House candidate arrested in forgery

An independent state House candidate was arrested on a forgery charge after allegations that he obtained a stolen convertible from a Little Rock impound lot by using a fake name and address — the same convertible he had illegally been in possession of a week earlier, police said.

A Little Rock police detective wrote in a report that he had gone to the city’s impound lot on Jamison Road and reviewed a security video that showed Roderick Talley, 32, submitting paperwork and cash to a clerk before driving away in a 1971 Cadillac El Dorado that didn’t belong to him.

A review of the paperwork showed that someone named Jaylyn Johnson had signed the bill and had included an address that didn’t exist, police said.

A warrant was issued for Talley and he turned himself in shortly after 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Little Rock police station, according to a report.

Talley is running against Democratic state Rep. Joy Springer in House District 34. In 2018, Talley made national news when he filed a federal lawsuit against the Little Rock Police Department for its use of no-knock warrants.

On July 9, police learned from the owner of the Cadillac that it was last seen two days earlier in the parking lot of a La Quinta hotel on South Broadway Street in Little Rock.

The man who filed the report, Edward Walker, 50, said the vehicle was registered in Texas, and that he had the title and keys.

On July 11, a police officer saw the vehicle in the area of La Harpe Boulevard and President Clinton Boulevard. Following a traffic stop, the driver, Talley, was taken into custody and interviewed, according to a report.

A key was in the ignition and the steering column was broken, indicating that the car had been stolen, police said.

Talley told police he had seen a man driving the Cadillac, and he was given permission by the man to test drive it to a rally that day, the report stated.

Talley said he was returning the car when he was pulled over. He also said he had offered $7,000 to the man he thought owned the car, who he identified as Jeremy Towns, according to police.

Police told Talley he would be charged with felony theft, at which time he became “agitated,” the report stated. Records show Talley was charged with theft and drug possession.