ARRESTED FOR WEARING THE TRIDENT: Deputy Detains Decorated Navy SEAL at Gas Station—Federal Indictments, 58-Year Sentence, and a Department’s Dirty Secret Exposed
What began as a suspicious-person call at a San Bernardino gas station ended in federal court, a 58-year prison sentence, and one of the most consequential civil rights prosecutions involving a local law enforcement officer in California history.
On a Friday night, a deputy sheriff saw a Black man in full Navy dress uniform and decided the uniform had to be fake.
The man he arrested was Lieutenant Commander Darius Mitchell, a decorated Navy SEAL with 16 years of service, six combat deployments, and one of the highest valor decorations the United States awards.
What happened next did not merely shock bystanders. It detonated a federal investigation that exposed nearly a decade of documented racial profiling—and destroyed a career that had been shielded by institutional indifference.
A Routine Stop That Wasn’t
At approximately 10:47 p.m., Lieutenant Commander Darius Mitchell pulled into a Chevron station on Highland Avenue in San Bernardino. He had just attended a memorial service at Naval Base San Diego for a fallen teammate and was driving north to surprise his mother after months away on classified deployment.
Mitchell wore Navy service dress blues—the formal uniform reserved for ceremonies and official functions. On his chest were ribbons arranged in precise military order: a Navy Cross, a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star with “V” device, campaign medals from Iraq and Afghanistan, and the gold SEAL trident.
The uniform was immaculate. The decorations unmistakable to anyone familiar with military protocol.
An anonymous caller dialed the sheriff’s dispatch line at 10:51 p.m., reporting a “suspicious Black male wearing a military costume” who “didn’t look legitimate.”
Deputy Travis Hullbrook responded.
A Pattern Years in the Making
Hullbrook had served nine years with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. His record included fourteen citizen complaints—every one involving people of color.
Black families questioned while barbecuing in public parks. Hispanic teenagers detained for “loitering.” Asian professionals stopped for photographing architecture. College students searched for “driving suspiciously.”
Three written reprimands. Four retraining sessions. Seven complaints dismissed as “insufficient evidence.”
Zero suspensions. Zero demotions.
Supervisory notes described him as “results-oriented but overzealous.”
The pattern was documented.
It was never addressed.
Confrontation at Pump Five
Hullbrook arrived with emergency lights activated. Surveillance footage later introduced in federal court shows Mitchell standing calmly beside his vehicle, hands visible, receipt printing from the pump.
The deputy approached aggressively.
He accused Mitchell of impersonating a service member and demanded he remove his uniform immediately.
Mitchell calmly produced his Department of Defense Common Access Card—an identification credential embedded with holographic security features and an RFID chip. He offered verification through Naval Base San Diego or Naval Special Warfare Command.
Hullbrook dismissed the ID as counterfeit.
Witnesses began recording on cell phones. Gas station security cameras captured the exchange from two angles.
Mitchell requested verification through official channels.
Hullbrook refused.
Backup deputies arrived. One reportedly hesitated, recognizing the uniform’s authenticity. Hullbrook persisted.
He arrested Mitchell for alleged violation of the Stolen Valor Act.
The Booking Room Realization
At 11:19 p.m., Mitchell was booked at the county station. Sergeant Luis Moreno, the booking supervisor, examined the military ID more closely and contacted Naval Amphibious Base Coronado.
Within minutes, base personnel confirmed Mitchell’s identity: active-duty SEAL Team 3, Lieutenant Commander, decorated combat veteran.
The arrest had no legal foundation.
But by then, the consequences were already cascading.
Naval Special Warfare Command was notified. NCIS activated. Pentagon officials were briefed before midnight.
Sheriff Robert Decker arrived at the station in civilian clothes shortly after 12:40 a.m. Mitchell was released.
The apology came too late.
Federal Investigation
What transformed the incident from embarrassment to prosecution was the evidence trail.
Security cameras documented Mitchell’s compliance and Hullbrook’s refusal to verify credentials. Cell phone recordings captured statements that prosecutors later characterized as evidence of racial bias.
Body camera footage showed Hullbrook dismissing verification offers and escalating the encounter without probable cause.
The Department of Justice initiated a civil rights investigation under 18 U.S.C. § 242—deprivation of rights under color of law.
During discovery, prosecutors obtained Hullbrook’s disciplinary history and analyzed his stop data over nine years.
The statistical pattern was unmistakable: disproportionate stops and detentions of people of color, elevated search rates with low contraband findings, repeated escalation where no probable cause existed.
Internal emails revealed supervisors were aware of complaints but treated them in isolation rather than identifying systemic bias.
The case expanded beyond a single wrongful arrest.
It became a pattern-and-practice inquiry.
The Charges
Hullbrook was indicted on multiple federal counts, including:
Deprivation of rights under color of law
False imprisonment
Obstruction of justice
Fabrication of probable cause
Official misconduct
Additional enhancements were applied due to the victim’s military status and evidence of deliberate falsification in the arrest narrative.
Federal prosecutors argued that Hullbrook knowingly ignored verification procedures and acted on racial bias rather than objective suspicion.
The trial lasted eight weeks.
Surveillance footage played repeatedly before the jury. Witness testimony included statements from other deputies who described similar behavior during prior stops.
Mitchell testified calmly about the humiliation of being accused of impersonating the very service he had sacrificed for.
The jury deliberated for less than two days.
Hullbrook was convicted on all major counts.
The sentence: 58 years in federal prison.
Institutional Consequences
The fallout did not end with the conviction.
San Bernardino County faced multiple civil suits tied to prior stops involving Hullbrook. Several cases were reopened after the trial.
The county entered into a federal monitoring agreement requiring:
Mandatory implicit bias training
Independent civilian oversight
Quarterly audits of traffic stop data
Early warning systems for repeat complaints
Enhanced documentation requirements for identity verification
Supervisors who had signed off on Hullbrook’s prior complaints faced internal discipline.
The sheriff’s office paid multimillion-dollar settlements in subsequent civil cases.
The SEAL Behind the Headlines
Lieutenant Commander Darius Mitchell returned to active duty following the incident.
His service record, introduced during trial, detailed six combat deployments and the 2016 operation in northern Iraq that earned him the Navy Cross.
In that mission, Mitchell entered a kill zone under heavy fire three times to retrieve wounded teammates. He sustained shrapnel injuries but held position until extraction.
All eight members of his team survived.
Mitchell later stated publicly that the incident was not about him alone but about accountability.
He did not seek publicity. He did not request special treatment. He requested verification.
The verification Hullbrook refused to perform.
A Department’s Reckoning
The case forced a difficult reckoning for San Bernardino County.
For nearly a decade, complaints had accumulated without consequence. Patterns had been compartmentalized.
Only when the stop involved a decorated SEAL did institutional inertia collapse under federal scrutiny.
Legal analysts note that civil rights prosecutions of local officers are rare and often difficult to win. Convictions require proof beyond reasonable doubt that the officer knowingly violated constitutional protections.
The synchronized refusal to verify credentials and documented pattern of racial targeting provided that proof.
The Broader Message
Traffic stops are among the most common points of contact between citizens and law enforcement.
Verification is routine.
Bias is not.
The Chevron station on Highland Avenue has long returned to normal operations. The fluorescent lights still flicker over pump number five.
But the legal precedent established in the wake of that arrest continues to reverberate.
A deputy assumed a decorated war hero’s uniform must be fake.
He ignored documentation.
He dismissed verification.
He escalated.
And in doing so, he exposed not only himself—but a department that had overlooked warning signs for nine years.
The verdict was 58 years.
The institutional reform may last longer.
