HAAB Backup 07/22/1999
Backup
Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board
Meeting
July 22, 1999
NOTICE OF lYIEETING
..A..NI> AGENDA
COLLIER COUNTY HISPANIC AFFAIRS
ADVISORY BOARD
THURSDAY, JULY 22,1999
7:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M.
Golden Gate Community Center, Rooms A & B, Naples, Florida
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AGENDA
I. 7:00 P.M: Meeting of full Board and determination of quorum.
II. Meeting called to order.
(A) Approval of minutes of the June 24,1999 meeting.
(C) Approval of excused absences from the June 24,1999 meeting.
III. Election of a new Chairman.
IV. Discussions regarding:
V. Presentations by Board members.
VI. Old business.
(A) Review and clarification regarding the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board's
Goals and Objectives Resolution developed by Board member Faye Reddick.
VII. New business and public comments. **
(A) Presentation by Victor Valdes regarding the Florida Department of Law
Enforcement's Report on its investigation of the Collier County Sheriffs
Office which was ordered by Governor Bush, with written comments
provided by Mr. Valdes.
(B) Election of a new liaison for the Collier County School Board's Diversity
Steering Committee.
VIII. Meeting adjourns.
** PUBLIC COMMENTS ARE LIMITED TO 5 MINUTES PER SPEAKERlTOPIC UNLESS
ADDITIONAL TIME AUTHORIZED BY HAAB.
HISPANIC AFFAIRS ADVISORY BOARD
MINUTES OF MEETING
of
July 22, 1999
atthe
Golden Gate Community Center, Naples, Florida
PRESENT
ABSENT:
Frank Loney, HAAB Member Dora Vidaurri, HAAB Member
David Correa, HAAB Member
Pete Cade, HAAB Member
Faye Reddick, HAAB Member
Maria Grimaldo, HAAB Member
Leo Cardona, HAAB Member
Ramiro Maiialich, Chief Assistant County Attorney and HAAB Staff Liaison Member
Also Present:
Frank Rodriguez, Citizen
Chris Bent, Applicant
Victor Valdes, Editor, Las Naciones Newspaper
Jim Williams, Collier County Sheriff's Office
The meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board of Collier County (HAAB) for July 22,1999
commenced at approximately 70S PM. A quorum of six (6) members was present.
A motion was made by Frank Loney to approve the minutes of the June 24, 1999 meeting. Faye
Reddick seconded the motion and the vote was unanimous in favor of approval of said minutes.
Election of New Chairman:
Liaison Ramiro Maiialich briefly reviewed the history of Ch-airperson election discussions that
have been previously held by the HAAB Maria Grimaldo stated that she believed that the
election should occur tonight with no further delays Leo Cardona nominated David Correa for
the position of Chairman. A second was provided by Pete Cade. David Correa commented that
on occasion he had exhibited strong viewpoints, such as in the Cardona case. He stated that he
can be an emotional person but only when he believes strongly regarding an issue and when it is
necessary to correct a wrong. David described his prior history of twenty-five years in the New
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York court system and promised to treat everyone alike on the HAAB. David commented that in
regard to the Commissioner Carter issues, he voiced strong opinions due to the English as Official
Language Resolution which he considered would be a slap in the face of the Hispanic community
because there had been no contact with the Hispanic community about the Resolution. David
stated that he later met with Commissioner Carter and the County Administrator and apologized if
his strong opinions had been misinterpreted.
Faye Reddick commented that there will be many emotional issues before the HAAB in the future
due to the pain which continues to be felt in the Hispanic community. She stated that there is a
place for emotion but that the members should stick to the golden rule of treating everyone alike
and as everyone would want to be treated. She reminded the members that they should act as role
models for the Hispanic community, even if they disagree with other viewpoints. She emphasized
that the members must show respect and not burn bridges. She commented that one cannot
always take back what has been said.
Maria Grimaldo emphasized the need to see more productive meetings and not merely aggressive
positions She commented that she thought that David Correa would do a good job as Chairman.
David Correa assured everyone that he would try to treat all concerned at the Hispanic Board
meetings with courtesy and respect.
After this discussion, a call for the vote occurred and the vote was unanimous to approve David
Correa as the Chairman for a period of one year. Said Chairmanship would begin effective at the
August, 1999 meeting.
Frank Loney stated that he hoped that the HAAB would continue to be aggressive in its pursuit of
HAAB and Hispanic issues, regardless of who is the Chairman.
Presentation by Victor Valdes regarding the Florida Department
of Law Enforcement's Report on its Investigation of the Collier
County Sherifrs Office which was Ordered by Governor Bush,
with Written Comments provided by Mr. Valdes.
Mr. Victor Valdes, Editor of Las Naciones News and Hispanic Rights advocate, made a
presentation as follows: He stated that he had respect and professional consideration for
Inspector Williams from the Sheriff's office, who was present at the meeting. However, Mr.
Valdes commented that since 1994 he has made civil rights violation allegations against the
Sheriff and also allegations of police brutality. He reminded the members that in 1993, there had
been a so called "Valdes Probe" on this subject. He mentioned that in 1997, he had accused
Deputy Russo of lying and perjury, and other wrong doings. He said that afterwards, the Internal
Affairs Division of the Sheriff's office found his complaints to be true and the Officer resigned.
He reminded the members also that the Valdes Probe tried to clean out the Sheriff's office of a
few bad officers out of hundreds of good ones that belonged to the Sheriff's office.
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Mr. Valdes mentioned that on January II, 1999, he sent a letter to Florida Governor Jeb Bush
regarding the need for an investigation of the Sheriff's office Mr. Valdes claimed that 14 years of
complaints cannot be investigated in 5 hours He thought that the investigator did the best that
could be done under the assignment that was given in the time allotted. He thought that the
investigator spent a total of IS to 20 hours on the case and only 27 days were available for
investigation before report to the Governor.
A summary of the investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) is
attached to these minutes at the request of Mr. Valdes. Mr. Valdes reported that the FLDE
summary found that there was no criminal wrong doing with regard to Sheriff Hunter. However,
Mr. Valdes noted that public records and the Sheriff's statements mentioned in the report have
inconsistencies. Mr. Valdes indicated that he would send more allegations and witness statements
to the Governor in regard to this matter and he would request that the Governor and that
Attorney General Reno do further investigations. Mr. Valdes submitted for the minutes copies of
Las Naciones News Paper Supplement with the entire history of the matter. Mr. Valdes claims
that he has presented previous case examples of contradictions in statements by the Sheriff. For
example, he presented the case of the Gomez brothers regarding police brutality and referred to
the document, at page 20 of the attached newspaper article, showing that the brothers were not
convicted despite the allegations against them by Sheriff's officials.
Mr. Valdes stressed the need for a full investigation and he hoped that Inspector Williams would
do a professional and thorough job in light of the prior complaints that Mr. Valdes has mentioned.
Mr. Valdes further stated that he considered that former HAAB Chairman Frank Rodriguez had
tried to interrupt his presentation of these matters to the HAAB on prior occasions.
Member Faye Reddick inquired of Mr. Valdes regarding the report and the Governor's
investigation Mr. Valdes responded by mentioning the example of Oflicer Glendell Edison who
he complained about to the Sheriff's office for 10 years and about whom the Sheriff did not act.
He says that Edison has now been charged with corruption. Mr. Valdes also mentioned that in
1993, he reviewed about I SO internal affairs files and most of the complaints in the files were
made by minorities.
Faye Reddick mentioned that she believed that the Sheriff's corruption allegations are beyond the
scope of the HAAB but that she was interested in any brutality allegations involving the Hispanic
community as a whole. Mr. Valdes commented that he has a list of bad officers who have had
many allegations brought against them and a pattern of improper conduct. He said that some of
these officers were also involved in a recent "bachelor party" which was widely publicized.
Inspector Jim Williams appeared on behalf of the Collier County Sheriff's office and offered a
number of comments regarding Mr. Valdes' allegations. Mr. Williams stated that appreciated the
opportunity to appear before the HAAB and that this was a difficult issue for the Sheriff's office.
he said that any underlying corruption issue allegation is of great significance. Mr. Williams
stated that he appreciated Mr. Valdes' statements of confidence in his abilities, but he said that the
strength of his position stems from Sheriff Hunter who has given him full reign to review any and
all allegations. He reported that in January of 1998, he took over as the head of the Professional
3
Responsibility Division of the Sheriff's oflice He came to Collier County in May of 1996, after
30 years in the Marine Corps as a Deputy Inspector General. He is now in charge of Internal
Affairs
Mr. Williams commented that Agent O'connell from FDLE is a very professional individual and
did have only a limited time for a preliminary inquiry into this matter. He said that the Sheriff's
investigation has occurred since January of 1998, and did include the Edison matter. The result of
that investigation was that Edison was terminated and arrested on corruption charges. He
mentioned that a large team of investigators had worked on the Edison matter in coordination
with the US Attorney oflice He mentioned that the crimes were of a historical nature and that
they involved a lot of boring and tedious work covering facts stemming from the 1980s. Mr.
