FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 19, 2021
Today, Chief RaShall Brackney hosted a press conference regarding two major internal affairs cases involving two former Charlottesville Police Department officers.
CPD publicly released body-worn camera footage related to the LaQuinn Gilmore investigation stemming from an incident that occurred on Monticello Avenue on January 11, 2021, involving former Officer Joseph B. Wood. The investigation sustained numerous complaints made by Mr. Gilmore, and others were either exonerated or unfounded.
Chief Brackney also discussed some of the findings about the internal affairs investigation involving former Officer Jeffrey Jaeger, from an incident that occurred on March 3, 2020. Jaeger was subsequently charged and convicted of misdemeanor assault and battery in Charlottesville General District Court. As this case remains under appeal in Charlottesville Circuit Court, CPD will not be providing any additional comments about this specific case at this time.
Both cases involved rigorous internal affairs investigations, which involved examination of body-worn camera footage, 911 calls, and the interviews of the officers, witnesses, and involved parties. The systems in place ensure that complaints are taken seriously, and our officers are held accountable for their actions.
Below is a statement from Chief Brackney:
“These incidents are occurring nationally, and do nothing more than erode trust between police and the communities they serve. With the release of the body-worn camera footage today, it is my hope our community sees our agency promoting greater transparency, and holding our officers to the highest standards.”
“Although both of these cases have been closed, and the former officers are being held accountable, the harm they have inflicted will linger. That harm includes undermining the positive interactions and relationships so many of our CPD officers have worked to establish. Their actions are not reflective of CPD’s values and commitment to Service Beyond the Call.
Their actions highlight the injustices that permeate the fabric of our society and of a criminal-legal system that is rooted in supremacy and anti-black violence.”
“Their actions, erode the community’s confidence and elevate fears that black and brown communities, black men and people of color, will be brutalized, over-policed or under protected. And their actions… validated those fears and concerns…harmed this community, and for that… I am sorry.”
The full body-worn camera footage related to the LaQuinn Gilmore case can be found on our YouTube channel here. A playback of the footage released during today’s press conference can be found on our Facebook page here.
Media Contact
Tyler Hawn
Public Information Officer
Charlottesville Police Department
434-409-3439
hawnto@charlottesville.gov
