A Lake Havasu City man claims to have been racially profiled after a La Paz County sheriff's deputy pulled him over for having an air freshener hanging from his rear-view mirror.

Phil Colbert, 22, told The Arizona Republic he was driving on State Route 95 to visit his father in Parker when he noticed a Sheriff's Office vehicle was following him. He said the deputy tailed him for about 20 minutes before activating his emergency lights and sirens.

Having experienced a similar traffic stop a couple months ago when an officer from another agency ordered Colbert, who is black, to perform a series of sobriety tests despite him being completely sober, Colbert decided to record this incident with his phone.

"Like I say, he stopped me," Colbert says at the beginning of a 10-minute video he posted to YouTube on Sept. 19. "Let's see what for."

Stopped for an air freshener

A few seconds later, a man out of frame can be heard asking Colbert for his driver's license, car registration and proof of insurance. He also asks Colbert if he has any weapons in the vehicle, to which Colbert says, "No."

Colbert asks the deputy for permission to grab the documents from his car's glove box and, after receiving approval, asks why the deputy pulled him over.

The deputy, who doesn't identify himself in the video, tells Colbert that he can't have his air freshener hanging from his rear-view mirror because it obstructs Colbert's view of the road.

Colbert tells the deputy he sells cars for a living and has never heard of such a law nor its enforcement. The Nissan dealership where he works in Lake Havasu City includes complimentary air fresheners with every car purchase.

In the video, the deputy says the air freshener itself isn't illegal, but should instead be hung somewhere else in the car.

"So for instance, if you have it hung on your shifter knob, it's out of your view," the deputy tells Colbert. "Still makes the car smell nice. See what I'm saying?"

Colbert mutters "OK" before handing over his documentation.

According to Arizona state law, it's illegal to have an object affixed to the rear-view or side mirrors if it "obstructs or reduces" the driver's view of the windshield or said mirrors.

The law does not mention air fresheners specifically.

Deputy repeatedly asks about drugs and weapons

The deputy asks Colbert again if there's anything in the car he should know about, to which Colbert replies "No, I'm legit man."

The deputy asks if there's any marijuana in the car, which Colbert denies as well.

"You smoke marijuana?" the deputy asks in a follow-up question.

"Nope," Colbert responds. "Is there a reason for all these questions?"

The deputy explains they are questions he asks every driver during every stop he makes.

After commenting on how nice Colbert's car is, the deputy asks him when he last smoked marijuana.

"I've never smoked," Colbert says. "I just said that."

The deputy then tells Colbert to hang out in his car while he leaves to check on something. He returns less than a minute later, again asking Colbert if there are any weapons in the car, which Colbert again denies.

"Relax, man, you're still at 10 and two," the deputy said, referring to Colbert's hand placement on his steering wheel.

"Well, because this is what we learn from where I'm from," Colbert replies. "This is what we do."

The deputy asks where Colbert is from, to which he says, "Philadelphia."

An accusation of deception

The deputy then asks Colbert to exit his vehicle so the two can speak "man-to-man" outside.

Colbert asks if he can unbuckle his seat belt.

"Yeah, dude," the deputy says. "Try to relax a little bit, man."

Colbert pockets his still-recording phone, leading to a black screen. The audio, however, remains clear.

The deputy asks Colbert where he's headed. He says he's going to visit his father's home in Parker.

When the deputy asks what his father does for work, Colbert challenges his line of questioning.

"Can I ask why you're asking me all this?" Colbert asks.

The deputy then accuses Colbert of being dishonest with him

"I've been doing this for several years now," the deputy says. "You seem kind of nervous and you've been shaking a little bit. And I don't know if it's just because you've had a bad experience with cops, but your nervousness and other things I'm seeing shows me there's signs of deception or something else is going on."

Colbert answers the deputy's original question regarding his father before telling him he plans to report the deputy for his actions. The deputy tells Colbert he orders people out of their car during every traffic stop.

"Because talking to people, one, I can talk to you and you and I can have a conversation, OK? It's more respectful that way," the deputy says. "And two, you'd be surprised how many people come out of the car and basically tell me what's going on and man up and tell me the full story."

"That is the full story," Colbert retorts.

The deputy again asks if there's any marijuana in the car.

Again, Colbert denies it.

The deputy asks if there's cocaine in the car.

"No."

