The judge has dismissed the charges against the local police chief who was on trial in a case involving the alleged tampering of evidence. Brookford Police Chief Willie Armstrong was on trial this week in Catawba County Superior Court. According to reports from the courtroom, the felony charge of altering, destroying, or stealing criminal evidence and a misdemeanor charge of willful failure to discharge duties were dismissed. WHKY’s source say that when the prosecution rested its case, the defense made a motion to dismiss and the judge granted the request. The trial got underway Monday (June 8).

Prosecutors alleged that Armstrong improperly altered an audio recording connected to the 1992 murder investigation of 13-year-old Isis Denise ‘Dee Dee’ Dawkins. The investigation began after allegations were reported to the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office by a Brookford police officer. The judge cited the fact that there was no precedent for charges like these being filed against a law enforcement officer, and then dismissed the charges.