![]() ![]() She checked her mirrors and continued driving. “We got to make sure we’re not in a car that’s being too loud, turning up in our own car, just giving certain type of attention.” “I feel like when you see a police officer (as a Black person) there’s a certain type of way we have to start acting,” she said. Roberts later said she almost clipped him with her car, but this doesn't appear to be the case, according to dash and body camera footage.Ĭlark is always extra careful around police and actively works not to draw attention, she said. Roberts was standing at the window of the car he had pulled over as Clark turned on the road and drove off. She got in her car and swung wide onto East Fifth Avenue because of the police cars in the right lane on Cherry. As she left her house on her way to a friend’s place, officers saw her and waved. This happened to be right in front of Clark’s home, not an unusual place on a busy street for officers to pull someone over, she said. 12, Roberts and a handful of officers pulled over a woman on Cherry Street around 11 p.m. About a month into his solo policing beat, on Aug. Roberts graduated from the Knoxville Police Academy in February 2021, but wasn't allowed to have his own beat until July under department policy for new cops. Suspension: Knoxville police officer suspended, under investigation after a chase ends in a crash ‘Come here. Joseph Roberts: Knoxville police officer pleads guilty to tampering with records, then resigns ![]() Clark’s case and there was a litany of lies that do not match up, similar to what (Roberts) was caught in in January.” "I mean, you read the warrant that was filed in Ms. Clark’s, several months prior, to bring all this to the front," Baker said. “I just find it appalling as someone who does these types of cases that it took until January and Ms. Now, as Clark is working to overcome the ordeal and making plans to sue the city, her attorney, Lance Baker, is asking why it took so long for police to act. It was the pursuit of Clark, however, that laid the foundation for exposing Roberts' pattern of behavior and ultimately forcing KPD to deal with it. What’s more, three of Roberts’ supervisors reviewed his arrest of Clark, and none raised concerns about his conduct other than his raised voice and foul language. The chase reached speeds up to 100 mph during rush hour and ended in a crash that injured three people. The next month, in an eerily similar case, Roberts was criminally charged himself, accused of lying about starting a high-speed pursuit of 24-year-old Siara Davis. In December, Judge Tony Stansberry dismissed every single charge, calling the whole encounter "disturbing." Roberts lied repeatedly, to other cops and in written reports, about his pursuit and arrest of Clark. Police and prosecutors saddled her with six criminal charges, including a felony charge of evading arrest.īut the truth was on Clark's side. She told Knox News she thought she might die. She was exposed topless and terrifed in a front yard on Linden Avenue. Clark was tackled, her top torn from her, kneeled on and handcuffed. In August, Clark was confronted late at night by Knoxville police officer Joseph Roberts. Every day, Clark wondered if she'd make it, consumed by worry her studies would be cut short because of a frightening encounter with a police officer who lied to cover up what he did to her. Watch Video: Graphic bodycam video shows cop lied about arrest of 21-year-old womanĮarlier this spring, Trinity Clark finished her sophomore year at Tennessee State University, halfway to her goal of becoming an occupational therapist. ![]()
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