He asks if there's heroin in the car.

"No."

Deputy denies racial profiling

The deputy then asks Colbert if he objects to him searching his car, to which Colbert says, "Yes," and asks why the deputy wants to search his car. Again, the deputy says Colbert's nervousness is a sign of deception.

"Can you see why — can you see why with all the (things) black people be going through?" Colbert challenges. "Do you see why?"

The deputy tells Colbert he couldn't see the color of his skin while he was driving behind him.

"It has absolutely nothing to do with race or color of skin or gender or anything like that," the deputy says. "This is me doing my job. I ask this question on every single traffic stop I do."

The deputy once again accuses Colbert of deception.

"I'd rather you just be up front with me, man," the deputy says before saying he doesn't care if Colbert has a joint.

Colbert again denies possessing marijuana, saying he doesn't smoke.

The deputy then asks Colbert to perform field sobriety tests because his eyes look "glossy," to which an incredulous Colbert asks, "Are you serious, man?"

Colbert asks the deputy for his name, to which the deputy replies, "E. Max."

The two continue arguing, with the deputy repeatedly accusing Colbert of being deceptive and asking if he smoked marijuana or any other illicit substances within the past few days.

At one point, the deputy asks if Colbert possesses a medical marijuana card.

"No," Colbert says. "I don't need it 'cause I don't smoke."

Colbert then refuses to perform the field sobriety tests, telling the deputy he can call his boss or his dad instead.

The deputy continues to explain that he isn't treating Colbert differently from anyone else while tying his nervousness to signs of deception.

The argument continues until the video abruptly ends.

Separate video shows Colbert let off with a warning

In an interview with The Republic, Colbert said his phone stopped recording because it ran out of storage space.

Colbert sent two additional videos he recorded to The Republic, one of which the deputy can be heard reiterating that he doesn't believe Colbert is being "100% honest" with him but wants him to have a more positive outlook when it comes to law enforcement.

"You haven't been an a--hole to me, but you just obviously don't like law enforcement," the deputy said. "So, I'm trying to get you on a positive outlook. Obviously this wastes 20 minutes of your time. I am going to give you a warning today, OK? But maybe in the future just, like I said man, if you've got a joint I don't — we're not looking for a joint."

Colbert tells the deputy, "OK, thanks," before entering his vehicle.

The phone then appears to be placed down, and the camera shows a small air freshener with the shape of a tree dangling from his rear-view mirror before it cuts off.

Complaints filed and perhaps a lawsuit

During an interview with The Republic, Colbert said he filed two complaints with the La Paz County Sheriff's Office regarding the traffic stop but has yet to hear back from the agency as of Thursday afternoon — one week since the incident transpired.

Colbert said his parents taught him to roll all of a vehicle's windows down and keep his hands visible on the steering wheel when interacting with a police officer during a traffic stop.

"Since I was younger, I was taught, you know, don't irritate or do anything to make the situation worse than what it already is," Colbert said.

When asked if he was nervous during the stop, Colbert said he only became anxious when the deputy asked him to step out of the vehicle.

Colbert said he spoke to a lawyer about possibly filing a lawsuit against the agency.

Sheriff's office investigating the stop

Chief Deputy Curt Bagby of the La Paz County Sheriff's Office said the agency was aware of Colbert's complaints and was reviewing the deputy's body-camera footage for the stop to see if he violated policy.

Bagby said he didn't know when results from the investigation would be available.

"It's not Roman times where people wanted immediate execution of an officer," Bagby told The Republic. "I don't mean that literally. But, you know, people want things immediately handled and we try not to be — try not to do knee-jerk reactions."

Bagby added that the criminal code of the Arizona Revised Statutes is complex and the agency tries to allow their officers to operate within their own discretion.

"But if we see something start becoming a problem — start seeing a trend with an officer — then of course we're going to address it."

Bagby did not confirm the deputy's identity, saying he was only willing to refer to him as "E. Max" for now. He also wouldn't say if the deputy had received other complaints or infractions, but suggested The Republic submit a public records request for the information.

He did, however, say the agency would handle the investigation appropriately.

"We're gonna do it right even if it upsets us, you know?" Bagby said. "Even if we're upset with a stop, we have to be cautious and not knee-jerk."

Reach the reporter Perry Vandell at 602-444-2474 or perry.vandell@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @PerryVandell.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.