
“Did anything else hit your face that night?”
“No.”
“Car door?”