Newly-released bodycam footage shows the arrest of Cook County Board of Review Commissioner Samantha Steele, 45, who was arrested on November 10 for driving under the influence of alcohol. According to a police report, Steele was found lying on the ground near two damaged parked vehicles and admitted to striking a car. Officers observed a bottle of opened red wine on the floor of her car and detected a strong odor of alcohol coming from her breath.
During her arrest, Steele made crude comments about a male officer’s genitals, repeatedly asking him “Is your penis that small?” according to the police report. The censored bodycam footage does not show this exchange.
The footage, obtained by FOX 32 Chicago, begins with an officer meeting Steele shortly after the accident and asking for her license and registration, which she avoids sharing. Steele refuses to exit her car and appears to flaunt her status as a government official, telling the officers “I’m an elected official” and “I don’t want any of this.”
Steele continues to refuse sobriety tests and eventually tells her lawyer on the phone “I don’t want any of this.” The officers cuff her against her will and take her into custody.
Steele was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and was booked into jail. The Cook County official has not commented on the incident.
