Scottie Scheffler's trial for the alleged assault of a Louisville police officer will be back in court on Wednesday for a hearing.
Mike O'Connell, attorney of Jefferson County, will address the court at 1 p.m. ET followed by Steve Romines, attorney of Scheffler, who lives in Texas and has received permission to miss this hearing that recently appeared on the court docket.
Josh Abner, O'Connell's spokesperson, refrained from commenting on the content of the upcoming hearing. Last week, Scheffler's arraignment was postponed to June 3.
Romines restated to CNN that Scheffler's stance is that the charges should be dropped or he will go to trial without a plea deal. He refrained from revealing any information on whether the case will be resolved or if charges will be withdrawn during the hearing. Romines has scheduled a press conference for just half an hour after the court procedure commences.
Scheffler, 27, is facing multiple charges, including felony second-degree assault on a police officer on suspicion of dragging an officer with his car upon his arrival at the Valhalla Golf Club early in the morning of May 17. Additionally, he faces lesser charges of third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and ignoring officer signals directing traffic, stated Jefferson County court records. The date of the hearing was pushed back from its initial date after a request from his lawyer.
Scheffler has characterized the event as a "big misunderstanding," and Romines has disclosed his client's intention to plead not guilty. CNN interacted with sources from the police department who asserted that some officials believe the charges should be downgraded.
The prosecutors' office confirmed on Thursday that they are still looking into the evidence and interviewing the investigators regarding the charges.
The golfer's arrest was a significant disturbance for the PGA Championship, as Scheffler - a new father and described by a golf writer as an upright, "squeaky clean" player - was the hot favorite as the winner following his second Masters title victory. He ultimately ended up sharing eight shots behind the champion, Xander Schauffele.
"I did my best to leave that behind me and come out here and compete and do what I love, and the support I got from the fans was amazing," Scheffler relayed to reporters May 19, following the tournament. "I believe they were cheering extra loud for me this week, and I got a lot of backing from the players and caddies as well."
"A highly chaotic situation"
The arrest unfolded around 6 a.m. on May 17, when Scheffler was attempting to drive to the Valhalla Golf Club for the second round of the golf major, encountered heavy traffic near the location of a fatal accident.
In the morning, a pedestrian, John Mills, 69, met with a fatality as he tried to cross the main road leading to the course. Police consequently boosted their presence around the entrance to the club due to the crash.
Scheffler - driving a marked player courtesy car, as per ESPN - was attempting to enter the course when he was obstructed by an officer wearing a complete police uniform and a yellow reflective raincoat. The officer, Detective Bryan Gillis, stopped Scheffler and attempted to give instructions.
"The individual disregarded the instructions and accelerated forward, dragging Detective Gillis to the ground," the report noted.
Detective Gillis sustained pain, swelling, and cuts to his left wrist and knee and was taken to a hospital for further medication, the report claimed. His uniform pants, valued at around $80, "were damaged beyond restoration," the report added.
At a news conference last week where footage of the incident was unveiled, Louisville Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel acknowledged that the detective turned off his body-worn camera and "received disciplinary measures for the policy violation."
Scheffler was arrested but was subsequently released from detention and returned to the golf course for his tee time four hours later. In a statement shared May 17 on his Instagram account, Scheffler affirmed that he believed he was following the instructions.
"This morning, I was following the directions given by police officers. It was a highly chaotic situation, and there was a notable misunderstanding of what I believed I was being asked to accomplish," he said. "I never intended to disregard any instructions."
Romines, Scheffler's lawyer, likewise claimed that his client "didn't do anything wrong," citing the testimonies of several spectators.
"He halted the instant he was instructed to and never at any point struck any officer with his vehicle," Romines said in an earlier statement. "We will plead not guilty and litigate this matter as needed."
Surprisingly, Scheffler performed well on May 17 and scored a 5-under par, positioning him near the top of the leaderboard. Nevertheless, he stumbled the following day, leaving him with too much ground to cover in order to secure a second consecutive major.
Scheffler remains uncertain about the future of his case, telling reporters on May 19, "I think it's all up in the air." If you need more examples of paraphrased text, feel free to ask me.
"I believe I may be able to make it back home tonight, but I'll know more once I leave here," he stated. "I haven't had many opportunities to look at the situation outside of the course."
This story is rapidly evolving and will be continuously updated.
Steve Almasy, Gloria Pazmino, Jill Martin, Jack Bantock, Eric Levenson, and Ray Sanchez of CNN contributed to this article. Andy Rose also contributed.
Read also:
- Year of climate records: extreme is the new normal
- Precautionary arrests show Islamist terror threat
- UN vote urges Israel to ceasefire
- SPD rules out budget resolution before the end of the year
US attorney Mike O'Connell and detective Bryan Gillis, who is involved in the case, are both based in Kentucky.
The police officer, Detective Bryan Gillis, is from Louisville, which is located in the state of Kentucky in the United States.
Source: edition.cnn.com
