California lawmaker releases body camera video after claiming unlawful arrest by Sacramento police
New body camera video released Thursday shows the moment California Senator Sabrina Cervantes got into a car crash that led to her DUI arrest. Her toxicology report later found that she had no drugs or alcohol in her system.
Cervantes filed a claim against the City of Sacramento for unlawful arrest and defamation on Sept. 8. On Thursday, her legal team added the video to that claim and also released it to the public. It is important to note that because the video comes from Cervantes' legal team, it has been edited, captions were added and pieces are missing.
The video released starts with surveillance video of the crash, showing the moment a SUV slams into Cervantes' car back on May 19 at the intersection of S and 14th Street in Sacramento.
The crash damaged more than the senator's car, but she said her reputation was damaged after police arrested her for driving under the influence; but, her toxicology report came back negative.
"This is not only about what happened to me, this is about accountability," said Cervantes on Sept. 8 when the claim was filed against the city. "If this can happen to me, this can happen to anyone."
The Sacramento police body camera video shows them questioning Cervantes in the hospital hours after the crash.
Police claimed she had an unsteady gait plus slow and slurred speech, but Cervantes' attorney Jim Quadra said that is not what this video shows.
Police got a warrant for a blood test, but the video provided by the state senator's legal team shows Cervantes suggesting one.
Cervantes also had another driver take her to the hospital, something officers appeared to find suspicious.
"I don't want to tie up fire and emergency services when there are so many dire needs out there," said Cervantes in the body camera video from May 19.
"It's odd. It's different than what we typically see," responded the Sacramento police officer.
Quadra claims police targeted the state senator because she is a Latina woman who is part of the LGBTQ+ community, plus she was trying to push legislation that would limit law enforcement's use of license plate readers.
"We have the evidence that proves irrefutably that the officers were lying," Quadra said.
Mark Reichel, a local criminal defense attorney unrelated to the case, thinks that this will ultimately be settled out of court, but will still end up costing the city.
"She tells a sympathetic story," Reichel said. "Even if this is a successful suit, it doesn't mean under any circumstances that anyone other than the taxpayers are going to pay these damages."
CBS Sacramento requested the video in full from the Sacramento Police Department. On Thursday, the city said it needs more time to respond because of the volume of video and records that need to be collected.
The City of Sacramento has 45 days to respond to Cervantes' claim. The city can either choose to reach an agreement, or else the state senator's legal team plans to move forward with filing a lawsuit.
CBS Sacramento reached out to police and the City of Sacramento, which both said they cannot comment on pending litigation.