No sustained racial-bias findings.
One body-camera violation.
Two discourtesy findings.
One complaint from a white driver alleging Mitchell invented marijuana odor to search a pickup.
That one interested Daniel.
Race mattered.
But bad authority did not require only one target group.
The pattern appeared broader.
Mitchell disliked challenge.
Drivers who questioned him drew escalation.
Black drivers appeared more likely to trigger his suspicion earlier.
Both could be true.
Barnes's record was clean.
That complicated things.
He had been with the department three years.
Good evaluations.
No complaints.
Supervisors described him as calm.
Team-oriented.
Reliable.
Those compliments looked different after Daniel watched the roadside video.
Team-oriented.
Sometimes that meant loyal.
Sometimes it meant quiet.
Daniel requested to see Barnes only after investigators completed his formal interview.
Captain Gaines agreed.
The meeting occurred at a neutral county building.
No uniforms except Daniel's.
He considered civilian clothing.
Then chose service uniform intentionally.
Not as intimidation.
As honesty.
This was who he was.
Barnes entered.
Saw the rank.
Stopped.
Daniel stood.
“Officer Barnes.”
“Colonel.”
“Sit.”
Barnes sat.
He looked exhausted.
Daniel remained standing for another second.
Then sat across from him.
“No lawyers here because this isn't an investigative interview.”
“I know.”
“If at any point you think I'm asking something related to discipline, stop me.”
Barnes nodded.
Daniel leaned back.
“Why did you stay?”
Barnes knew immediately.
“At the stop.”
“Yes.”
He looked down.
“I thought I could keep Craig from getting worse.”
Daniel waited.
Barnes continued:
“I've worked with him maybe twenty times.”
“He's intense.”
“That is a polite word.”
Barnes almost smiled.
Then stopped.
“I knew he didn't smell marijuana.”
“Yes.”
“I told him.”
“Yes.”
“I should've stopped the search.”
“How?”
Barnes looked up.
“I don't know.”
Daniel nodded.
“That's honest.”
Barnes rubbed his palms together.
“When he switched off the camera, I knew.”
“Knew what?”
“That it had gone bad.”
“Then why didn't you act?”
Barnes's face tightened.
“Because he has nine years.”
“I had three.”
Daniel said nothing.
Barnes continued:
“He knows supervisors.”
“Training officers.”
“Union people.”
“I thought if I challenged him and I was wrong…”
“You'd become the problem.”
“Yes.”
Daniel leaned forward.
“And when he kicked me?”
Barnes's eyes filled.
“I was done.”
“You still didn't physically stop him.”
“No.”
“Why?”
Barnes looked ashamed.
“I froze.”
Daniel nodded.
Again.
Honesty.
“People think officers freeze only when bullets come out.”
Barnes looked at him.
Daniel continued:
“Authority can freeze people too.”
Especially internal authority.
Barnes swallowed.