BRADFORD COUNTY, Fla — Bradford County Deputy Jacob Desue has been forced to resign due to his actions during a traffic stop Friday.
In video obtained by First Coast News, Desue is seen pulling a gun on a pregnant Ebony Washington in front of her children.
"I ain't worried, I got my gun here," Desue is heard saying in sheriff bodycam footage.
First Coast News sat down with Bradford County Sheriff Gordon Smith, who forced Desue to resign Thursday morning.
Smith said Washington did everything right -- including putting on her hazard lights and slowing down -- which is exactly what law enforcement advises any driver to do if they don’t feel safe.
“She does exactly what I would tell my daughter, my wife, my neighbor, anybody else that may feel uncomfortable: You reduce your speed, you turn on your flashing lights, be acknowledged," Smith said.
“Deputy Desue should have cleared it, checked with the children, make sure they're safe. Why were they upset?" Smith continued. "We don't know why they're upset. I'd later determine it was probably because of the way their mother was being treated out there by an officer with a gun. The whole thing would upset my children, my grandchildren. So a lot of things that should have been done weren't done. And at the end of the day, we determined that was something that we didn't need representing us, or protecting our community.”
Washington was pulled over for speeding and said she kept driving to a well lit area. Once she felt safe, she pulled over.
She reportedly explained that to Desue who said he didn't want to hear her excuses.
“She tries to explain herself," Smith continued. "Deputy Desue is having none of it. He doesn't deescalate from that demeanor, of being hyper, at that point, of giving those verbal commands. He plainly tells her, 'I don't want to hear that excuse. I don't want to hear it.' And she was very ladylike, trying to explain her situation. She's got three children in a car. She tells him that she's pregnant. And he tells her numerous times he doesn't want hear it.”
The encounter was so tense Washington told her kids to record it on a cell phone.
The sheriff's office said they saw the video on social media, leading them to pull the dashcam video of the incident. Smith said that as soon as the agency was made aware of the encounter, they took action.
“We knew that this was something that we had to take action on immediately," Smith said. "We accepted his resignation. He's no longer an employee of this agency."
Law enforcement reviewed the video and determined the incident was inappropriate and did not follow their policies.
Despite her treatment, Washington tells First Coast News she still partly blames herself.
"None of this would’ve happened had I not been speeding…," she says. "My husband always says... why you so in a rush?”