A.G. Gancarski
Gov. Ron DeSantis is pushing back against the idea that the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) is guilty of any wrongdoing regarding new video of a traffic stop that ended in violence.
“I haven’t seen it, but I’ve heard that it was debunked,” DeSantis said. “There was a narrative that was done, and then JSO provided the context, and things were a lot different.”
DeSantis said there’s no reason for him to be concerned and rejected any need to learn the facts about what happened.
“Maybe I’ll review it, you know, at some point. But I kind of heard about it,” DeSantis said. “Then I heard the response, and I’m like, yeah, that kind of checks out to me without even knowing any of the facts. I just know how this stuff works, right?”
The driver, William McNeil, was allegedly pulled over in February during the day for not having headlights on. It was not raining and the sun was out. He was punched and forcibly subdued after not cooperating with the traffic stop.
The video went viral in recent days. But Jacksonville Sheriff TK Waters has said “the cell phone camera footage that began viral circulation over the weekend does not comprehensively capture the circumstances surrounding the incident.”
“And that is to be expected. Part of that stems from the distance and perspective of the recording cell phone camera,” Waters added.
“Another part of it stems from the fact that the cell phone camera did not capture the events that preceded Officer (D.J.) Bowers’ decision to arrest McNeil. Moreover, cameras can only capture what can be seen and heard. So much context and depth are absent from recorded footage because a camera simply cannot capture what is known to the people depicted in it.”
DeSantis agrees with that take, saying that in cases like McNeil’s, “a rush to judgment” and a “desire to try to get views and clicks by creating division” can predominate, as it did in Ferguson, Missouri, a decade ago.
“I mean, you had CNN anchors saying, hands up, don’t shoot. Like, basically, the narrative was you had this guy, innocent, unarmed, has his hands up, and some rogue cop just guns him down. And they were saying race was the reason to do it,” DeSantis said.
“Turns out, even Eric Holder’s Justice Department did a thorough investigation and said the officer acted appropriately under the circumstances. And so, you know, you had these situations where people will want to make an issue, but I have every confidence in our Sheriff here in Jacksonville that if there’s anything that these guys are not living up to the standards, he’s going to hold them accountable.”
DeSantis made the comments Wednesday at Jacksonville’s Wolfson Children’s Hospital.
6 comments
Frankie M.
July 23, 2025 at 12:59 pm
Sounds like Ronny D & TK “I’ve never had an altercation with the police in my life” Waters are content to live in their bubbles. Ronny can’t be bothered to watch either video because he’s too busy asking AI-Grok gata related sports trivia questions. He’ll just take someone else’s word for it. I hoped someone in the reporter pool asked Ronny whether he’s tried the chicken salad sammich next door at Baptist downtown.
Sunrise Sam
July 23, 2025 at 1:38 pm
Did you watch the video? Why is it that this kid would not comply with instructions? But no, we gonna show da man who is in charge here. That’s the new thing these people ask for, “I want to speak to your supervisor.” Okay I’ll call him / her but in the meantime follow instructions. Can’t do that. It’s a cultural / street cred with these folks. Don’t believe me then just YouTube search these police encounters. Very similar story lines.
Frankie M.
July 23, 2025 at 2:17 pm
I watched both videos and I don’t see how not complying with the officer’s instructions non-violently btw warranted being punched in the face twice. Clearly the officer didn’t fear for his safety as he was surrounded by a gaggle of other officers. I never said the driver was not at fault for non-compliance but as the saying goes “2 wrongs don’t make a right ”
JSO in particular should reexamine grounds for pretextual stops. Is pulling someone over for not having their headlights on (after a rainstorm) and/or not wearing a seatbelt (as seen in this example of shifting rationales for pulling Mr. McNeil over) worth the negative publicity these kinds of traffic stops generate? Seems to be just another extension of the old broken tail light justification yfrom back in the day or WWB for pedestrians that may or may not be jaywalking.
Frankie M.
July 23, 2025 at 1:10 pm
How does punching somebody in the face twice not rise to a criminal offense as Sheriff TK Waters claims—especially if that person is resisting without violence? It is interesting that nobody asked TK Waters this obvious follow-up question at his press conference. I would think the driver of that vehicle would still be in jail had he retaliated in kind.
MH/Duuuval
July 23, 2025 at 4:08 pm
“I just know how this stuff works, right?”
Translated: In Iraq sucker punching an Iraqi unfortunate enough to be caught up in the US net was using kid gloves.
Frankie M.
July 23, 2025 at 5:26 pm
As someone who served in Iraq I never sucker punched anyone. Maybe it was part of some unit’s culture over there but it wasn’t part of mine. As someone who now works in a public school the type of noncompliance exhibited by the driver of the vehicle happens in every school every day. What doesn’t happen (hopefully) is teachers punching their students for being noncompliant and/or disrespectful. If a teacher hits a student for any reason they are arrested, face criminal charges, and lose their teaching license. But hey apples and oranges, amirite?