An Augusta County investigator was able to get the assault charge dropped

Inv. CJ Taylor was charged in Staunton following a 2022 incident involving two men. The investigator was looking for a suspect when Antwhon Suiter, a self-described constitutional activist, and Christopher Shifflett came across a police crime scene.

Testimony from February showed Suiter and Shifflett were on their way to a local supermarket to buy groceries when they noticed a police vehicle in town. Suiter turned on his car’s dashboard camera and began recording as he tracked the vehicle, along with a second vehicle, to Reservoir Hill Park. Both men exited Suiter’s vehicle and were filming on their cell phones as Taylor approached them.

Video of the incident shows Taylor confronting Shifflett, who was holding a phone. Taylor pulls out a pair of handcuffs and grabs Shifflett by the wrist before knocking the phone out of his hand and throwing him to the ground. According to testimony, he was handcuffed and held briefly before being released without charge.