Jackson Jambalaya

 

 Ridgeland police stopped Michael Gaddis on Pear Orchard Road on March 16 for driving with an expired tag.  Gaddis posted a video online of the stop that claims the police arrested him due to racism.  The defendant obtained the video through discovery, then selectively edited it before posting it online.  

The hearing began with Ridgeland prosecutor Boty McDonald asking for a continuance since the state crime lab had not returned the lab results for a marijuana test.  However,  the two sides worked out an agreement and proceeded to trial.  

Gaddis, appropriately clad in a dark gray suit, brought a court reporter along with his attorneys Cody Gibson and John Hall.  

Ridgeland police officer Kyle Boyd said he was parked in the old CVS parking lot on East County Line Road on Sunday, March 16 at 10 AM  when Gaddis drove by in a gray BMW.  The BMW had an old "yellow" tag with seven characters.  The license plates have been phased out.   Boyd pulled him over on Pear Orchard Road and approached from the driver's side.  

The police officer said he could not see into the back of the car because of the rear window's. tint.   Boyd asked Gaddis to roll down his window several times as the motorist would not comply.  Gaddis was asked to get out of the car.  Boyd asked for his driver's license and proof of insurance.  Gaddis eventually provided a digital copy of his driver's license on his phone but was not able to provide proof of insurance.  Boyd called for assistance after observing several magazines in the driver's door console.  Gaddis informed the officer he had a Taurus pistol in his front pocket, which Boyd professionally removed.  Gaddis did not offer any resistance.  

 The defendant said he had another firearm in a backpack in the car.  Boyd said Gaddis was boisterous, yelling, and said the "N word" a couple of times.  Boyd intended to cite Gaddis for lack of proof of insurance, expired tag, and a tinted window violation.  

Officer Chris Clark arrived on the scene.  He told Boyd "Let's just lock him up."  Boyd placed Gaddis in handcuffs.  Boyd testified he searched the car and smelled marijuana. He discovered a sack in the front door on the passenger's side that contained one to two grams of marijuana.  

Boyd testified Gaddis was loud and uncooperative. Ridgeland Police Chief Bryan Myers issued a written reprimand to Boyd after the police officer said he was "going to stick it to him."  

Gibson tried to trip Boyd up on his testimony about the marijuana.  Boyd did not tell Clark he smelled marijuana.  He told the police officer he was "being aggressive." "Is that a crime?" responded Boyd.

Gaddis told the police officers he was a Black Hebrew from the tribe of Judah.  He called them "Esau" several times and said "I'm a six-figure guy."  

Officer Clark next took the stand.  He said Boyd "sounded a little frantic on the radio," so he cleared his traffic stop and went to the scene.  Clark testified Gaddis was "belligerent" as he want off "on a tangent about his tint."  The officer told Gaddis "to shut his fucking mouth."  Clark also received a written reprimand.  

Gaddis's window tint passed inspection after the police officer tested it.   

The car belonged to Denisha Sturgis.  Clark said he did not smell weed because he never went inside the car.       

Gaddis did not testify as the trial moved to closing arguments.  Gibson argued there were two issues: the search and actual possession of marijuana.  Boyd performed a probable cause search based on the smell of marijuana.  He never mentioned smelling weed in the video and thus had to reason to search for the illegal substance.  Clark testified he did not smell weed.  They did not conduct an inventory search.  The bag of weed was concealed.  He pointed out Gaddis did not own the vehicle.  

McDonald retorted that most marijuana possession arrests are made based on smell.  Once the police placed Gaddis in custody, they could conduct a search incident to arrest.  

 Through it all, Ridgeland Municipal Court Judge Hal McCarley stoically sat on the bench as the fate of Gaddis weighed heavily upon his brow.  

Judge McCarley dismissed the charges for expired tag and lack of proof of insurance after the defendant produced proof of each. However, he found Gaddis guilty of possessing marijuana and enhanced the sentence due to the possession of a firearm.  

After it was all said and done, Judge McCarley fined Gaddis $777.   Gibson said his client will appeal the conviction to Madison County Court.  