Williams also mentioned that another oflicer had been implicated in the Edison matter and that an
investigation had been ongoing since December of 1998 in conjunction with the US Attorney. In
all of these matters he stressed the Sheriff wants any corruption stopped.
Mr. Williams commented that the March 10, 1999 response to the Governor's investigation
directive had determined no criminal violations by the Sheriff He stressed that the FDLE findings
only passed on criminal allegations and did not address any administrative issues that Mr. Valdes
may claim exist. Mr. Williams stressed that the Collier County Sheriff is a very fair man who acts
cautiously and applies a "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard to assure fairness to oflicers who
have allegations against them. That standard was met in the Edison case, even though initial
investigations into the Edison matter apparently had not been sufliciently thorough. He said that
the Sheriff had implemented steps to improve future investigations Mr. Williams asked that the
FDLE letter be attached for the record. He offered to provide a copy of the entire investigation
for the record if the HAAB was interested.
Mr. Williams went on to explain that there were 3 categories of allegations by Mr. Valdes against
the Sheriff: I) knowledge of the Edison illegal activity; 2) acting as an accomplice; and 3) that the
Sheriff was not qualified to investigate the Edison matter. At this point Mr. Valdes interrupted
and claimed that since] 989, the Sheriff knew of the illegal actions of Mr Edison. Mr. Williams
continued by saying that none of the 3 allegations had been found to have any merit by FDLE.
Specifically, Mr. Edison was investigated and prosecuted He said that he personally worked
overtime on the Edison matter at the express direction of the Sheriff Mr. Williams further added
that the FDLE investigation had found no evidence of obstruction of any investigations by the
Sheriff He commented that the Sheriff depends on subordinates to carry out investigations such
as the Edison matter. He noted that one of the subordinates is no longer with the agency and the
other may be indicted for interfering with the Edison investigation
Member Faye Reddick commented that she would have preferred that this matter had come to
light through the Sheriff's own processes without the need for Mr. Valdes to engage in his
exhaustive efforts.
Maria Grimaldo congratulated Mr. Valdes for keeping the HAAB informed through his
newspaper. She said that she respected the comments of Mr. Williams but believes that without
Mr. Valdes, nothing would have been done. Inspector Williams responded by stating that Mr.
4
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Valdes is a journalist, but that he is an investigator and he does not advertise his investigative
efforts, but that the public records are available to show the diligent efforts of the Sheriff
In conclusion, Mr. Williams commented that the Sheriff investigates in an objective and
professional manner. He says that the Sheriffs oflice has taken Mr. Valdes' allegations seriously,
although they have not always agreed. He stated that he was not personally familiar with the
Gomez case mentioned by Mr. Valdes, but that it may be an internal affairs investigation which is
ongoing. He would be willing to discuss results of cases once they are brought to conclusion and
are appropriate for comment.
David Correa mentioned that the Sherif[ is an elected official and that it is up to the people to
determine ifhe is doing a quality job. Frank Loney commented that he has been in the County for
a long time and believes that Sheriff Hunter was elected due to the problems with his predecessor.
Frank stated that he believes that sometimes minorities have a tough time with the Sheriff's oflice
when they have been arrested
Mr. Valdes asked the HAAB to note several aspects of his attached newspaper article showing
the ineffectiveness of the Sheriff's investigations into the Edison matter. Mr. Valdes stated that
he had raised these issues for IS years and that he suffered improper harassment from the Sheriff
because of his complaints.
David Correa observed that the FDLE Report concluded that there was no Sheriff's wrongdoing.
Mr. Valdes' response to that was that if Sheriff Hunter had paid attention to Hispanic issues in
1989, the matter would have been resolved far earlier. Inspector Williams disagreed and stated
that Sheriff Hunter takes personal responsibility for all of the investigative efforts that are
underway to assure proper conduct by his oflicers. He stated that the Sheriff and Mr. Valdes
have many differences and issues between them, some of which are in court. However, he said
that it is the Sheriff's policy that allegations of police brutality and other misconduct are always
open to being addressed. Mr. Valdes noted that it has been a wise move with the Sheriff to name
Mr. Williams as Inspector because he has confidence in Mr Williams' abilities.
At the request of some members of the HAAB, Inspector Williams also provided a brief summary
of the "bachelor party" publicly reported incident. Mr. Williams noted that the Sheriff had
responded strongly to the situation in that case.
Comments by Former HAAB Chairman Frank Rodriguez
Frank mentioned to the HAAB that a 2 hour meeting is not sufficient for all of the matters on the
agenda of the HAAB. He mentioned that there were 2 items for the HAAB to consider in the
long term. First, he mentioned that he had met with County Administrator Bob Fernandez
regarding the subject of diversity. He reported to the Board that Mr. Fernandez wants to create a
panel to inform him about diversity issues Frank suggested the need for a liaison from the HAAB
to the Diversity Task Force. The first meeting is scheduled to take place in late August. Frank
also mentioned the need to have HAAB involvement in the coalition to improve farm worker
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housing. Christopher Bent asked how that effort would dovetail with the "Pueblo Naples"
project.
At this point, Frank Loney asked to be excused to leave because of a sick child. The result was
the lack of a quorum so Liaison Ramiro Maiialich advised that there could be no official action
taken from this point on in the meeting.
It was discussed if the next meeting would be held in Naples and Chris Bent suggested that each
member of the HAAB should come with plans and goals for the year. There was a brief
discussion about potential items for the Chairman to place on next month's agenda. The meeting
then concluded.
Prepared by: Ramiro Maiialich, Board Liaison
Approved by the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board on the 26th day of August, 1999.
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David Correa, Chairman
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
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Rorida Department of
Law Enforcement
Post Office ::lox 1489
Tallahassee, Rorida 32302-1489
(850) 410-7001
www.fdJe.state.fl.us
James T. 'limo Moore
Commissioner
Jab ~~ush, Govemot
Katherine Harris, Secretary of State
Robert A. BultelWorth, Attomey General
Robert F. Milligan, C.omptroller
Bill Nelson, Treasurer
Bob Crawford, Commissioner of Agl;~ulfura
Tom Gallagher, Commissioner of Educ,,~on
March 10, 1999
Honr.rab!e Jeb Bush
Governor
Tne ::apitol
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-000 I
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On January 27,1999, you requested the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) to cond:id a
preliminary inquiry into allegations concerning possible criminal misconduct on the part of Collier
County Sheriff Don Hunter. These allegations, brought forward by Mr. Victor Valdes of Naples, Florida,
include accusations of police misconduct, brutality, harassment and civil rights violations.
3
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RE: FDLE File EI-2s-0013
Dear Governor Bush:
When interviewed, Mr. Valdes alleged specific misconduct on the part of SheritT Hunter. According to
Valdes, Sheriff Hunter was aware of criminal conduct by former Collier County Sgt. Glendell Edison
and failed to properly investigate the criminal activities of Sgt. Edison.
This letter is to inform you that we have completed our preliminary inquiry into this matter and found no
criminal violations by Sheriff Hunter. Our investigation revealed that Sheriff Hunter conducted several
investigations into allegations regarding criminal activity~ Sgt. Edison, but none of these previous
investigations produced sufficient evidence to arrest Edison. Sheriff Hunter stated that, in retrospect, he
was not satisfied with the quality of some of these past internal investigations, and he has taken measures
to ensure that all future complaints against officers are thoroughly and professionally investigated.
Finally, our inquiry revealed that Sheriff Hunter has formed a task force to look into all criminal activity
on the part ofSgt. Edison. This task force includes members of the Collier County Sheriffs Department,
FDLE, the Florida Department of Insurance and the State Attorney's Office. Members of this task force
have re-opened all past complaints against Sgt. Edison, and their efforts have resulted in four separate
criminal cases being presented to the State Attorney for prosecution.
We have also reviewed the results of our inquiry with State Attorney Joseph D' Alessandro of the .
Twentieth Judicial Circuit, and Mr. D' Alessandro concurs with our findings. A copy of our Investigative
Summary is attached for your review.
Sincerely,
.-/
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IUr-
)ames T. Moore
! .Commissioner
JTM/mo
Attachment
Committed to
Service " Integrity " Respect " Quality
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FIRST EDITION APRIL. 1999 YEAR I NOI
Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.
Free Supplement Of
LAS NACIONES
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TO GRAB THE BULL
BY THE HORNS...
There have been many investigations; many
years of investigations have gone by. These
have been years or risk taken raei,ng a horde
of rabid pigs; years of facing a handful of
corrupted men wearing a honorable uniform.
Unitoml which has been stripped of its glory
by the dishonest and eriminal actions of a
few men in CCSO.
LIES tJTTERED BY SHERIFF HUNTER
AND JACKIE KLINE, CHIEF OF
OPERATIONS, OF THE CCSO.
Sec Page # 20 (68 & 69) Of The Summary ~
& Pagc # 9 Of The Supplement:
EDITOR'S PAGE
Read The Editorial Opinion
Of Our Chief Editor
Victor A. Valdcs
NOTE: To all persons mentioned in our editorial
pages, Las Naciones is a publication that works for
the ('ommunit~... We try to be fair to everyone l:Ind
we offer )'OU the opportunity to give your opiniun
from the other side of the issue.
