Police Turned Off Bodycams — Then 49 Cases Got Dismissed

Ajouté : 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]Watch this. One Billings traffic stop ended with prosecutors reviewing nearly 180 criminal cases.

[00:00:06]>> If it was me, I would handwrite his or handwrite his NTA. If they make you NTA, it's like search underneath it and just cover this up or just sign this or just sign this and just sign this. And just sign this.

[00:00:18]And then come back after everything and be like, "Okay, well, this is what we found in your car. Can you just sign the balls and then you're getting arrested?"

[00:00:23]Okay, what does this say?

[00:00:25]They'll look you like that.

[00:00:27]49 of them were dismissed. One officer was terminated. Two others were suspended. And it all started with a consent to search form.

[00:00:36]Because during this stop, officers discussed how to present that consent form. Then realized the body cameras were still recording.

[00:00:44]Moments later, the cameras went dark.

[00:00:46]And the public only saw this footage because MTN News challenged for its release in court.

[00:00:52]So, before anyone calls this a simple mistake, remember this. When police misconduct footage has to be dragged into the light, the darkness was never accidental.

[00:01:01]>> What you're about to see raises serious questions about police conduct, officer integrity, and how officials say they're now working to move forward.

[00:01:12]>> [music] >> Now, we got something maybe.

[00:01:14]>> This looks like a routine night.

[00:01:16]>> There is a lot of pressure. It's endless pressure.

[00:01:18]>> For Billings police. Endless pressure.

[00:01:21]But what unfolds here >> They're all three hard workers. Active, [music] active, active. If it was me shakes dozens of criminal cases and lands three officers right into disciplinary review. You got any other narcotics in your car?

[00:01:35]>> May 1st, 2023, North 22nd Street.

[00:01:38]Officers respond to a suspicious vehicle.

[00:01:41]>> got any drugs or anything in there, do you? Watch as body cam video shows officers pulling what appears to be drugs from the car. Officer Matthew Biesline, a Montana Officer of the Year, is seen assisting in this stop. Also there, officers Ian Basta and Blaine Lane.

[00:01:59]>> Now, pay close attention to what you're about to see next in that body cam video from that traffic stop. Video we were only able to obtain by petitioning the court for it. Watch as an officer gives instruction on how to get a signature from a suspect on a consent to search form by hiding it under other paperwork.

[00:02:20]Watch as Bysline explains what to do. If it was me, I would handwrite his handwrite his NTA. If they make you NTA him, his sign because he can sign it underneath it and just cover the top where it says consent to search where he signs this and signs this.

[00:02:35]And then come back after everything and go, "Okay, this is what we found in your car." And you just found the bottles in there and you get your sign.

[00:02:40]Okay, that's it.

[00:02:41]But look he like maybe Now, pause right there. Consent is supposed to mean a person knowingly and voluntarily agrees. But if the plan is to cover the words consent to search and tell someone to just sign the bottom, then the problem is not hidden deep inside the law. The problem is right there in the plan.

[00:03:00]Then another red flag. Body cameras go dark in violation of policy. Officer Lane alerts others their body cameras are activated with a blinking red light.

[00:03:12]Oh, they have lights reds. I just got off the crap conversation. Bysline is seen taking off his body camera, setting it on a police cruiser, and the footage goes dark.

[00:03:22]Also that night, Officer Lane twice shut off his body camera during private conversations. This is where everything changes.

[00:03:31]Because this is no longer just about a consent form. This is about what officers knew the cameras were catching.

[00:03:37]And what happened once they realized the cameras were still on. A single traffic stop triggering a sweeping review.

[00:03:44]Nearly 180 criminal cases, 49 dismissed.

[00:03:49]>> It was problematic enough that I needed to you bring it to everyone's attention and I needed to go through all the cases involving those officers.

[00:03:55]>> Yellowstone County Attorney Scott Twito says the move crosses a legal line undermining constitutional protection.

[00:04:02]>> You're talking about constitutional rights in play. And so we have to be very, very careful and very, very serious when we deal with those sort of things. You know, we have to hire from the human race and and they make mistakes.

[00:04:15]Certainly, what we want to do is to correct those errors.

[00:04:18]>> When it comes to discipline, Billings police rely on a structured policy that guides supervisors in balancing expectations with the needs of employees, the department, and the public's trust. Factors Chief Rich St. John had to carefully weigh in this case. When you can't justify it, then that's when we need to correct that action and you end up in a disciplinary situation. A year and eight months after the traffic stop, Byusline was fired with nine disciplinary actions in two years. Lane received an 80-hour unpaid suspension with six prior violations, and Boosta a 40-hour unpaid suspension with seven total violations, including an 80-hour suspension for drunk driving.

[00:05:03]Officer Byusline declined multiple requests for an interview, citing ongoing arbitration. While disciplinary records show he later described [music] the situation as a joke, telling administration he relied on verbal consent and framed it as proactive police training.

[00:05:19]>> Can you open my purse?

[00:05:20]>> Do you have a fentanyl film in your purse? They literally are protecting and serving, even though they received black marks on their career.

[00:05:30]>> Police union president Jeff Shardein, whose face we're not showing because he works undercover, says his role is to support officers as they do a difficult job in a city working every day to keep crime off the streets. The one who was terminated has gone on into another profession. The other two officers took their punishment and they are currently out there every night on graveyard shift answering those 911 calls, trying to sleep during the day so they can work all night.

[00:06:00]>> Okay. Sounds good. Literally protecting the public. Going off of what you said, Robert.

[00:06:04]>> It's true. Billings police work under intense pressure, but this case is drawing serious scrutiny.

[00:06:11]>> This goes for citizens and police officers. Who can be without fault? Who can be perfect?

[00:06:19]The city of Billings confirms the case with the terminated officer was settled through arbitration with no final decisions issued. City attorney tells me officer Bisline was not reinstated. The question is not whether police work is hard, the question is whether a difficult job gives officers permission to hide consent forms, turn off cameras, and handle constitutional rights off the record.

[00:06:43]Because body cameras are not there for the convenient parts. They are there for the moments officers might not want the public to see.

[00:06:51]Bisline was not reinstated after arbitration, but Lane and Basta remain employed by the Billings Police Department. So, the public is left with a very fair question.

[00:07:00]If officers turn cameras off during consent discussions, why should the public trust what happens when the cameras are not rolling?

[00:07:08]And that is the real damage here. Not just one search, not just one suspect, not just one consent form.

[00:07:16]This stop triggered a review of nearly 180 criminal cases and ended with 49 dismissals.

[00:07:23]That means the fallout reached people, cases, prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, and the public's trust in the system.

[00:07:33]One traffic stop exposed a credibility problem, and once credibility is gone, every case starts to wobble.

[00:07:40]If the consent was legitimate, the camera could have stayed on.

[00:07:44]If the explanation was innocent, the conversation could have stayed on the record.

[00:07:49]And if this was really just a joke, then why did 49 criminal cases end up dismissed?

[00:07:56]Because constitutional rights are not paperwork games. Consent is not supposed to be hidden under another form.

[00:08:04]And the Fourth Amendment does not disappear just because an officer says real low-key like baby.

[00:08:11]So here's the question. If officers discuss consent off camera, should the search be automatically thrown out?

[00:08:18]Drop your answer in the comments. And if you believe body cams should stay on when constitutional rights are on the line, hit subscribe. Because we are going to keep watching the footage they wish stayed hidden.

[00:08:30]Thin blue lies, baby.