08-03-2008, 05:35 PM
Casting shadows on a campaign
A sexual harassment reprimand, accusations of cheating and alleged political retaliation are dark marks on a candidate's otherwise lauded career
KRIS WERNOWSKY • KWERNOWSKY@PNJ.COM • AUGUST 3, 2008
Santa Rosa County sheriff candidate Jeff Van Camp's personnel file is filled with awards and commendations that span his 19-year tenure as an Escambia County sheriff's deputy and head of Crime Stoppers.
But the file also contains a reprimand for sexual harassment and accusations that he and another deputy cheated on a test that would allow them to become Escambia County sergeants.
Van Camp said in an interview last week that he's done nothing wrong, blaming Sheriff Ron McNesby for many of his problems.
"I am sick and tired of people slandering my good name," he said.
Van Camp believes McNesby felt threatened by his rising public profile through the Crime Stoppers program and generating complaints against him.
McNesby said last week that he was reluctant to speak about Van Camp because of a pending federal defamation lawsuit Van Camp filed against him this year.
"I don't want to jeopardize that," McNesby said.
Van Camp claims in the lawsuit that he was short-changed in pay during six years as head of Crime Stoppers. He also claims McNesby and a deputy retaliated against him for complaining about his pay, stripping him of his Crime Stoppers position, reassigning him to a midnight shift, and disparaging him in a letter published in a local newspaper.
Crime Stoppers years
Crime Stoppers is a program that rewards people for tips on unsolved crimes.
In 2001, an administrative assistant in the Crime Stoppers division accused Van Camp of sexual harassment.
Van Camp, who once wrestled under the moniker "Lord Humongous," stands about 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 275 pounds. He's also married with children. The complainant described herself as a churchgoing virgin who had a sheltered upbringing and was naive about sex.
The woman said Van Camp made at least three inappropriate sexual statements, including insinuating that she should have sex with a "real man" before she got married.
She also said on one occasion Van Camp repeatedly brushed his legs against hers. She said it made her feel so uncomfortable that she moved away.
The woman complained to two supervisors, but a formal investigation began only after she spoke to a third supervisor, Capt. Joel Mooneyham.
Van Camp later failed a lie-detector test about the incidents, while the woman passed.
Van Camp then wrote a letter of apology, saying that he was trying to be funny and not disrespectful to his co-workers.
"While I sometimes try to bring humor to my work with co-workers, I have never intended to offend anyone with my remarks, humorous or not," he wrote. "I am extremely embarrassed to have allowed myself to be placed in the position of being the subject of this type (of) complaint."
Now, however, Van Camp says the investigation was "a politically motivated slander against my name" because he had replaced Mooneyham as head of Crime Stoppers.
Mooneyham, who retired last year as a captain, said last week he would let Van Camp's record speak for itself.
"It would not be prudent for me to comment at this time," Mooneyham said.
Van Camp said last week that the sexual statements were innocent and taken out of context. He said he didn't mean to brush the woman's legs but was merely moving forward because he forgot his glasses.
"Since this all came up, I've worked around females without any issue," he said.
Another investigation
In 2006, Van Camp became the subject of another internal affairs investigation over allegations he and another deputy cheated while taking an exam in hopes of becoming sergeants.
Deputy Robert Powers told investigators that he overheard Deputy Jimmy James say to Van Camp, "Man, this is hard, you know what in the world is the answer to this?"
Powers said he also heard several co-workers accuse James and Van Camp of cheating and talking when test proctors were out of the testing room.
Deputy Jack Holland said that when he submitted his test, Van Camp held up five fingers "like indicating, you know, he might want an answer to number five" and also mouthed the word "five." Holland ignored Van Camp, turned his test in and left the room.
Sheriff's Office investigators later determined that James and Van Camp missed the same questions with the exception of one, according to the investigative report.
"Certainly that looks suspicious," Capt. Randy Brown, who supervised the investigation, said last week.
But he said the investigation was closed because what Van Camp and James were talking about could not be determined.