NEWS
~~----_._- -~-~-_..._-----_.-
ESTE SUPlEMENTO SE PUBlICARA EN ESPANOl EN LA PROXIMA EDlCION.
THIQ 9Uppt"MENT_,."LL BE- PUsli9HEOIN WAN"'. IN THE NEXT EDITION.
j
Honorable Jeb Bush
Stak Of Florida Governor
Sir, do not let unfinished what only you have been capable of initiate. In
your letter to Commissioner Moore, you spoke of a full investigation if .
the preliminary inquiry would support our allegations.
.
You have seen that the inquiry conducted by Inspector O'Connell has
just touched only one of the allegations presented to you, he just
touched the tip of the iceberg. Please, do not let the corrupt and
demoralized Sheriff Office to continue being a treat to the same citizens
they have been entrusted to care for their safety and security.
An in-depth investigation will bring to light all the rubbish hidden inside
the Sheriff Office. Sheriff Hunter, is at least guilty of being a bad and
incompetent administrator, neglectful of his responsibilities and guilty of
~ving his back to the community which pays his salary.
Sheriff Don Hunter should not have a place in the type of g~vernment
you offered to the people of Florida during your electoral campaign.
Governor Bush, the community wants justice. The community is
waiting for you.
The Bullfighter
Note: Please read the complete F.D.LE. summary in this supplement and our
Editor-chief's Rebuttal, also in this supplement
I -.--.- --- - - .-- --.- - - ----....-.-------~----------
I Capt. Ben Crain said: "Valdes often had legitimates
complaints and is usually trying to do the right thing for the
Hispanic community".
See Capt Ben Crain opinion, former commander in c.c.S.O. Pag. #I 18 Marked #I 61 on Page #I 7 Ofth~
I supplement
L___..________...____._._._________._____ ...---.--.--- ..--~..~.--..--
FLORIDA DEP ARTMINT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT
INVESTIGATIVE SUMMARY
DATE: Fcbruary27,l999
CASE NUMBER: EU50013
CASE INSPECfOR: Mlchacl O'ConDcU
CASE PREPARED BY: Michael O'eo..ell
OATES OF ACTMTY: FROM: Fcbruary 1,1999
TO: Febnury 27,1999
SUBJECT(S): Sheriff Do. HUDler
Sberiff,ColllerCouDty
~Sl1GATIVE PREDICATE
(I)
On January 27, 1999 Governor Jeb Busb requested that the Florida Department of Law
Enforccmer.: (FOLE) conduct a preliminary inquiry inlo a1IeptiOrlS apinsl Collier
County Sheriff Don Hunter. Mr. Victor Vales, Naples. Florida. submitted a comDlaint
against Sheriff Hunter and the allegations involved possible police misconduct. brutality,
harassment and civil riahts violations. Governor Bush requested a report ofFOLE's
prcliminary fmdinss and r<<ommendatiol1l within thirty days.
(2)
Thc allegations rcported by Mr. Valdes are outlined in his letter to Governor BUlb. dated
J311U n s ener, et Isuace n UlIter I red
multi Ie com hunlS II me wu a
Collier County Sheriff's Office (CCSO).
(3)
The foundation of Valdes' charics aaainst Sheriff Hunter oriiinate from a press
announumenl by Hunter on December 4, 1998 where CCSO Seraeant G1endell Edison
had his apDOintment as deputy sberiffwatbdrawn and was removed from office effective
December 2. 1998. Sheriff Hunler abo announced that Edison's lerminllion was the
rcsult of a ten-monlh internal investiplion by CCSO with UIIistanee from the State
Anomey's Office in the 20'" Judicial Cirl;uil, the Florida Departmenl of Insurance and
FDLE. Huntcr further stated that other deputies are also under investigation and that
sc\'eral closed internal inveSligations on Sergeant Edison bave been reopened.
(4)
2
Invtlli,aliveSllmmlt)'
ElmlOl)
(5)
Val"es claims that he and other members of the Collier County HisDlltic Chamber oC
Commerce (CCHCC) made alleations aaainst Ole II Edison m seve meelmllS
between the CCHCC and Hunler. Valdes slales that these meetinls took nlace in 1989
and the aile lions a ainst Edison include~rotec:tion of lIambliM. and nrostitution,
acccDlln. DIYme:nl from drua dealers other iIIeaalllC:livities. n rt. a s c aims
Ihat SheriffHWller knew about Edison's iIIcplectivitin Cor ten years and failed to take
Ihe actiON ncee to son us Ice.
(6)
F~~e!'"lore, Valdes also c1~s that Sheriff Hunter is an accomplice of Edison's illeial
actiVities because Hunter Called 10 IICl U n the aile atio . .
nimd n~putlenyears. VaIde,staIes that Sheriff Hunter is aotdetlched from the
Edison co ion becauae he unler intentionall i lIIld covered u all of the
a1leaalions!Mde aaainst Edison by membm: of community since 1989.
Valdes closed his letter to Governor Bush by swinll' that SberiffHunter i. nol "uaIified 10
he t e nvestl 110no c SOD 0 mem 0 mil
involve 10 . ac:t1'Yl~. al ~ thatOovemorBusb~intaspecial
investiiatortoconductan nvatipt ofSberiJfHunterlllldtheC .
(7)
INVESTIGATIVE NARRATIVE
The CollowinS intervicws and doc:umentation review were undertaken to obtain the
backsround and history of a1lesalions against SberiffHunler and the current CCSO
investigation of OIendell Edison.
I. Backernund Inlervlews OD CCSO IDvattaadoD of GleBdell Edison:
STEVE EMERSON &: ANDY ROSE
FDLE Ft. Mye" Rqlonal Opentlonl Center
On February 8, 1999, Inspector O'Connell inlerviewed FOLE Special Asent Supervisor
(SAS) Steve Emerson and FDLE Special Asent (SA) Andy Rose al the Fl. Myers
Regional Operations Center. Emerson and Rose an: representinS FDLE in the task Corce
that is currently investigatina criminalaUegalions asainst G1cndell Edison.
Emerson and Rose stated thai in AUllust 1998 eeso Inspector Jim Williams requested
that FOLE participate in a taSk force with eeso regarding a criminal inveslilialion of
Edison and other deputies. Wi11iams is in charge of !he eeso Professional
Responsihility Bureau (PRB) and the task force Wll$ comprised of investigators from
3
Inve$lillliveSummuy
EI2S00U
eeso. FDLE, the Stalc Attorney's Office in Naples and !he Florida Department of
Insurance.
(8)
Emerson and Rose related that the allegations against Edison originated from his
activities in Immokaiee, Florida. Edison Iirew up in Immohlte, joined CCSO in 1980,
and. mOSI o.fhis.work ll$si&nm~nls Cor CCSO have ~n i.n Immokalee. The aUesations
al!amst Edison Include nrolectlon ror drug, and nroslltutlon, accentina mone Cor
rotection 0 ,businesses inlimidatlon 0 victlfnll W1tnasn numerous additional
criminal &Clivilies that involved the abuse of his aUlhority as a DUty WI 0 er
CounlySherift"sOftice.
(14)
(9)
SAS Emerson stated that FOLE was currently investiptina additional charses apinst
eOlson ana IS Stili an ICllve mernt)er of U1e I'KH task lorce.
(10)
SAS Emerson further stated that FDLE has liled a prosecution swnntll)' with the State
Anorney's Office in Na lea that charaed EdLson With Violation, Wlder fSS 84].08:5:5 (4),
nmL Achons n er 0 or 0 w. s prosecu on summary eae lson
attempted 10 mfluence, hinder and/or Inllmldate members olllle Lee County, Colliei'
County and t' londa Department or Corrections robalJon omces m the IOlerest of a friend
or re alive. e case num r or IS mvestl alion IS F 140005. SAS enon
Sat al is stll an active mem 0 oree and is wi n ceso in
pursuing additional charges against Edison.
(15)
(11)
SA Rose related that before he ioined FOLE be was a dcputy with CCSO Ind spent some
time workinll in the Immokalee area. ROle recalled that there had alwayS been nunon
Hakim!. Edison with criminalaclivity but be had no first hand information reaardinl any
criminalviolationsb Edison or an otherCCSOdcuutV. SARosestatedtllll~
current task force investilalion sUlTOunded Ihe activilies ofCCSO Ca'Plain Jim ~~.
Rose related thai il was alwayS his impression thaI Sanders wtluld block previous internal
invesligalions on Edison and iO out of his way to cover fOf EdIson Whenever CIIIUns
made complaints apinsl Edison. Rose described most of the nuTlOTS about Edison and
S311den as "street talk".
(12)
BOlh Emerson and Rose were somewhat familiar wilh Ihe complainant, Victor Valdes,
and lhey described Valdes as a communIty acUVISt who has had several pasl deallDas with
the Sheriffs Office.
