Paylor said in a recorded phone call from jail, placed two days after his arrest, that he never had a gun. He said Hersl, who had arrested him before, “plays a dirty game” and said the officers had taken money out of his dresser drawer and not reported it in paperwork they filed. He tried to fight the case at the time but doubted his ability to prevail, said his attorney, Gayle Horn. He ultimately took a favorable plea offer.