"We asked for some guidance on that from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement," Brown said. "They indicated that without the knowledge of what they were talking about, that investigation couldn't go forward."
Van Camp recalls it differently.
He said he wasn't holding up five fingers but was simply waving goodbye.
"All I know is that someone said I was trying to tell them answers, but I waved goodbye and didn't say a word," he said. "It was totally false. Just a political ploy to slander my name."
James and Van Camp were passed over for promotions after the test allegations. James was promoted to sergeant last February.
Last May 12, Van Camp did not pass the sergeant promotion exam, Brown said. He remains a master deputy.
Wage grievance
Shortly after the cheating allegations surfaced, Van Camp hired an attorney to represent him in a wage grievance against the Sheriff's Office.
He claimed he performed as a supervisor, overseeing employees, signing time sheets and conducting employee evaluations but was not paid at a supervisor's level.
Later in 2006, Van Camp filed the lawsuit against McNesby and Lt. Rex Blackburn, who wrote a letter to a local weekly newspaper criticizing Van Camp.
In addition to complaining about his pay, Van Camp also complained that McNesby retaliated against him for his choice of an attorney.
The attorney, Eric D. Stevenson, also represented Arety Sievers, owner of a Pensacola strip club, who had been involved in various disputes with the Sheriff's Office.
Van Camp claimed that McNesby's issues with Sievers and Stevenson spilled over to him, resulting in him being removed from Crime Stoppers and placed on a midnight shift.
"McNesby's dislike and anger over Ms. Siever's actions is well-known within the sheriff's office and the Pensacola-area community," the lawsuit states. "(McNesby) removed (Van Camp) from his position as officer in charge of Crime Stoppers because of the plaintiff's choice of attorney."
In an answer to the lawsuit, McNesby denied Van Camp's allegations and said action was taken for "legitimate, nondiscriminatory or nonretaliatory reasons."
A federal judge set a mediation deadline for Nov. 28. If the parties cannot reach agreement, a jury trial is scheduled for Jan. 19.
A sexual harassment reprimand, accusations of cheating and alleged political retaliation are dark marks on a candidate's otherwise lauded career
KRIS WERNOWSKY • KWERNOWSKY@PNJ.COM • AUGUST 3, 2008
Santa Rosa County sheriff candidate Jeff Van Camp's personnel file is filled with awards and commendations that span his 19-year tenure as an Escambia County sheriff's deputy and head of Crime Stoppers.
But the file also contains a reprimand for sexual harassment and accusations that he and another deputy cheated on a test that would allow them to become Escambia County sergeants.
Van Camp said in an interview last week that he's done nothing wrong, blaming Sheriff Ron McNesby for many of his problems.
"I am sick and tired of people slandering my good name," he said.
Van Camp believes McNesby felt threatened by his rising public profile through the Crime Stoppers program and generating complaints against him.
McNesby said last week that he was reluctant to speak about Van Camp because of a pending federal defamation lawsuit Van Camp filed against him this year.
"I don't want to jeopardize that," McNesby said.
Van Camp claims in the lawsuit that he was short-changed in pay during six years as head of Crime Stoppers. He also claims McNesby and a deputy retaliated against him for complaining about his pay, stripping him of his Crime Stoppers position, reassigning him to a midnight shift, and disparaging him in a letter published in a local newspaper.
Crime Stoppers years
Crime Stoppers is a program that rewards people for tips on unsolved crimes.
In 2001, an administrative assistant in the Crime Stoppers division accused Van Camp of sexual harassment.
Van Camp, who once wrestled under the moniker "Lord Humongous," stands about 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 275 pounds. He's also married with children. The complainant described herself as a churchgoing virgin who had a sheltered upbringing and was naive about sex.
The woman said Van Camp made at least three inappropriate sexual statements, including insinuating that she should have sex with a "real man" before she got married.
She also said on one occasion Van Camp repeatedly brushed his legs against hers. She said it made her feel so uncomfortable that she moved away.