(13)
Emerson and Rose $lated that they were very impressed wilh Inspector Jim Williams and
the oIher investigators in Ihe CCSO Professional Respoli5ibility Bureau (PRB). Both
FDLE invesligators nOled thatllJey thought Williams and his investiaators were doinaa
through job looking into alleaalions againsl Edison and olber ceso deputies in
lmmokalee_ SA Rose statcd Ihat out commanders for Inlemal Affairs (Professional
Responsi llilY Bureau) have nOI been ve effective. Rose s ulat Ihat
Ine ectiveness, coupled with Ca tain Sanders' Drotettion of Edison allowed Edison t9
run ree art e past I years.
4
Invf~iS..lv.Summll1'
EI2500lJ
Both Emerson and Rose stated thallhey had never heard any lUmors thai Sheriff Hunter
ever did anything to block or cover up any investigation aaainst Edison or any other
CCSO deputy. Emerson and Rose portrayed Hunter as very supportive of the currenl task
force invesligation of Edison and other ceso persoMel.
II. Interviews wllb complalnaDt Valdes and wllnenes produced by Valda:
VICTOR VALDES
ComplalDaDI
Inspector O'Conncll inlerviewed !he complainant in Ihis maUer, Vic:tor Valdes, a total of
five times duri~S the IIIftk ofFebnwy 8, 1999. Valdes lives at S349 Holland Streel in
Naples and is the editor of the tas Nacione. newspaper. Valdes moved 10 Naples iD 1982
and has been publishing l..as Naciones since 1984.
(16)
Valdes described himself as an activisl for the Hispanic community in the Naples aru.
This activism beam in 1984 with the UTesl of Lazaro Viena' lmmo .
des claims thll Olcndtll EdltoD arruIed Vierra and that EdIson used exceuive foree
ail&instViemdwin lbearrest. Valde.staledlbathelilcdaCO!D . twithSberiff .
Aubre Ro ers, then Sheriff'ofCollier Countv.-about EdIson's UlCofrorce but this
com laint was lIOt mvestl r n ers.. InCident
prompted him to beaiD his newspaper and become a voice for the Hispanil; community.
When Sheriff Hunter fint lOok office in Jann...v 1989 Valdes lIIld other members of the
Hisoanic Cham r of Commerce ad several meelial' with Hunter reprdina problems
wilh the CCSO deputies in Immokalee. Valdes recalled tMtlbe many of lheIll
complaints involved alleptlons qalnst EdIson. Valdes staled that Hunter never followed
up on lhe allcaatioN made asainst Edison by members orlhe community at these
meellOiS.
(17)
Valdes related ttYl at the beainnina of Sheriff Hunter's fusl term (1989-1991) relations
between lhe HIS anac Cbamber and Hunter were ve conhal. II was onl after certain
members of the Chamber elt that unter wu nol beina raponsive to II c:once1i=.
&bOUt certain ceso de uties that relations between Hunler and the Chamber to
deteriorate. Valdes wrote an article in his newsDlDCl' in I that was cmic:aJ 0 unter's
handlinR of a use of force complainl and relations between Valdes and Hunter have not
been lood since Ihis artide was vnitten.
(18)
Valdes has been arrested stvtraltimes between 1988 and 1996 for minor traffic offell5Cs.,
WOrlhleliS checks. drivini with a suspended license and ObstructiOD. Valdes slaled that
many oCthese arrests are realiation asainst Valdes for bein anoulS ken cntlc of
,"henff Hunter and the ceso. Val es currenl :YllaS a cLvi rights comp aint aplnst
eeso tiled in Cederalcourt.
5
-~~
FIRST EDITION - APRIL. 1999
J_
IJlYftlI,lllvISllm",.".
EU500U
'nvnll,UiveSlllMlary
EI2$OOIl
(21)
Valdes stated that he hu no first hand knowledoe felll.rdinll criminal activity bv Olendel!
E<f1son. urt rmo . . de, hu no Irs! hand know cd c that Sheri Hunter was eyer
Involved In any enmlna activity With lendell lson.
Valdes docs not have fint hand knowledlle that Sheriff Hunler ever intentionally blocked
~mtemal.alllrslnveltlaabonmvovI11l0Ie ISOnorany r Puty.
~~d~:~..~~C~~:~ ~rc ~ ":ain dcnu~es at ~CSO who have!J!!1. . -,.
Sheriff Hunter did not ~o~IY (allow thl'OlIllh on ,I'-Arinan n\W ~..~ nl...hll
:::~i:il~~:' .:'..:~fn.~~~:!f:::::=':':~~~::..-:'.....
synem that would delect patterns of abuse before me. blttems '-mN! .memlc
(26)
several ot~r o~cers. A~. member orth~ Hispanic AdvisorY Board. Riddle IPProached
Hunler wnb ~ lnformaMn she was heannl aboul Edison. Riddle stated that H~
became defensive and wanted Riddle to lit ker complainlS in writlnR and. have the
witnesses/victims come 0 WI elr <:om alnts. e 4i not ee <:om ortable
askln these 0 Ie 10 <:ome fo use 0 0 trust tween t IS C
Community and lhe Sheriffs Office. Riddle bch~est It s ac; 0 trwIt III eXlstJ
l!!!!!L
(19)
(20)
(27)
Riddle rec:alled that many of the people who spoke with her about alleiationJ against
Edison were linK members and rnijr&nt workers and they did not feel comfortable
corniAI forward and filinS formal complaints aaainst law enfor<:ement offi<:en. Riddle
also stated thaI it was her (celina that Captain Sanders blocked or hindered seveiilOTthc
comDlainta thai were filed. Riddle did have an first hand knowledge \hit Sanden
b oc e any lRvestiaations on 110ft.
(22)
During the week. of February a, 1999, Victor Valdu produced the names of people he
wanted to be interviewed re arch tbcu dHIin11 Wltb Sbenfl Hunter dunnllhe put ten
years. Valdes stated t some of the" poop e Vel lepbOns to unter ut
criminal violations committed by Edison and other CCSO deputies. The followina arc
summaries of pertinent infonnation provided durinl thcJc interviews.
(28)
Riddle concluded by statina that she did not think that Sheriff Hunter was suilty of any
criminal wronsdoina and thalsbe does not have anythina personalqainst Hunter.
Riddle stated that she doc:s not truSt some deputiel that work for CCSO and, at times,
~ocs not think thaI CCSO is allllRSSlve enouab when lnveSlillatlnlllRtemal affaus ISSues.
Riddle did not have any first hand knowledle of criminallU:tivity by Edison or any other
CCSO depulY.
MELINDA RIDDLE
ValdnWitDtII
CARLOS ORTIZ
ValdcsWltnen
Inspector O'Connell interviewed Melindl Riddle at her office in Naples on Febnwy 10,
1999. Riddle is an attorney and Iuts lived in Naples sillt:e 1917.
Riddle staled thaI her brother disappeared from the Immokalee area in 1979. When
Riddle moved 10 Naples in 1917 sbe began to condl1(:l hl:rown invesligation into her
brother's disappearance. Riddle feels that the inilial investillation by CCSO in 1979 was
not condu<:ted professionallY. Riddle noted that she also met resistance It the Sheriff's
Office in 1917 when she attempted 10 have her brother's case r~pened. This initial
resistan<:e at the Sheriff's Offi~e was before Sheriff Hunter was elected.
Inspector O'Connell interviewed Carlos Ortiz by telephone on February 19, 1999. Ortiz
was a deputy for CCSO from 1986 through 1995 Bnd had extensive experien<:e working
in the Immokalee area. Ortiz is currently an investigator with the Slate Attorney's Office
in Palm Beac::h County.
(23)
(29)
Ortiz staled lhal he "ot 10 know Victor Valdes through Valdu' work in the community
and he O\1i1. also attended sevCrilfHisparnc ham r 0 Conunerce meellngs wnere
Valdes and Hunter were presenl. OrtiZ does nol re<:alrvaRfes ever mentlonln.Q: any
~pecific alle~alions a~lIinst Edison al any of these meetmgs.
Riddle first mel Sheriff Hunter when Hunler took.ofti~e in 1~&9. Riddle stated that
Hunter agreed to reopen her brother's case and assign twO investigators_ In 1991 her
brother's body was found and identified in a grave in Immokalce In 1996 an arrest was
made bUI the subject was subsequently acquitted at trial.
(30)
~)rtiz recalled that he had heard rumors about Edison throull.h Valdes' newspaper but does
nol remember allY spe~lfic allegations in the newspaper ever being corroborated by
anyone wilh tirst hand knowledie of criminal activiry on lhe part of Edison
(25)
Riddle noted that during the invesligalion into her brother's disa iUance she spent
numerous hours In mmokalee and heafd a 10 of "street tal"
OMil said that he was assigned to assist Melinda Riddle and his orders \loere to reopen the
case surroUllding the disappeafan<:e of Riddle's brother. Ortizdoc:sre~allthatdurinKthis
invesligaliOll h~;md Riddle heard some allegations aboul criminal a~livity by Edison but
~not re~all receIving any specific mformalion on Edison from Riddle or any
olherwitnesslvictim
(24)
During the early stages of the investigation,SberiffHunter asked Rlddle 10 serve on his
Hispanic Advisory Board. Riddle described her initial relationship with Hunter as cordial
andprolesslOnal
(3 \)
7
6
InveSlllllivlSummll')'
[IHOOt)
lnvestialliveSummll')'
EmOOIJ
Ortiz stated that while he was at CCSO he never saw or heard any rumors tbat Sheriff
Hunler ever blo<:ked any inlemal investigations. To the <:ontrary, Ortiz stated that he
always found Hunter to be very honest and "by the book" when it ~anle \0 any criminal
investigations.
to any investiga.tors until il was deared througb his attorney. Avalos' attorney is Sid
Garcia of West Palm Beach,Florida.