Gaddis is 39 years old.  His father,  a former JPD police officer, said his son served three tours of duty in Iraq while in the Army. Fred Gaddis, Sr. is an Army veteran as well.  

 

The video of the traffic stop

McDonald played a video of the traffic stop in court.  After pulling Gaddis over, Boyd explained the reason for the stop only to be cut off as Gaddis said "I remember you" as he alluded to an earlier traffic stop by the Boyd.   Gaddis said he would not consent to any searches and told Boyd to "do your job."  A frustrated Boyd told the motorist to "shut up."  Doing so only earned a lecture from Gaddis as he told the police officer he was to "stop being unprofessional and telling people to shut-up." "You are supposed to de-escalate the situation. Stop telling me to shut up, that is rude, have some manners" as he talked over Boyd.  The traffic stop just goes downhill from there. 

Boyd warned Gaddis he was about to "talk yourself into jail for being aggressive." "Is that a crime," asked Gaddis.  "Yes", replied the law enforcement officer.  

 Gaddis provided a copy of the new license plate when asked but said he didn't have to provide his license since "you pulled me over just the other day."  Calling Boyd "Esau," Gaddis quoted Genesis 25:25, saying "he was red all over like a hairy garment. His job is to destroy the Israelites.  I'm from the tribe of Judah. You're doing what God designed you to do. You need to read Obadiah 1:18.**  

Gaddis continued lecturing Boyd "Y'all fixing to punk me out.  I ain't no threat to y'all.... You told me you break your laws and sleep good about it on camera last time. Yeah, you said that."  "I never said that," replied Boyd.  Boyd finally presented his digital drivers license on his phone.  

The police officer told Gaddis he was "arguing about everything." Gaddis repeatedly asked in a strong voice "What am I arguing about?" before telling Boyd "I don't like y'all because I've had so many run-ins with y'all, all y'all do is run over people.  You done stole from me, came in my house, ain't none of y'all been good. What you supposed to be, the good guy? None of y'all are the good guys. Esau can't be good."

Upon being asked if he was armed, Gaddis said he had a pistol in his pocket and told Boyd to take possession of it and told him there were more in the car.  

Gaddis told Boyd to write him up if he couldn't present proof of insurance over and over before bragging he paid nearly $500 per month for insurance and was a "six-figure guy."  

 Officer Clark finally arrived on scene, eight minutes after the initiating of the traffic stop.  Every time Boyd said he was driving with an expired tag, Gaddis protested and said he had the tag, he just had not yet put it on the BMW.  

As Clark tested the tint, Gaddis told him "y'all trying to hurt me."  The officer said "if you would just shut your mouth"  but was interrupted yet again by the defendant:  "Your race been talking to us like that for too long, man.  You've got to get out of that, bro. Y'all's time is almost up according to (The)  Revelation. You Esau.  You go back to Esau.     Genesis 25:25 said you are red all over. It ain't no race card, it's a nation.   I'm from the nation of Israel.  You from the nation of Esau."

 The exasperated officer warned Gaddis, saying Clark could arrest him instead of writing a citation as a courtesy.    As Gaddis argued, Clark cursed "if you would just shut your fucking mouth."  The two men continued to argued.  "You're talking to me like I'm some n*****r," said Gaddis.  

Officer Clark had enough and handcuffed Gaddis, placing him in the rear of his police cruiser.  Boyd told Clark "I was trying to tell him his tint was legal but he would not shut his mouth."  

Upon arriving at the Ridgeland Police station for booking, Boyd told another police officer "I'm going to fuck him every way I can."  

 Kingfish note: It is a supreme fit of irony that if Gaddis had piped down and just accepted the citations, the police would not have arrested him. Hence, there would have been no search of the car and thus no discovery of the marijuana.   

* The Bible verse states: 

 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. 

 ** Obadiah 1:18: 

 Jacob will be a fire and Joseph a flame; Esau will be stubble, and they will set him on fire and destroy him.There will be no survivors from Esau.” The Lord has spoken.