The woman complained to two supervisors, but a formal investigation began only after she spoke to a third supervisor, Capt. Joel Mooneyham.
Van Camp later failed a lie-detector test about the incidents, while the woman passed.
Van Camp then wrote a letter of apology, saying that he was trying to be funny and not disrespectful to his co-workers.
"While I sometimes try to bring humor to my work with co-workers, I have never intended to offend anyone with my remarks, humorous or not," he wrote. "I am extremely embarrassed to have allowed myself to be placed in the position of being the subject of this type (of) complaint."
Now, however, Van Camp says the investigation was "a politically motivated slander against my name" because he had replaced Mooneyham as head of Crime Stoppers.
Mooneyham, who retired last year as a captain, said last week he would let Van Camp's record speak for itself.
"It would not be prudent for me to comment at this time," Mooneyham said.
Van Camp said last week that the sexual statements were innocent and taken out of context. He said he didn't mean to brush the woman's legs but was merely moving forward because he forgot his glasses.
"Since this all came up, I've worked around females without any issue," he said.
Another investigation
In 2006, Van Camp became the subject of another internal affairs investigation over allegations he and another deputy cheated while taking an exam in hopes of becoming sergeants.
Deputy Robert Powers told investigators that he overheard Deputy Jimmy James say to Van Camp, "Man, this is hard, you know what in the world is the answer to this?"
Powers said he also heard several co-workers accuse James and Van Camp of cheating and talking when test proctors were out of the testing room.
Deputy Jack Holland said that when he submitted his test, Van Camp held up five fingers "like indicating, you know, he might want an answer to number five" and also mouthed the word "five." Holland ignored Van Camp, turned his test in and left the room.
Sheriff's Office investigators later determined that James and Van Camp missed the same questions with the exception of one, according to the investigative report.
"Certainly that looks suspicious," Capt. Randy Brown, who supervised the investigation, said last week.
But he said the investigation was closed because what Van Camp and James were talking about could not be determined.
"We asked for some guidance on that from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement," Brown said. "They indicated that without the knowledge of what they were talking about, that investigation couldn't go forward."
Van Camp recalls it differently.
He said he wasn't holding up five fingers but was simply waving goodbye.
"All I know is that someone said I was trying to tell them answers, but I waved goodbye and didn't say a word," he said. "It was totally false. Just a political ploy to slander my name."
James and Van Camp were passed over for promotions after the test allegations. James was promoted to sergeant last February.
Last May 12, Van Camp did not pass the sergeant promotion exam, Brown said. He remains a master deputy.
Wage grievance
Shortly after the cheating allegations surfaced, Van Camp hired an attorney to represent him in a wage grievance against the Sheriff's Office.
He claimed he performed as a supervisor, overseeing employees, signing time sheets and conducting employee evaluations but was not paid at a supervisor's level.
Later in 2006, Van Camp filed the lawsuit against McNesby and Lt. Rex Blackburn, who wrote a letter to a local weekly newspaper criticizing Van Camp.
In addition to complaining about his pay, Van Camp also complained that McNesby retaliated against him for his choice of an attorney.
The attorney, Eric D. Stevenson, also represented Arety Sievers, owner of a Pensacola strip club, who had been involved in various disputes with the Sheriff's Office.
Van Camp claimed that McNesby's issues with Sievers and Stevenson spilled over to him, resulting in him being removed from Crime Stoppers and placed on a midnight shift.
"McNesby's dislike and anger over Ms. Siever's actions is well-known within the sheriff's office and the Pensacola-area community," the lawsuit states. "(McNesby) removed (Van Camp) from his position as officer in charge of Crime Stoppers because of the plaintiff's choice of attorney."
In an answer to the lawsuit, McNesby denied Van Camp's allegations and said action was taken for "legitimate, nondiscriminatory or nonretaliatory reasons."
A federal judge set a mediation deadline for Nov. 28. If the parties cannot reach agreement, a jury trial is scheduled for Jan. 19.