However, Ortiz restated that he never received any specitk. fu-sl hand information of
criminal activity by Edison from either Vales or Riddle.
Victor Valdes thullght that Avalos migbt have information regarding <:riminal a~livity by
>c:veral CCSO deputies. Avalos was questioned aoout his knowledge of police corruption
lRlmmokaleeandAvalosagainrefusedtoansweranyquestionswithoultheadvice of his
anomey. Avalos was advised that any lmowledgehe has of criminal wrongdoing by
CCSO depulles sbould be reported 10 the Professional Responsibility Bureau. Avalos
said that he did not trust anyone at the Sheriff's Office and that he would not feel
~omfortabl~~m any information.
(32)
Ortil slated that the initialinvesti ation into the disa earance of Riddle's brother in
1979 was not handled well y CCSO and that Melinda Ri de wasjusti lably upset with
the way this inilial investigalion was conducted
(35)
ZAC LUCIO
Valdes Witness
On February 23, 1999, Inspector O'Connell received a return phone call from Avalos'
atlorney, Sid Garcia. Garcia stated that he did not have any objections to an interview
with Avalos.
,
Inspector O'COlUlell interviewed lac Ludo on February 12, 1999 at the home of Viclor
Valdes. Lucio is a fonner member of the Hispanic Chamber ofCornmerce and lived in
Naples from 1986 to 1997. Lucio currently resides in Miami.
On February 24, 1999, Inspc<:tor O'Connell again interviewed Avalos by telephone
regarding his knowledge of criminal activity by Glendel! Edison. Avalos stated thaI he
had no first hand knowledge of criminal wrongdoing by Edison. Avalos had heard
rumors that Edison was involved in that sale ofdruRs but confirmed that infonnation was
iust"slreettalk".
(36)
(33)
Lucio related that he was a member of the Chamber of Commerce when Sheriff Hunter
flfsl ran for sheriff in 19&1. After Hunter was elected, Lucio recalls that Hunter appeared
at several meetings oCthe Chamber where some people VOI<:ed concerns over the aclions
of G1endell Edison, LUCIO Sltd that Hunler never too"- notes, DeVer asked for names or
wrote down any mtonnalion on the allegallOns and nevCT followed up on any at the
rese yCllIenSa esem~s.
ANONYMOUS SOURCES
ValduWitneSl
(34)
Lucio noted that he bases his belief that Hunter blocked internal investigations on the fa.:t
that nothing was ever done .with the complainls raised at the Chamber meetmgs
Lucio does not have any first hand knowledge regarding criminal allegations against
Glendell Edison nor does he have any firsl hand knowledge thaI Sheriff Hunter blocked
any internal investigations against Edison
On February II, 19991nspeclor O'Connell inte("\o'iewed two former members of the
Hispani~ Chamber of Commerce at their home in Ft. Myers, Florida. Victor Valdes
stated thallhese two .indlviduals might have infonnation reaarding allegations against
Gtendell Edison Both of these individuals requested that their names not be used in any
official report.
MANUEL AVALOS
For-mer- CCSO Depul}"Naldes Witncsl
These sources stated that they lived in lrrunokalee from 1983lhrough 1995 and they were
owners of a small business during Ihese years. Both of these people were members of the
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce uotil the chamber fell apart in 1991. Both individuals
were~.'::!lt at Chamber meetinl!.s when complaints about Glendell Edison were brought
1qJ..l:!.~~_~_~~(ShenffHunter. Neither mdividual had first hand knowledge of
criminal aClivity Oil the part of Edison.
(37)
Inspector O'Connell interviewed Manuel Avalos by telephone on FeblLlary II, 1999
Victor Valdes believed that Avalos might have first hand kno\lo1edge regarding criminal
\\Ton~doing by Glendell Edison
(38)
l'hese squrces describe.'! the illitial relationship between the Chamber and Hunter as
f:l"oducti~e and friendly, As time went by the,Y felt that Hunter bec.ame unresponsive to
theIr eonc<;m5 about the lmmok.alee <:ommuNty. One of the individuals stated that she
Rave Hunler the names of people who were victims/witnesses of Edison's criminal
activity b,I.l~lhat n~[hing was ever done
A\~\os is a former deputy with CCSO and was terminated in 1993 for falsifying an
olTicial doc,ument Avalos currently lives in Immokalee. Avalos stated that he has a civil
righlS complaint against CCSO pending in the federal courts and that he would nol speak
<)
8
UNDER THE FIRST AMENDMENT - FIRST EDITION - APRIL, 1999 IPAG 5
In\"m~;l\;\.eSumll1.'r_
EI2~OO 11
Neither individual had any 11m hand knowkd~e ofSheriffllllnlcrblu~kjng .my internal
InvesllglltJOn
EDWARD NEARY
ValdcsWitnns
During Victor Valdes' interview with Inspector O'Connell, Valdes mentioned that when
he began to lonk at allegations i1gainst Edison in 19H5hespentsometimewithaKen
Claveau_ Claveall was an invcstiglllor with the Public Defender's Office in Nnple~
Valdes stated that Claveau was investigilting criminal allegations against Edison when
Claveau was arrested_ Valdes staled thllt Claveau died, under what Valdes ~lieved wen:
suspicious circumstances, while he (Claveau) was injail. Valdes wanted Inspector
O'Conndlto speak with someone who was wilh Ihe Public Defender's Office in ]985 10
determine if Claveau's death was ever properl}' investigated.
On Fehrnary ]9. 1999 ]nspectorO'Connelltelephoned theChiefoflnvltstigations, Allen
Shoff, at the Public Defender's Office in Fl. M)'ers, Florida. Shoffrebted that we should
speak with Edward Neary who was an investigator with the office during the 19S0's,
Neary had reccntly relired and was living in the Naples area
On Febrnary 22, 1999 Inspector O'Connell conducted a telephone interview with Edwurd
Ncary. Neary slaled that he was an investigalor with the Public Defender's Office in
Saples for eighteen years anJ that Ken Claveau was his supervisor
Neary recalled that Claveau was arrested fur smuggling marijuana in 1986, subsequentl}
c"n~iclcd and sentenced to six years in state prison. While in prisoll at Lawtey CI.
Claveau died of heart atl<lck during a suftball game. Neary stated that Cla\'cau had
l11enlioncdto :-';cary Ihat he \\aslal-.ing medication fora heartcundition. NC;lry staled Ihal
Ihere "'as nlllhin"'i\l~picill\lo;abulltC]~wau'sdcalh '
",cary di.] nut '''\'.c ,my I-.I;\mkd.~c ,dany ill\C'ligatiol\ CL\\'C'HI "Cli c\lndllding ml
(ilcn.kIIEd''''1l
111.lntl'nic",,,ithCC.SOPl'r"JOncl:
1I~1 \\ll,I.IA.\I."
In'l'ector, <<SO
IJ'.II""'.'II" ',',"
III:-I'~, ,ell' .1
h:I'Lu.,'\ ~ ~ '.'J.J :I~irc,':"r (q "'[Ih:11 c<.'lldll"IC,~ 'c'\d:li mla\ i,'\\s
", \\ ill::I'lI' r.c '.,'dLrl'; the' nl'c':.III"I~ ' t' Ihe' 1'~"k",',lIlal RC<.IJ\ln"hLlLI:
( (':'1) \ ~'" p,: ,c'rll :"r 11'.',:1:, ",1':1 ',,; IlL:en';,""., \1 ~r: 1'1<.1\
'1 I; ;;Ic,t ,II"~ '.I.Hl I L,:..~'
1\1I1c-i"Ii'i'i\:
III "'"L'",I,'
10
tn,e,tii"li..$ummll)'
EJ2~OO t J
(42)
II1~pe.;;tor O'Connell reviewed Edison's Internal Affairs file with Williams and Hisler,
The file re!1ected a total of 16 internal cases opened against Edison bet ween the yelln
!'}84 and 19'J1, Vvllllams and ~i1sler stated that they reopened and reviewed all 16 cases
and two of these 0ld.;;a5es resulted in theaforementionedcrimin al charges being filed by
CCSO WIth the State Attorney's Office.
(4J)
Investigator Hisler's stated that his review of Edison's case lile i ndicated that some of old
complaints against Edison seemed to be blocked by hi! supervisor, Captain Jim Sanders.
nus factor, together wllh addlllonal admlfilstrallvc allegatiOns against Sanders, prompted
PRE to initiate an mvesllllatlononSandersUlatlscurrenuyac tlve.
