Page 37 - TPA Journal July August 2022

Officer Harden left the RV park in his personal • 00:28-00:34: “This is my personal owned
vehicle to respond to a call. Nutt and another property. I am not. And I am not.”
neighbor, Alex Britton, were outside at the time. • 00:56-00:56: “No sir.” (In response to ‘step
Although there is some dispute as to what exactly outside’)
was said, Nutt yelled out to Harden that he was • 01:24-01:25: “Get your hands off my door.”
driving too fast. Harden backed up and argued with • 01:29-01:33: “Get your hands off my door. This
Nutt. Nutt told Harden to “slow the fuck down” and is my property.”
asked him if he thought he was above the law. • 01:35-01:36: “Take your hands off.”
Harden asked Nutt to identify himself, and Nutt • 01:40-01:42: “Take your hands off of my door.”
refused. Harden explained that he was a Llano • 01:49-01:51: “Take your hands off my door.”
police officer on his way to a call and told Nutt to • 01:55-01:56: “Please take your.”
go back inside his RV. After Harden left, Nutt and • 04:11-04:13: “Why am I stepping out of my.”
Britton went back inside their own trailers. • 04:24-04:25: “For what.” (In response to ‘come
down those steps’)
About twenty-three minutes later, Harden returned • 09:31-09:34: “Are you coming in for what
to the RV park. He called the RV park manager, reason?”
Christie Schutte, and told her that there was a guy • 10:48-10:50: “I don’t wanna walk outside.”
“irate and upset” a “few trailers down from him.”
Harden also called for backup, saying he had a Harden told Nutt that he saw Nutt “out here
“public intox” interaction with Nutt. When Schutte intoxicated” earlier and that Nutt committed that
arrived at the RV park, she asked Harden what was offense twice. He also said that Nutt “quickly
wrong, and Harden said he was taking Nutt to jail scurried into [his] trailer and shut [his] door.”
for public intoxication. Schutte asked, “Where is Harden threatened to call Nutt’s supervisor, stated
he at?” Harden responded, “He’s in his trailer.” that he would come up the stairs to “get” Nutt if
Schutte replied, “Then what’s the problem?” Nutt did not step outside, and said Nutt would be
Harden also told dispatch that Nutt had gone back facing a charge of resisting arrest if Officer Harden
inside his trailer. had to fight him. Officer Shannon also told Nutt
that by not complying, he was resisting arrest. She
Officers Aimee Shannon and Jared Latta, as well pointed her taser at Nutt—specifically, at his
as Appellant, responded to the call. The officers crotch—and she and Harden both said that Nutt
knocked on Nutt’s door and, when Nutt opened the would be tased if he did not exit the trailer. Officer
door, the officers demanded that he come out, but Shannon’s body camera reflected that, during the
Nutt refused. Harden and Shannon repeatedly told last 14 minutes of the confrontation, Nutt was
Nutt to come outside, and he repeatedly refused to standing inside the door of his trailer and was not
do so and denied the officers consent to enter his wearing shoes.
home. On the bodycam recording, Nutt expressly
told police twice that he was not coming outside. It is difficult to know when Appellant arrived at the
Also, thirteen times he implied that he was not scene. Jack Schumacher, chief investigator for the
coming out: district attorney’s office for Llano, Burnet, San
Saba, and Blanco counties, testified that he
• 00:11-00:13: “The best thing I can tell you is get believed Appellant was at the scene for most of the
off my door.” 14 minutes of the bodycam video. In the bodycam
• 00:23-00:24: “I am not stepping out.” video, it appears that Appellant and Sergeant Latta
• 00:26-00:27: “You are not coming in.” are present at approximately the 10:15 marker,

July - August 2022 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • (512) 458-3140 33