A legal win for Scottie Scheffler. After the No. 1 golfer was arrested before the second round of the PGA Championship in Louisville, Ky., on May 17, the charges have been dropped.
"Based upon the totality of the evidence, my office cannot move forward in the prosecution of the charges filed against Mr. Scheffler," Jefferson County Attorney Mike O’Connell said on Wednesday, May 29. "Mr. Scheffler's characterization that this was a 'big misunderstanding' is corroborated by the evidence. The evidence we reviewed supports the conclusion that Detective [Bryan] Gillis was concerned for public safety at the scene when he initiated contact with Mr. Scheffler. However, Mr. Scheffler's actions and the evidence surrounding their exchange during this misunderstanding do not satisfy the elements of any criminal offenses."
The athlete, 27, was not present at the hearing.
As OK! previously reported, Scheffler was arrested by Gillis, a Louisville Metro Police detective who claimed that Scheffler's SUV hit the gas and dragged him to the ground. The golf star said he was trying to drive around traffic outside Valhalla Golf Club as there was an incident earlier that morning.
He was arrested and charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving and disregarding signals from officer directing traffic.
Steve Romines, Scheffler's attorney, said it's clear the detective was not right.
"The more evidence that comes out, the more it shows that Scottie was a victim here. And I think everybody sees something like this happen and realizes they're one wrong turn ... from going to jail," Romines said, adding that they had considered pursuing civil litigation but that Scheffler "does not wish to do that. He wants to move on."
Gillis was reprimanded for not wearing his bodycam video recorder during the altercation. He was transported to a hospital at the time, where he suffered "pain, swelling and abrasions" to his left wrist and knee.
"We respect the County Attorney's decision, and we respect the judicial process," the LMPD said in a statement.
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Scheffler was later released just before his second-round tee time on May 17 and finished the tournament.
“I can’t really explain what happened this morning. I was pretty rattled to say the least. I was never angry. I was just in shock. I was shaking for like an hour. It was definitely a new feeling for me,” he tol reporters.