(44)
Williams, Uisler and Baker all stated that Sheriff Hunter was very supportive of!heir
~fTOr1S an~ they have no evidence that Hunter ever blocked any previous PRB
Inves~lgahons on Edison or any other deputy;. Allthtee ofll)e C;:CSO in.~~!ie~s
descnbe~Shenff Hunter as a law enforcement manager who wants to know of all of the
~:idence agains~ a deputy befo!e .dlselp'hn~ctlOn IS t.iiken:Theinv~~.!ii!!oiS-siated
that Hunter went out of his way to be fair when disciplining an employee. However, all
t~E~e i.nveslig,ators believed that Sheriff Hunter's caution in disciplinary matters was not
~ lfld~catlOn that Hunter was no! aaaressive when pursuing police corruption or Ibu.se.~
10 the contrary, all three investigators believed that Hunler was very serious about taking
action against any Collier County deputy who was abusing hi!TJher position.
(45)
During a review of PRBnntelligence files Inspector O'Connell found several handwritten
notes from Sherin Hunter to prevIOus PRH commanden. ll\ese notes were on Hunter',
personal stationary ana Imhcatea Utal Hunter was au-eel-illS that speclnc actiOns be taJc:en
~n some ot Ute old ~ntemal cases mvolvmg Glendelll:::dlSOn. The specIfic actions
~ncJud~d orders to mterviewwitnesseslviclims, conduct PJIY&nlphs and other
mvesllgatlve procedures. John Hisler related that it was possible that some of Hunter's
orders were not properly carried OUI. ;-
Inspector O'Con~~11 discussed Ihe history of the PRB with Williams, Hisler and Baker
and found that during Sheriff Hunter's lenure as Sheriff(1989.1999) there have been a
total of five different .;;ommanders in PRB.
Curtis Mills
1989-1990-Rttired
lamar Forbes
1990-1991-Rttired
Ben Crain
1991.1995-Stilla C.plain with ceso
JodyHendry
1995-1997.Rttired
JimWiIIi3ms
1998-Pruenl
12
Invcni'llivISllmmll')'
Ell50011
Jim Williams is the supervisor of the CCSO ProCessional Responsibility Bureau and has
overall command of the tl$k Corce that iseunentiy investialting a1lesations against
Glendel! Edison and other CCSO deputies, Williams is a retired Marine officer and in
early 1998 Sheriff Hunter asked Williaml to assume command in PRB. Williams has
been with ecso since 1996.
(39)
Williams recalled that he had been in command oCPRB {or about two '>'-'eelcs when I
citizen com laint a aiost G1endell Edison came into the PRE; office. Williams usi ned
the case loJo seran tser ....rueviewoC viOUlcom laiatsa II
Williams IX al al His er ouncl IOme of the.. vlo&Mi com lints linst
Edison COl\tI' &ome" 00" e Jive appearance t YMl'C not r1y
cone I promptc IImI 0 COR$1 er--a ow 0 preVIous eomp ts cd
agatnst Edison,
Williams Slated that he informed Sheriff Hunter that he (WiIIilllD5) would recommend a
PRB review of III internal casesinvolvinl Edison. Williams stated that Hunter was very
supportive of this review and encouraged Williams to aet whatever help he needed from
outside asencies, Williams explained thaI, as the investigation of Edison continued
during the early part of 1998, the cumnt task force ofCCSO. FDLE, Florida Department
of Insurance and !he State Attorney's Office began to develop.
(40)
Williams related that the inve$ligative efforts of the task force has resulted in Cour
!eparate enminal cases mvolvtnl ~son bcUlS pre$Cntcd to \be Utfice ot Ule ~tlte
Attorney 10 the 20'" JUdiCial CIrCUIt IlleR four eases are:
FDLE Case N FM14000S.Criminal AetioDs Under Color or Law
Florida Department or Insurluee Cue N FW.98-27..o004-ImufIlDce Fraudlfbert
ecso Case M 126468.98-Briber}'lUnlawru] Compensation
ceso Case N 126489.98.Perjury
Williams slated that on December 2, 1995, G1endell Edison was terminated from the
Collier County Sheriff's Office. The criminal investigation against Edison is still active.
The criminal investigation hIlS also expanded to include a review of the actions of several
otber deputies including Edison's former supervisor, CCSO Captain Jim Sanders.
Sanders is still employed by CCSO but has been reassigned, effective December 23,
19<)8, and currently has no command authority.
(41)
(i!D'~n.!b:..1n.Ye.~!i&!l()r 1000 Hiskr i~.in charl!.e ofinvestil!.atim1! all cunent IUld ortvious
In.ej~t.i~_~_a.&-ait:ls_tJi~Hsol! and Investillator Mark Baker has resoonsibililV Cor the
inves~i.~t_i()_~()f.a!I~~~l()~.~_&~i~!..<;.a.p~i.i1..!im ~.~.~.!rs,
11
li""lilllli..Summuy
fl2S00lJ
(46)
Ins~ctor Jim Williams exprt:sst:d concern regarding the manner in which some previous
PRB adminIstrators closed out some mt!rnal lrlvesllgallons. Williams slrcssed that he
has only been with CCSO since 19% and he has no fint hand knowledSe of how
previous PRB administrators conduct~d investigations but, in hindsiilht, a review of the
o.!4.!!!!:s il.avelheapp~arancethatoccasionallycertaininvestillative steps were not taken
(47)
Williams also noted that until Mound 1994, PRB was slaffed with only one person and
the lack of adeql18te personnel probably impact~d the quality of previous internal
investigations. Investigator Hisler pointed out that Collier County h8.'l experienced
tremcndous gro\\'th problems during the past ten years and that it was his impression that,
at times, the Sheriffs Department has had difficulty keeping up with this growth.
Williams currently has three im'estigators assigned to the bureau and Williams also
assists in many of the invt:stigations.
An additiunal factor noted by WiIlianls was the issue that previous PRB administrations
did not always conduct criminal investiSations. Williams went on to explain that if the
alle!l.ations against a deputy were criminal in nature, the criminal portion of the '
invesligation was often turned over to the Criminal Investigation Division (CIO) at
CCSO. Williams a~ain stated that, while he had no first hand knowledSe about these
procedUleS, it anoeared that PRB's lack oC authority to conduct criminal inVestil!.lltiOns
mi2ht have W.l!@!;tCl,leffectivenm.
(48)
Williams, Hisler and Baker all described previous PRB administrations as not bemS
a reSSlve enou w en 00 nl mto complamts IlSainSt Colher County law enforcement
o Icen, They stated at, w em tlgatUlg actors suc as growth, ]aell: ot personnel or II
clear diVISion 01 aulhonty certainlY Il1eclea prlXluchvlty, U1ese lactors were not excuses
for improperly investigating allegation:s against officcrs,
Williams, Hisler and Baker were very cooperative and candid' during all of the interview
and review sessions. All three of these investigators seem fully committed to pursuing all
allegations of criminal conduct by any Collier County Sheriffs Office employee.
Inspector O'Connell's intervie~ with Jim Williams also included a review of the policy
and procedures lIsed by members of the PRB. These procedures l1:vealed that, in addition
to Sheriff HlInler, the Undersheriff and the Chief oC Operations also reviewed some PRE
case~. The~e two positions are dim:tly under Sheriff Hunter IUld intervie~ with
persr>nrtel who ba\'e oecupied these posltionsduring the last ten years wer econductcd.
BOB BURHANS
Undersheriff
Inspector O'Connell interviewed CCSO Unclersheriff Bob Burhans on February II, 1999.
Burhans is second in command to Sheriff Hunler. BlIrhans l1:tircd as a Lt. Colonel after
37 years in the Marine Corps and joined the Sheriff's Department in 1984. When Don
13
1
PAG/6 UNDER THE FIRST AMENDMENT - FIRST EDITION - APRIL, 1999
InYftllpl\~.SI&lllIlW)'
EIUOOI)
The interview with Burhans opened v.ith Burhans discussing the growth rale oreollier
County over the past several years and how difficult it has been for the Sheriffs Office 10
keep up with this growth falC. Burhans estimated that the population of Collier Counly in
1965 was about 16,000 and that today it is well over 200,000.
(50)
InV"lil'liv~ Symmuy
[125001)
the CUffent task force concept with FOLE, the Florida Department of Insurance and the
Slate Attorney in Naples.
Burham related thai the ecso should have been more "active and vi~ornu.";n .he
carher complaints and investigations of Edison. Burhans felt that, wh,i1e. previous .
commanders al PRB did the bcSllhcy could, it now appears that certain Internal afflUrs
matters did "slip waugh the cracks~. .Burhans ha~ heen encourucd by the ~ti~ns of the
CW'Tent personnel at PRB and feels that the complaint acceptance and investigative
syslems AI CCSO have improved dramatically during the pastlWelve months.
Burhans slated that he has never known Sheriff Hunler to do anything to block any
investigation in the ten years he has served with Hunter. Burhans considers Hunter 10 be
an honest and aggressive administrator when dealing with matters of police corruption.
