Louisville Police Chief Resigns A Month After Scottie Scheffler Arrest Debacle

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Scottie Scheffler was arrested by Louisville Metro Police ahead of his second-round tee time at the PGA Championship on Friday, May 17, and just 40 days later, Louisville police chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel has resigned from her post.

Gwinn-Villaroel oversaw the department's mishandling of the Scheffler arrest and the aftermath that followed, but her resignation comes after another debacle involving a sexual harassment claim about an officer, according to the Associated Press. 

Scottie Scheffler posed for a mugshot after being arrested in Louisville during the PGA Championship.  (Photo by  Louisville Department of Corrections/Getty Images)

According to the report, two female officers filed lawsuits last week alleging that they were sexually harassed by fellow officers in recent years. While Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said that the conduct alleged in the lawsuits was "unacceptable and inexcusable," he did not expand on whether or not Gwinn-Villaroel resigned on her own or if he asked to do so.

As for the mess that was the Scheffler arrest, the world's top-ranked player was eventually charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving and disregarding signals from an officer directing traffic. Scheffler was booked and held that Friday morning before being released in time to make his second-round tee time.

Scheffler maintained that the incident occurred due to a "big misunderstanding" and was very complimentary of police despite the arrest. On May 29, the Jefferson County attorney's office declined to pursue any of the charges against Scheffler. 

Before all the charges were dropped against Scheffler, Mayor Greenberg explained that police officers involved in the golfer's arrest would be investigated for whether they followed proper protocol. He also confirmed that there was no bodycam footage of the incident involving Scheffler, although video footage appearing to be that of a bodycam was posted to Facebook the day after Greenberg's statement showing the golfer in the back of a police car.

Detective Bryan Gillis is noted in the arrest report, which stated that he sustained injuries and damage to the pants he was wearing moments before the arrest. The report also described Gillis as being "dragged" by Scheffler's car, although there was no video footage that showed such an incident taking place. 

Gwinn-Villaroel's resignation as Louisville Metro Police Chief makes her the third to be fired or resign from the position since 2020. 

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.