A 30-minute gap in a surveillance video showed the suspect popping in and out of the picture where the apparent edit was made.
Tampa, Florida -- Police are supposed to take drunk drivers off the street, not put them back on. But a video obtained by the 10 News Investigators shows that's exactly what a Hillsborough Sheriff's deputy and a Temple Terrace Police officer did.
Former Assistant State Attorney Eilam Isaak, now a defense attorney, believes sometimes the police need to be policed themselves.
"I filed this motion to dismiss, because there was improper conduct by law enforcement. I police the police," said Isaak.
Isaak is talking about an incident in 2008 when Larrissa Hernandez was arrested for DUI. He maintains that two law enforcement agencies -- Temple Terrace Police and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office -- did not follow the rules and it appears someone tried to cover it up.
"Nobody likes to admit they made a mistake, so there comes in the cover ups. The police come in and exaggerate or embellish or try to hide the mistakes they made," said Isaak.
Under state law, when someone is arrested for DUI, the arresting officer has to observe the suspect for 20 minutes before a administering a breathalyzer test. After the observation period, the officer has to fill out a form swearing he did the 20-minute observation and it must be notarized by another police officer.
However, the video shows when Temple Terrace Police Officer William Cooper arrested Hernandez and took her to the sheriff's office, he hands Deputy James Glover a blank form. He asks him to notarize the Criminal Report Affidavit, which is a felony.
The video also shows Cooper doesn't observe Hernandez for the required 20 minutes.
"The only reason we know this happened is because of the video cameras are in the room. That's the only reason. Without the videos, there is no way to know this happened. In my opinion, I think we've just seen two felonies," said Isaak.
However, when DUI expert Stephen Daniels requested the tape made by the sheriff's office, the illegal acts were deleted.
"So, it is my opinion they intentionally did not fulfill that public records request and they edited out that part," said Daniels.
While Daniels said he got an edited tape, the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles had a copy of the master tape with everything captured. It showed Hernandez coming into the DUI testing area and Deputy Glover signing what appears to be the blank form.
The video also showed the suspect going to the bathroom during the 20-minute observation period where Cooper swore he was watching her. The 30-minute gap showed the suspect popping in and out of the picture, where the apparent edit was made.
"Again, this is a cover up ... It couldn't come from a lower level it had to come from higher up," said Daniels.
It's not only videos that implicate the deputy, but his answer when asked about the two different videos in court.
"Deputy Glover admitted under oath he notarized a blank affidavit. He testified, 'Was there a signature?' and he said 'No.' 'Was there a statement?' and he said no. 'You notarized a blank form?' 'Yes,'" said Isaak.
Isaak believes like the DUI expert Stephen Daniels, that the tape was erased as part of a cover-up.
"Well, it makes you wonder after Officer Cooper and Deputy Glover came to the court hearing and the video was played and they were questioned about this conduct, whether someone went back to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and decided to take that evidence out," said Isaak.
The videoed volition led to Hernandez avoiding a DUI conviction and when the incident came to light, another driver arrested for DUI who blew more than three times the legal limit was found 'not guilty' when the jury found out about Glover's illegal acts.
"There has to be penalties. The police have to be above reproach. There cannot be any question about their integrity or investigations. We have to be able to trust police, but what we see from these videotapes, we can't," said Isaak.
Temple Terrace Police sent us this email response when the 10 News Investigators asked about their officer's involvement:
TTPD discovered the video online and looked into it
around Feb. 8, 2011. The facts of the case were reviewed, and based on that review our procedures for conducting investigations at Central Breath Testing and the documentation of those investigations were revised. There was no discipline of Officer Cooper in this case.
The Hillsborough Sheriff's Office sent the 10 News Investigators a letter stating they do not believe Deputy James Glover violated any criminal laws and called the signing of the blank affidavit a procedural error.
They also said they did provide the defense attorney an unedited copy of the incident and that's the one that ended up at the Florida DMV and in the court file. They also said they cannot account for the missing video, because the agency was never informed about it and can't confirm it was actually missing.
Deputy Glover has been promoted to detective and since then, the sheriff's office decided to take the cameras out of the DUI testing area.
"The only reason we know about it is because of the video tapes, and when they take away the video tapes and they come back, they being law enforcement say, 'Trust us.' I'm more than happy to want to in theory trust them. But you have to earn that trust and the video tapes show they don't deserve that trust," said Isaak.