Published by Cel Manero from Global One Media Inc.
Following the April 2024 incident, the country singer was charged with felony reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct, later pleading guilty in December of the same year.
Morgan Wallen can be seen denying he threw a chair off a Nashville rooftop bar in newly released footage captured before and after his 2024 arrest, during which he was charged with felony reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct.
The Metro Nashville Police Department released the body and cruiser camera videos to the Associated Press following a public records request, revealing new details about the country star’s interaction with officers that night.
In the footage, two officers react as an object falls from above late on a Sunday night, with another camera showing a broken chair on the street outside Chief’s on Broadway. When Wallen, 32, and his security team approach the bar’s entrance, one of his companions can be heard shouting, “He didn’t see anything. You don’t have witnesses, you are accusing!” while a bodyguard insists, “He didn’t throw nothing,” and accuses employees of being aggressive.
When questioned by police, Wallen claims he’s unsure what happened, telling one officer, “We’ve not tried to cause no problems, man. I don’t know what they are — I don’t know why.” After being told officers were investigating a chair that had fallen near a patrol car, he replied, “As you should.”
At one point, Wallen is seen on his phone and tells police that country artist Eric Church — a partial owner of Chief’s — is on the line. Using an expletive, Wallen complains that officers are “trying to take me to jail outside of your (expletive) bar.”
While Church’s response isn’t audible, a representative later told the AP that Church advised Wallen to wait privately instead of standing outside. The officer responded, “It’s not really something we can do. Law enforcement has to enforce the laws… we’ve got a supervisor coming to the scene. Gotta treat it like we would with anybody else.”
Police can be seen reviewing rooftop security footage, though the images are unclear on the body cameras. A sergeant later states he saw Wallen in surveillance video throwing the chair and proceeds to handcuff him.
Two witnesses at the scene tell officers they saw Wallen “lift it up and throw it off” the roof.
Throughout the footage, Wallen appears apologetic but maintains his innocence, saying things like, “I truly didn’t mean no harm,” “Sorry to cause problems,” and “Goddamn it, I am sorry, man.” A sergeant remarks afterward, “He didn’t admit to it, but we got him on camera doing it.”
While in the back of the police car, Wallen notices bystanders filming and mutters, “Get us out of here,” before telling officers, “I ain’t done nothing wrong.”
During the ride, one officer mentions that Wallen is among his favorite country singers. When a song by Wallen and Thomas Rhett begins playing, Wallen exclaims, “This is me and Thomas Rhett! Turn it up — that’s me and TR! That’s me right there,” before joking, “TR is one of the best dudes in the world. He would definitely not be getting arrested.”