SALISBURY, N.C. — New body camera video published Tuesday from the Salisbury Post captures the moments a Rowan County commissioner threatens officers as he is charged with DWI during a June arrest.
On June 27, Salisbury Police Department officers located and stopped the vehicle being driven by Craig Pierce, according to the Salisbury Post. Officers were able to locate the SUV on West Innes Street near Statesville Boulevard after a 911 call about a reckless driver.
The body camera footage, released by court order to The Post shows the initial encounter with police. Pierce gets out of his car and is seen leaning on the SUV as he walks. Eventually, he is able to sit on the hood of a patrol car.
Officers begin conducting a field sobriety test, and the officer requests Pierce to perform tasks like following a pen with his eyes and tilting only his head up to the sky. In the video, Pierce is shown not able to follow these commands.
As the tests continue, Pierce threatens to call Rowan County Sheriff Kevin Auten saying, "I'm gonna call the sheriff and get your a-- fired". In response, the officer notes he is not an employee of the Rowan County Sheriff's Office.
When an officer tries to prevent Pierce from standing up, Pierce claims the officers cannot touch him and uses vulgarities towards the officers as he again threatens to call the sheriff. Pierce can be heard telling the officers he can "stop that sh-t".
Pierce tells the officers, "You guys are a f-cking joke". Almost 40 minutes after getting pulled over, Pierce is handcuffed and placed into a police car.
Pierce's blood alcohol levels were more than three times the legal limit in North Carolina, according to data obtained by The Post. Throughout his encounter with officers, Pierce continued to threaten officers' jobs with calls to other local officials.
His next court appearance is on Sept. 22. WCNC Charlotte has reached out to the law firm representing him.
Pierce was first elected to the Rowan County Commission in 2012. Reelected to a second term in 2020, Pierce’s current term runs through 2024, according to his county biography.