ORLANDO, Fla. – Local 6 has obtained new evidence in the crash involving Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer's son, including how police reacted when they learned who was involved.
"I think that's the mayor's house," said an officer over police radio transmissions.
"You guys just maintain your scene and work it like normal," said another officer in reply.
Last month, Dyer's 17-year-old son drove through a stop sign, crashed into a home, and both he and his passenger ran from the scene before police arrived. The teen took responsibility for the crash and was eventually given a careless driving citation before police closed the case.
The police chief showed up personally on the scene, apparently to make sure everything was handled correctly, said the mayor.
Along with the two wallets found at the scene, police logs show a "glass bong" was also taken into evidence. According to police, the bong was in a bush in the general vicinity of the crash, but did not appear to be related to the crash. How officers ruled it was not connected remains unclear.
"You can't rule it out. It's definitely something that's got to be factored into the equation," said Local 6 legal analyst Luis Calderon. "You can't discount the fact that its in near proximity to an accident."
Calderon said police would need to have seen the bong in the car or in someone's possession for them to take further action. Officers could have performed tests, but a police spokesman said fingerprinting would have been a waste of resources.
Although the first 911 caller casts doubt on what happened, she never mentions a bong to police.
Dispatcher: "Did they leave the scene?
Witness: "Well, no. They're actually hovering around my car begging me not to call the police, but they ran their car into a house and they're young and they're probably intoxicated."
Since the teens ran, police did not observe their behavior at the scene. Police have not said how long it took to track the teens down and what their conditions were at the time.
Police said they don't keep records of when they talk to people involved in car crashes, but they're working to figure out the timeline.
Although someone in the car was injured in the crash, the injury was not severe enough for police to be worried. Calderon said officers could have tracked the teens down based on the injury, but it's a judgment call made by the officer on the scene.
From what has been seen so far, Calderon said the teens complied with the law.