Burhans explained that he knew Ihat Edison had several complaints filed Il!ainst him but
Ihoul!ht that it millht be because Edison was a "llOnd coo worldllll in a tnlll7h area"
Burhans described Edison as a good self-promoter who knew how to take advantage of
the system. Buman! further cxolained thaL while Edison was alwavs ~ ~mi~~tive
problem, Burhans was ~umrise~ when he ~eard abo~t the eKle~t ~~ Edl.son ~ cnminal .
activity. Burhans descnbed Edison as haVlng led I charmed hfe dW'lllg hIS years With
CCSO
Hunter was elected Sheriff in 1989, Hunter appointed Burhans to the Undersheriff
position and Burhans has held this position for the last ten years.
Burhans then discussed the history of PRB leadership since Hunter became sheriff
Burhans stated lhat the first two commanders ofPRB wen: Curtis Mills and Lamar
Forbes. Mills and Forbes each had command for about one year and were essentially in
PRB by themselves. Burhans recalled that Forbes had a difficult time adjusling to PRB
and was probably not well suited for this assignment.
In 1991/92 Captain Ben Crain assumed command ofPRB and Burhans recalled that,
under Crain's command, PRB started to receive additional personnel. Crain's tenure in
PRB lasled for about four or five years and when he leA, the position was given to Jody
Hendry. Burhans stated thai Hendry served in PRB for a short time before he left the
department for a career change. Jim Williams was appointed commander of PRB in early
1998.
(51)
Burhans then described the process of how CCSO handles complaints againsl deputies.
Burhans Slated that any citizen call file a complaint at any sub-station and the complaint
is then forwarded to PRB. PRB reviews the complaint lUId makes a recommendation 10
Burhans 00. how the complaint should be handled. If the complaint is minor in nalW'e
Burhans stated thai it would usually be sent back to the deputy's supervisor and dealt
...ith at Ihallevel. If the complaint WllS a more serious administrative violation Burhans
stated that PRB would investigate the complaint. Burhans relaled that if the complaint
contained possible criminal violations il would be handled jointly by PRB and the CCSO
Criminallnvestigalions Division (CID).
(49)
Burhans explained that over the years they have experienced problems ....ith separatioa
criminal inveSligationsofdeptilies witbthose investigations that are administrative in
nature. The CCSO does review all criminal invesliaalioll5 of deputies with the State
Anomey's Office but Burhans noted lhat he:: has never been totally satlslied W1tb the
process CCSO has used to handle cnmmallllvestlgatlons of law enforcement officers.
Burhans felt Ihat, in retrospect, CID and PRB should have done a bener job worltina and
communicatinlt with each olher. Burhans did state that Slttce Jim WIlhams has assumed.
command and PRB is now doing criminal investigalions (1ll5Iead ofCID) the syslem has
been tightened up and seems to be working much more effectively.
Burhans described Victor Valdes as very confrontational when dealing with CCSO.
Burhans feels that people al CCSO went out of their way to appease Valdes. Burhans
stated that Valdes' claims that he has been harassed because of his activism are totally
without merit. Most of Valdes' confrontations with CCSO ha,.e resulted from traffic
stops and most of these have involved differenl depulies. Burhans ~ heard some
deputies remark that they go out of their WIly not 10 stop Valdes for mlll~r traffic
violations b<<ause they feel it is not worth the trouble they know they WIll encounter.
Burhans slated that Valdes never came 10 him with a cnmnl~inl ~"",in~1 Ftl,."n .ntl th"'t
the first lime Burhans linked Valdu with Edison was after Frliron wu fired
(52)
Burhans closed by stating thai CCSO should have had a beller review process over the
years and that this mlghl have allowed them to catch EdLson mucll earlier. UurltanS
remarked that he felt a certaLll amount 01 gUllt lor nOI catchLngup WIth t:. dLsonsoooer.
Undersheriff Burhans was ver)' cooperalive and candid during the entire interview and
pkdged his full cooperation with this inquiry.
Burhans remarloed that as soon as Jim Williams noted problems with some of the old
in'..estigalionson Edison (early 1998), Sheriff Hunter instructed Williams to get any help
he needed from outside agencies. Burhans recalls that Hunler instructed Williams (Q
contaclthe appropriale state and federal aaencies and that eventually CCSO worked out
JACKiE KLINE
ChiefofOperalions
(53)
fn,pector O'Connell inlel"v'ieWed Chief of Operations, hckie Kline. on. February I~,
\ 999, Kline is third in con~mand a1 CCSO and has held thiS poS\hOn since \991 WIth the
14
I~
t~~ulilllive Summary
E12~OOll
r~VUlill[i"'eSummll'}'
f.12SO<Jrl
exception of two years when he took a voluntary demotion. Kline has been with CCSO
for 2.8 years.
in the private sector, returned 10 CCSO in 1993, and assumed a position as Lieutenant in
Vice and Narcotics. Lloyd retired from CCSO in 1998.
(54)
Inspector O'Connell asked Kline to present an overview of the complaint process al
CCSO. Kline stated that a complainl against an officer can be filed at any location and
these complaints are forwarded to PRB- All complaints are reviewed by PRB and then
discussed with UndersheriffBurbans. If the complaint is serious enough to be
investigated by PRB it is assigned I case number, investigated by PM, and then
revLeY!'t:d b theChLeI of 0 raliOns, the Undcrsl\enttand Shen" Hunter. lethe
complaint ap ars to an issue t S 0 e e U I su rvtsor the
S en n ers n and ChLefofOperations WGuld still review the results of the
supervisor'slnvestlgauon.
Kline staled that he did not recall Edison baving that many fonnal complaints filed
against him. Kline ~ heard a few very general rumors throuahout the years tIIat
indicated that Edisot\ was involved in criminal activity. Kline has no personal
relationship with Edison or Sanders nor does he have any first hand knowledge of any
criminal wrongdoing by either of these officers.
(57)
(58)
Llo)d staled Ihal while he was ChiefofOperalions at CCSO the PRB unit came under his
scope of authority. Lloyd recalled that he always had concerns that PRB was never
staffed properly and lhat the internal affairs process did not seem to be well organized.
Lloyd saId that LI was hiS ImpreSSion that PRB was not as lliiresslVe as it should have
been III ItS llltemal Invesllllatlons. Lloyd commente4 Utat ne Utought the t'KH people
were "aoOO cops" but it appean that they did miss some issues.
Llovd recalled that durlnll his vears with Vice and Narcotics he bad heard rumors aboul
criminal violations beina commilled by Edison and Sandef1 but the rumors were never
backed u WIth an substantial evIdence or Witnesses. Llo d estunated thai durin.ll his
last few years with Vice NarcottCl ore let In 1998) he sent about six
aile alions/com laintll about Edison to PRB for follow up mvestlgation. Lloyd
remember e at easl one conversation WI en unter reg LOa rumors about
Edison betna Involved In cnnunal actlvlly. Llovd plri that Hunler was very concerned
bul again, nothing substantial developed from the 1'((9 invesligation that indicated the
allegations were anythin8 more than rumors.
(59)
Kline stilled that part of his responsibility as Chief of Opera lions is command over all
criminal investiaations and he bas never seen any indication that SberiffHunter ever
blocked or hindered an investigation aaainst. deputy. KJine always had the impression
thai Hunter was aggressive when duling with police corruption matters.
(60)
Lloyd stated that he knoW$ Victor Valdes and Lloyd described the early relationshiD
between Valdes and the Sheriff's Office ucordial. Lloyd did not recall rcccivina any
allegalions about EdISOn from Victor Valdel and Lloyd does not know what caused the
relalionship between Valdes and CCSO to turn sour,
(55)
Kline stated that be did not attend many meetings with the community and has never
received any allegatLons allamst officers Ii'om Victor Valdes.
Kline said that his reaction to the recent revelations about Glendell F.diIOR was 'n uk
why had manaacment not heard about tbeae allegations prior to 1991. Kline auestioned
the quality of some previous PRB investigationS and wondered if. in some cues, ecso
had~mlssedtlleboat".
Lloyd stated Ihal he never saw Sheriff Hunter do anything to interfere with any criminal
investigation. Lloyd does not recall Captain Sanders intervening on behalf of Edison
during an int.emal investigation.
(56)
BEN CRAIN
F'ormer Commaoder of PRB at CCSO
JACK LLOYD
Former Chief of Opfutlons.Retlred
Inspector O'Colll\ell interviewed Captain Ben Crain on February II, 1999. Crain was a
Lieulenalll in charge ofpRB for about four years from 199Hhrou8h 1995. In 1995 Crain
was promoted to Captain and pul in command of Special Operations Crain is still in this
pcsition at the present time_ Crain has been with CCSO for I g years.
Kline was very cooperalive during his interliewsession.
