But the video showed something different.
Talia asked for the legal basis.
Offered to verify ownership.
And remained several feet from Mercer until he began crushing the plants.
She stepped forward when he kicked another rosebush.
But she didn't strike him.
Didn't threaten him.
And didn't attempt to seize his equipment.
The recording showed Mercer moving toward her and shoving her backward.
It also captured Bennett questioning the lack of verified documentation.
The investigators reviewed the footage alongside Margaret's recording.
The angles differed.
But the central sequence was consistent.
Mercer destroyed plants.
Talia objected.
He shoved her.
Then ordered Bennett to apply handcuffs.
The administrative and legal reviews would determine the consequences.
But the available evidence strongly contradicted the sergeant's suggestion that he was responding to a violent threat.
And the false ownership information made the entire basis of the assignment even more questionable.
Mercer's interview took place three weeks after the incident.
He arrived with appropriate representation and appeared visibly irritated by the questions.
Nadia began with the dispatch entry.
"Sergeant, did you verify the removal order before entering the property?"
Mercer leaned backward.
"I relied on the information provided."
"By whom?"
"The city."
Nadia placed a copy of the complaint on the table.
"The listed complainant had been deceased for eleven months."
Mercer's expression tightened.
"I didn't know that."
She nodded.
"Officer Bennett raised concerns about the ownership information."
He looked toward the document.
"She was second-guessing the assignment."
Nadia didn't argue.
Instead, she asked whether he contacted the code office before damaging the roses.
He shook his head.
"Not at that point."
"Did you see an imminent threat to public safety?"
He hesitated.
"The vegetation was a reported obstruction."
Nadia looked toward the photographs.
The sidewalk was clear.
The flowers stood within the white fence.
And no vehicle sightline appeared blocked.
She asked him to identify the specific hazard.
He began describing the general purpose of the program.
Nadia listened.
Then repeated the question.
"What condition did you personally observe that required immediate destruction of those plants?"
For several seconds, Mercer remained silent.
Finally, he answered.
"I believed the homeowner was refusing compliance."
The investigator made a note.
Then looked up.
"That describes your belief about her attitude. It doesn't identify a safety hazard."
Mercer's face reddened.
And for the first time, he appeared to understand that confidence alone wasn't going to resolve the questions.
The interview became more difficult when Nadia asked about the shove.
Mercer claimed Talia moved aggressively toward him.
Nadia played the body-camera footage.
The video showed Talia stepping toward her mother's rose garden after Mercer kicked another plant.
Her hands were visible.
She wasn't carrying a weapon.