Chapter 12 - Tyler refuses to delete the video
Daniel’s attorney requested access to Tyler’s original phone for forensic examination.
Reasonable.
The video was central evidence.
Tyler panicked.
“They’re going to take it.”
“For imaging, maybe.”
“What if it disappears?”
I understood why he thought that.
State investigators already had a verified forensic copy with hash values and chain of custody.
The evidence could not vanish just because one phone changed hands.
Tyler’s own attorney explained.
He consented under protective protocol.
Then Daniel sent him a message through an old family email account despite contact restrictions covering case discussion.
Son, videos never show the full story. Don’t let outsiders turn one bad moment into the end of this family.
Tyler forwarded it to prosecutors.
No reply.
Was it witness tampering?
The special prosecutor warned Daniel’s counsel.
The message did not explicitly threaten or request deletion.
But it violated the spirit and possibly terms of contact restrictions.
The judge amended conditions:
No direct communication with Tyler about the case.
Family logistics through counsel only.
Then investigators found a deleted message from Daniel sent ten minutes after the secure team arrived.
To Chief Deputy Brooks:
Need county IT to clean up my query logs before this gets misunderstood.
There.
Brooks did not comply.
He responded:
Absolutely not. Preserve everything.
That saved his career.
Daniel later claimed “clean up” meant organize.
Maybe.
Prosecutors considered attempted evidence tampering.
They would need prove intent to alter/delete records.
The message was strong.
No actual deletion occurred because Brooks locked access.
Then Tyler’s recording revealed another detail.
After I was uncuffed and medics began evaluating me, Daniel told a protective officer:
“I had probable cause.”
Officer:
“What crime?”
“Impersonation.”
“Based on what?”
Daniel hesitated.
Then:
“She won’t show credentials.”
I was sitting six feet away.
I said:
“You never asked.”
Tyler’s camera caught it.
Daniel turned.
“You’re detained. Stop talking.”
Protective officer replied:
“She is not detained by you.”
That was the moment Daniel’s official authority ended in the room.
May you like
Not when SUVs arrived.
When another professional refused to treat his words as law merely because he said them loudly.
