The charges against Scottie Scheffler following his arrest before the second round of the PGA Championship have been dropped.
The World No.1 was arrested outside the venue for the Major, Valhalla, when he arrived in his car to prepare for his second round. Earlier in the day, there had been a fatal accident, and Scheffler arrived to find police redirecting traffic. That led to a situation involving Scheffler that he later described as a “big misunderstanding.”
Nevertheless, he was taken to the police station and later charged with second-degree assault of a police office, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding traffic signals from an officer directing traffic.
However, 12 days after the incident, Jefferson County Attorney Mike O'Connell said during a court hearing: "Based upon the totality of the evidence, my office cannot move forward in the prosecution of the charges filed against Mr Scheffler.”
"Mr Scheffler's characterization that this was a 'big misunderstanding' is corroborated by the evidence. The evidence we reviewed supports the conclusion that Detective 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."
Following the decision, Scheffler released a statement where he reiterated the incident had been a "misunderstanding" and continued: "I hold no ill will towards Officer Gillis. I wish to put the incident behind me and move on, and I hope he will do the same."
He added: "This was a severe miscommunication in a chaotic situation," before saying his "thoughts and prayers" are with the victim in the earlier fatal accident, John Mills and his family.
Scottie’s statement. Pure class. pic.twitter.com/1EEq92LrLnMay 29, 2024
The decision to drop the charges follows a period of uncertainty for Scheffler after the incident. Following the arrest, Scheffler spent some time in a cell, but was returned to the course in time for his second round, where he shot an impressive 66 to remain in contention for his third Major title.
However, it didn’t take long for the incident to take a toll, and after a far less assured third round of 73, he admitted: “I was definitely not feeling like myself.”
Last week, Louisville police said the charges would not be dropped, which led Scheffler’s attorney Steve Romines to say: "Our position is the same as it was last Friday - Scottie Scheffler didn't do anything wrong. We're not interested in settling the case and we will either try it or it will get dismissed.
“All the evidence that continues to come out continues to support what Scottie said all along, that this was a chaotic situation and he didn’t do anything wrong.”
Despite the ongoing issue, Scheffler appeared to put it to the back of his mind in time for the Charles Schwab Challenge, which began later that week, where he eventually finished T2.
The news that the charges have now been dropped comes after video emerged capturing Scheffler's conversation with a Valhalla police officer immediately after his arrest.
In the conversation, Scheffler admitted he had been "impatient." After the announcement, Romines faced reporters, where he defended Scheffler, saying: "Here's what happened. He is being interrogated after the most stressful situation of his life and the officer is actually asking him leading questions and trying to get him to agree with them.
"That's why you don't talk to the police, because they are going to try and put words in your mouth and that's exactly what they did.
"He didn't have to speak, but again, he asked to talk to the officer. He wanted to explain to him what happened. However, they are trying to confess to something that he didn't do and the video evidence shows he didn't do it."
NEW: Scottie Scheffler's attorney issues a fiery response to the charges being dropped against Scottie Scheffler. Listen to what Romines told @NataliaWAVE3 when she asked why Scheffler originally agreed with the claim that he dragged Det. Gillis: @wave3news pic.twitter.com/TP01669eIHMay 29, 2024
Following a turbulent two weeks, Scheffler will now be able to fully focus on life as a new dad and upcoming tournaments, including the third Major of the year, the US Open.
