Video courtesy: Louisiana State Police via Baton Rouge ABC affiliate WBRZ
BATON ROUGE (WGNO)— Louisiana State Police are under fire after a video has surfaced of the head of the agency being pulled over for speeding by a state trooper last week.
According to ABC affiliate WBRZ in Baton Rouge, Col. Lamar Jackson was clocked going at least 90 mph on the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge between Baton Rouge and Lafayette around Tuesday, June 28.
There was no audio attached to the obtained dashcam footage, but footage shows that the SUV Davis was driving had activated its light bar as it pulled to the side of the road. It also appears that the trooper’s body camera was turned off during the stop.
As the trooper approached the stopped SUV, Davis is seen exiting the vehicle and the two even shake hands before leaving.
According to a statement from LSP, “Colonel Davis was stopped for a traffic violation on June 28th, 2022 while traveling west on Interstate 10 in the Troop A area. The Trooper utilized his discretion and did not issue a citation.”
WBRZ adds that the traffic stop happened soon after Davis gave his department an urgent assignment: To pull over speeding drivers on the Atchafalaya Basin amid lawmakers’ scrutiny over fast driving.
Davis later admitted to WBRZ that he was in the wrong, saying:
“I was wrong. I admit that. I take full responsibility.” Colonel Davis told Chief Investigator Chris Nakamoto. “I try to do too much in a day, I need to practice what I preach and don’t want to put anyone in a position to stop me or any other trooper. I was wrong. There’s no excuse. I don’t believe in excuses.”
The superintendent added that the trooper who stopped him will not be disciplined for turning off his body camera and that the situation will not affect any other citations written on the Basin Bridge that day.