Johnson County Sheriff Releases Body Cam Video Of Rep. Bill Allemand's DUI Arrest
By: -----
Johnson County, KS - The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office on Friday released body camera video of the Dec. 28 DUI arrest of state Rep. Bill Allemand in response to a Cowboy State Daily request.
Cowboy State Daily had viewed about 18 minutes of the body camera video in Buffalo Circuit Court at a March court hearing, but Friday’s release spans roughly one hour over the course of Allemand’s traffic stop, arrest, and jail booking in Buffalo just after midday Dec. 28.
It omits a recitation of Allemand's driver's license number, the Johnson County Sheriff's Office said in an email.
The video shows Allemand, a Republican representative from Midwest, Wyoming, arguing with Johnson County Sheriff’s Deputy Caleb Campbell.
Allemand voices disagreement about whether Campbell had grounds for the initial traffic stop. Allemand develops a more adversarial stance toward the deputy throughout his arrest, ultimately calling him an “asshole” and saying he’s not a good person.
“I don’t know why you would say that,” says Campbell. “I thought I was pretty respectful.”
Allemand offers to pay for the deputy’s gas at a fuel stop on the way to jail. He informs the deputy he’s a legislator.
Once in jail, Allemand emphasizes that he has an “Honor Wyoming” belt buckle — a reference to the Honor Wyoming political group that has given him favorable ratings.
He also jokes with the booking deputies.
While getting his booking photo taken, Allemand muses, “Wow! This is going to be on Cowboy State Daily. You can sell these pictures to Cowboy State Daily, probably for a million dollars.”
The booking deputy jokes, “K, well, we’ll try. I’ll split it with you.”
“I don’t want none of it,” Allemand answers.
Allemand’s attorney Mike Vang told Cowboy State Daily in a Friday phone interview that Allemand was likely growing frustrated with the deputy because he thought he was being falsely arrested.
Buffalo Circuit Court Magistrate Jeremy Kisling ruled last week that Campbell had enough evidence for the initial traffic stop and to continue the traffic stop.
The Johnson County Attorney’s Office can use several minutes worth of evidence from the stop, which include Allemand allegedly failing his field sobriety tests, swaying, stumbling, and slurring his speech.
But prosecutors can’t use as direct evidence the potentially incriminating things Allemand said during a 12-minute stretch where he was detained in handcuffs, but hadn’t been read his Miranda rights, Kisling ruled.
Campbell had stopped Allemand on claims that after stopping at a stop sign just off Interstate 25, Allemand lurched forward, nearly hit another vehicle, then stopped abruptly.
This, coupled with the evidence that Allemand was the subject of a drunk driving report by another driver on the Interstate near Buffalo, made for enough evidence to justify Campbell’s stop, Kisling ruled.
Vang said he still believes Kisling got the evidence question wrong.
“Here’s the big deal,” said Vang. “The cop never claimed he saw any type of traffic violation except for Mr. Allemand allegedly running a stop sign.”
Vang said the dash camera recording “clearly shows Mr. Allemand never makes any driving infraction. He comes to a complete stop like he’s supposed to, just as he’s turning off the interstate.”
The dash camera video of the contested stop, played at the March hearing, is grainy and inconclusive.
As a car approaches from the left, said Vang, “it was obscured from his view.”
Allemand stopped to avoid hitting it.
“That deputy lacks the skills to properly do a DUI investigation,” said Vang.
The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a late-day Friday request for a response to that.