Still, with two weapons pointed in his direction, he had to consider the immediate danger.
Marcus Reed: "Officer Cole, may I ask you something?"
Officer Cole: "Keep your hands where we can see them and speak."
Marcus Reed: "If you later discover that the evidence was planted, will you preserve your original account of what happened here, even if it contradicts Officer Lawson's report?"
Cole hesitated.
Officer Cole: "I will report what I personally observed."
Marcus Reed: "And if the recordings show something different from what he told you?"
Officer Cole: "Then the recordings will have to be considered."
Marcus nodded slightly.
Marcus Reed: "Good. That's all I wanted to hear."
Lawson gave a bitter laugh.
Officer Lawson: "You two are actually having a conversation with him like he's in charge."
Officer Miller: "Nobody said that."
Officer Lawson: "Then stop treating him like he's giving orders."
Officer Cole: "Nobody is treating him as anything other than a person involved in an incident. We have an officer on the ground, an allegation of drugs, and conflicting accounts. We need to secure the scene."
The words seemed to frustrate Lawson even more.
He had expected his colleagues to arrive, see him on the grass, and immediately accept that the civilian was responsible. That had been the entire point of shouting first. He wanted them to see the end of the struggle without questioning its beginning.
Instead, the scene was no longer moving according to his plan.
Marcus remained kneeling, his hands visible.
Officer Cole: "Sir, you said you have identification inside your jacket. Is that correct?"
Marcus Reed: "Yes."
Officer Cole: "What kind of identification?"
Marcus Reed: "Official state identification."
Officer Miller: "What does that mean?"
Marcus Reed: "It means I can establish who I am. But I will not reach for it unless you give me clear instructions."
Cole and Miller exchanged a glance.
Officer Cole: "All right. Do not move yet."
She lowered her weapon slightly and spoke quietly to Miller, asking him to maintain a safe position while she assessed the situation. Neither officer fully relaxed, but the immediate tension began to shift.
Cole looked toward Lawson.
Officer Cole: "Where exactly did you say you found the bag?"
Officer Lawson: "In his jacket pocket."
Officer Cole: "Which pocket?"
Officer Lawson: "The outer pocket on the right side."
Officer Cole: "Did you search him before finding it?"
Officer Lawson: "I conducted a lawful search after observing suspicious behavior."
Officer Cole: "What suspicious behavior?"
Lawson's expression hardened.
Officer Lawson: "He was acting suspiciously."
Officer Cole: "What specifically did he do?"
Officer Lawson: "He was sitting here, watching his phone, and refusing to answer my questions properly."
Marcus looked up.
Marcus Reed: "I answered every question he asked before he grabbed me."
Officer Lawson: "You challenged my authority."
Marcus Reed: "I asked why I was being questioned."
Officer Cole: "Please, one person at a time."
She returned her attention to Lawson.
Officer Cole: "Did you tell him you were going to search his jacket before you reached into it?"
Officer Lawson: "I gave him instructions."
Officer Cole: "What instructions?"
Lawson opened his mouth, then closed it.
He had expected to be asked what Marcus had done. He had not expected to be asked about the exact sequence of his own actions.
Officer Lawson: "I don't remember every word."
Officer Cole: "Then we'll establish the sequence from the recordings."
Lawson looked toward Miller, apparently expecting him to intervene.
Miller did not.
Officer Miller: "We should secure both body-camera recordings and request the supervisor."
Officer Cole: "Agreed."
The words brought a new kind of silence.
Lawson's body camera was still attached to his uniform. Cole and Miller also wore cameras, and the department's system would record their responses to the incident. There was no guarantee that any one recording would capture everything, but together the files could establish what each officer had seen, said, and done.
Marcus understood that the recordings could become the most important evidence in the case.
He also understood that a recording could not preserve what had happened before a camera began operating, nor could it automatically reveal what a person intended. The files would need to be reviewed carefully, compared with the witnesses' accounts, and preserved before anyone had an opportunity to influence the record.
Marcus Reed: "Please make sure all three cameras are preserved in their original form."
Officer Miller: "Why are you so concerned about the cameras?"
Marcus Reed: "Because one of them may show the moment Officer Lawson reached into my jacket."
Lawson immediately interrupted.
Officer Lawson: "That is a lie. I did not plant anything."
Marcus Reed: "Then you should welcome the review."
Officer Lawson: "I don't need a review to prove that I did my job."