Sarasota Sheriff declines to investigate Manatee principal

[Media]

Quentin Peterson was being actively investigated for:

• Having sex with an under-aged teenager (a 16 year old student)
• Possessing child pornography

Manatee County principal Eddie Hundley knew about the investigation, but he still recommended Peterson for employment with the Sarasota School District, saying that there was no reason Peterson should not work with students.

School chairwoman Bridget Ziegler and superintendent Todd Bowden said Hundley’s glowing job reference deceived the Sarasota school district. It is a misdemeanor to lie to public officials, so Bowden asked Sheriff Tom Knight to investigate Hundle.

The Sarasota sheriff declined to investigate Hundley because he does not know if Hundley's recommendation happened in Sarasota County.

Full story:
http://www.heraldtribune.com/news/20...atee-principal

[Unregistered]

This is déjà vu.

SSO Sergeant Chris Iorio (retired) told Sheriff Tom Knight (still employed) that SSO Captain Ron Locke (retired) impregnated a 17 year old teenager. Knight refused to investigate Locke, so FDLE was forced to do what Knight declined.

H-T article:
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article...ICLE/120619799

[Unregistered]

It's more prudent to conduct an investigation because there is nothing wrong with interviewing people. The worst that can happen is that the target refuses to be interviewed. Just document everything and then you're legally covered. However, refusing to interview people is negligent. It is not surprising that the school board does not trust Mr. Tom Knight's political and legal judgement or lack thereof. Chief Judge Charles William's does not trust Knight's political and legal judgement either. LOL

[Unregistered]

While I would normally jump on the knightmare bashing bandwagon, I have to say that common sense would/should prevail in this case. If Mr. Peterson was being investigated in Manatee County for these atrocious crimes and if the principal that gave him the recommendation was the principal of this Manatee County school, would it not seem prudent to believe that the principal wrote the recommendation at his desk located at a school in Manatee County which means the Sarasota County Sheriff has no jurisdiction? Now assume that when Peterson applied for the position, the investigation was not complete and Hundley said he should not work with children because of an ongoing investigation would that not open up Hundley to a lawsuit by Peterson by suggesting that an investigation does not mean guilt? If the investigation was completed and the child porn was proven, then by all means Hundley should be held accountable. It seems to me that this is no different than employers wishing to get rid of their problem child(ren) to give good reviews to prospective employers. Or similar would be a patrol supervisor giving a good recommendation for his deputy when that deputy is applying for a CIS, SIS etc position. On this one I agree with knightmare.

[Unregistered]

This is written to help civilians understand this odd scenario (not cops). An officer is not allowed to make that kind of misdemeanor arrest if it did not occur in his presence. The only thing an officer can do is investigate it and then submit a probable cause affidavit to the state attorney for possible arrest and prosecution. That’s it!

For example, if Joe Blow makes a harassing phone call from Manatee County into Sarasota County, an officer is not allowed to arrest Joe Blow. The only thing an officer can do is investigate it and then submit a probable cause affidavit to the state attorney for prosecution. That’s it!

If Eddie Hundley lies on a recommendation form from Manatee County to public officials in Sarasota County, an officer is not allowed to arrest Eddie Hundley. The only thing an officer can do is investigate it and then submit a probable cause affidavit to the state attorney for possible arrest and prosecution. That’s it!

Th Hundley case is very different for two reasons.
1. First, Eddie Hundley’s actions could have caused a Sarasota County student to become another sex crime victim.
2. And second, this is not the first time Knight has refused to investigate a crime that is related to having sex with kids, as the other poster proved with the link to the newspaper article.

[Unregistered]

In addition to the bogus question about jurisdiction, it is also not a violation of the misdemeanor exception rule, so it is illegal for Sheriff Tom Knight to order an arrest of principal Eddie Hundley for breaking the law. The only thing that Knight can do is order a criminal investigation – and then forward an affidavit to the SAO – and the State either issues an arrest warrant or they decline to file charges.

It’s similar to a misdemeanor harassing phone call case. If the officer didn’t hear it, then he cannot arrest for it because (a) it’s not an exception to the misdemeanor arrest rule and (b) the principle is residing in Manatee County. So if a defendant makes harassing phone calls from Manatee County to a victim in Sarasota County, the only thing that an officer can do is conduct a criminal investigation – and then forward an affidavit to the SAO to issue an arrest warrant or to decline to file charges. We do it all the time. The phone call is generated in Manatee County, but the victim is harassed in Sarasota County.

It’s similar to a “misdemeanor lying to public officials case.” The officer cannot arrest for it because it’s not an exception to the misdemeanor rule. So if defendant Eddie Hundley writes a recommendation letter from Manatee County to public school officials in Sarasota County (for a pedophile to get hired to work with kids), the only thing that Knight can do is conduct a criminal investigation – and then forward an affidavit to the SAO to issue an arrest warrant or to decline to file charges. That’s it! The letter is generated in Manatee County, but the victim receives it in Sarasota County.

However, as usual, politics is infesting this case, so Knight will not investigate it. Knight would also not investigate his political buddy (Ron Locke) for getting a juvenile pregnant, so are you surprised that Knight is refusing to investigate Eddie Hundley? Welcome to our knightmare – and yours!

[Unregistered]

Interesting that Supt. Bowden has never identified which of his employees were negligent in hiring this sex offender, and of course no Sarasota School Board employee has been disciplined for this very serious negligence.