Inspector O'Connell interviewed former Chief of Operations, Jack Lloyd on February 12,
1999_ Lloyd was ChiefofOperalions for a brief time during the \990's when Jackie
Kline took a voluntary demolion
Crain Slaled Ihal early in his career (1981-1913) he worked in lmmokalee as a patrol
deputy, Crain also worked in Immokalee as an investigator for aboul six months in the
late 1980's
Lloyd retired from the Drua Enforcement Agency (DEA) in March 1985 and joined
CCSO in 1986 under then Sheriff Rogers. \\'hile at DEA, Lloyd spent six years in
Internal Affairs with the DEA offit<: in Miami, Florida. In 1988 Lloyd was appointed
commander of Vice and Narcolics. Lloyd left CCSO for aboullWo years in 1990 10 work
In \991 Sheriff Hunter appointed Crain to be lhe commander ofPRB_ Crain Slated thai
he always fell he needed more personnel in PRB and that allimes il was almost
impossible to handle the caseload Crain said that he only picked up one invesligator
posilion during his four years at PRB
16
17
-
UNDER THE FIRST AMENDMENT - FIRST EDITION - APRIL, 1999 I PAG 7
In~uli,'liveS"mmory
E1250013
Crain spoke of the CCSO policy where PRB did not condue,! criminal inv~sli.lations on
deputies and said that, while criminal inv~stiiatjonS often d.ld &0 to the ~rtmmal
Invesligalions Division, thert were oo;ca~lLons where PRB did conduct cnmmal .
investigations_ Crain described this policy as one thai 'NlU "l1uid" throughout his tenure
atPRB
Inv.,tillalivtSummory
EI2l00l)
might have been passed alol\g to SherilTHunter. SheriffHunler !lated thai he does nOI
recall any convcualiornl with the FBI regarding Edison and requested that Dick Kielh, his
local FBI contact, be interviewed rcsarding this mailer.
InspeClOrO'Connellconducledalc:lephoneinterviewwithDickKlethonFebruary22,
1999. Kieth is a Senior Supervisor with the FBI Field Office in Sarasota, Florida.
(62)
Crain related that he had hcard rumors about Glendell Edison bein Involved in iIIe II
activities before he was the commander al P . Crain stated that when he took over
command of PRB and saw the complaints about Edison come In, he would always .
altern I to build a case bUI could never get substantial, first I'Iand mtonnatlon on (::dLson.
Crain recalled lhat he ha conversallons WI unter a ut
while the wefe both concerned, they could never et witnesses/victims to come forward
with credible i onnalion. rain stated I at times he was fnlstrated with the lack of
quality witnesseslviClims in many of the allesations aaainsl Edison bul said that you have
to go by the philosophy of "if you can'l prove-it didn't happen".
Crain slaled that he and Captain Jim Sanders used 10 fish together for several years but
they have not been close recently. Crain described S,:"ders as ~an involved supervisor"
during internal investigations on allegations about EdIson. Cram staled tha~ Sanders .
a\wai's wanted to know the status of I particular inv~sliga~on invo.lvina ~I~n bUI Cnun
did not think thai Sanders ever actually interfered WIth an IIItemal investIgation.
Crain mentioned one instance where he thoughl Sanders miiht have "cro~sed the line".
and become to active wilh an internal investigalion on Edison. The casc IIIvolved a child
abuse charge where Edison was accused of nol pt.oper!y .respondina: t~, and investisating,
the initial call for service. Crain stated that even In thiS lIISlance be did not feel ~t
Sanders was Irying to cover for Edison but il was rather just a ~ ofS~ders beln~ too
aggressive. Crain mentioned that he often used Sanders 10 WISt m finding people III
lmmokalee because Sanders kncwthe area so well.
Crain stated lhat he knew Viclor Valdes and interacted with him on a regular basis durinlJ
his time at PRe. Cram states that Valcjes!\aS a panem 01 actlvlSII1 aaa1ll5t t~ U'::!l,": llIlCl
that. at times, Valdes lets hlS emotions get the best olllun. L:fl.ln salCl thaI vallles onen
had legit~ma..te complaints and is usually Irymg 10 do the nghl Ullnglor Ille HlSpllnlC
commumly
Crain sl<lted that SherilT Hunter. W~ very aggressive when it came to n:aners of police
corruption_ Crain never saw Hunter do anything to hinder or block an Internal
i n v e ~a i g <l t i 0 II a ( any d e pu t y
(63)
Kietb related that in the mid. 1990's the FBI worked a aambling invesligation in
Immokalee and there were rumors tbat Edison was beinR paid prolection money by some
of the 0 Ie nmnin the iUllbling operalion. Kietb stated that their confidential source
did not work out and e to c ose out e lIIvestlglltOn Wit ou an arrest. Ie
slated that he worked With mv aaton on t IS sarn lOloperatlon ut docs not
f('cal1 ever discussing the rumors about Edison's involvement with Sheriff Hunter.
Kieth said that he might have heard a few other rumors aboul Edison over the years but
does nol f('call any specifLc allegalions that were ever verified and does not re<:all ever
discussing these rumors with Sheriff Hunter.
FRANK RODRIQUEZ
Chairperson of Collier County HlspIDlc AdvboT)' Board
(61)
During an initial interview with Sheriff Hunter, Hunter requested that Frank Rodriquez be
interviewed regarding his experiences with Victor Vales and CCSO. On February 12,
1999, Inspector O'CoMell conducted a telephone interview with Mr. Rodriquez.
Rodriquez is the Chairperson of the Collier County Commissio~s Advisory Board for
Hispanic Affairs and a past member of Sheriff Hunter's task force on minority
recruitment fOr the ceso. Rodriquez works at the First National Bank of Naples and has
lived in Naples since 1990.
Rodriquez slaled lhat he first met Sheriff Hunler in 1992 when Rodriquez was a volunteer
for the Children Services Council in Naples. Rodriquez also ran for a seat on the Collier
County Commission in 1992. Hunter invited Rodriquez to participate in a task forte to
recruil qualified minorities for Ihe Sheriff's Office. Rodriquez felt that the task force was
successful in makinK many minorities aware of the opportunities available 10 them in I
career in criminal justice. Rodriquez stated that Sheriff Hunler was always very
supportive of the task force and seemed genuinely committed to hiring minorities at the
ceso.
DICK KIETlI
Senior Supervisor, FBI Sarasota Field Office
(64) I
(65)
Rolin uez is aware oflhe allegations made against SheritfHunter by Victor Valdes and
Rodriquezw~_~e togo (In I e recor asstatlOg IS ee JIIRs thai there is no truth in
lhesecharges.
Dl.ring one ofLhe interviews with Victor Valdes, Valdes mentioned thaI the F~l mi&ht.
h.lve inf'lnnation regarding criminal activity by G\endell Edison and thatlhts lOformaflon
Rodri'luez feelsthat.he and Valdes have the same goals for the Hispanic community but
that Vaid~s chl:105es to work outside the system while Rodnquez takes a more
18
19
In'e'lijt'll,eSummU)'
EtBOOlJ
In..'lilllli,.Summary
Etl500t)
(66)
conscrvative approach and attempts to work within the system. Rodriquez noted thai
m.any Hispanics he knows are upset with Valdes and his tcadency to publish accusations
and rumors without supporting information. Rodriquez closed by Slating lhat he believes
that Valdes means well but is sometimes 100 emotional and prone to make allegations
a~ainst people without first verifying all the facU.
After Mills retired, Hunter appointed Lamar Forbes to take command ofPRB. Hunter
stated that he was disappointed with Forbes' performance at PRe and felt that Forbes did
not maintain an effective filinasystem. Hunter also Slated that it appeared that, in some
cases, Forbes would nol follow through on certain investigative leads Hunlerexplained
thai while Forbes was in charge ofPRB Hunter slarted having regular briefings on all
internal cases llnd that this policy of resular briefinas is slill in effe<:ttoday. Hunter
e~'entually dismissed Forbes and brought in Ben Crain to dean up the filini system.
SHERIFF DON HUNTER
Sheriff, Collier COUDty
(71)
Hunter recalled thai Ben Crain served as commander of PRB for about four yean and that
Hunter and Crain began 10 get PRB additional personnel. Hunter remembered a
conversation with Crain about "what a disasler" the files were when Crain first took over
for Forbes.
Inspector O'Connell interviewed SheriffHLlnter on February 12, 1999 A brief
introductory interview .....ith Sheriff Hunter was also conducted on February 9, 1999.
Sheriff Hunter joined the CCSO in 1981 and served as Deputy Chief of Administration
under Sheriff Rogers. Hunter was elected Sheriff in 1988 and took office in January
1989. Hunter recalled that his first meeting with Victor Valdes look place shortly aftc~
Hunter was elecled sheriff. Hunter knew that Valdes was upset with former Sheriff
ROllers and Hunter wanted to imDrove relalions wilh Valdes and the HisDanic
community.
Hunter stated that Crain brouaht up the concept of PRB doing criminal investigations on
some of the internal cases. Hunler described the issue ofPRB doina criminal
investigations as a "fluid situation" that went through several adjustmenu over the yean.
Hunter expressed confidence in the perfonnance of Ben Crain at PRB and thought that
Crain did a good job given the lack of personnel vs. the heavy cascload.
(67)
(68)
Hunler stated that he remembered attendin several meetin s with the His ic Chamber
of Conunerce in Tnunokalee and that for the farst ew yeus his relationship with the
ChiUllbcr and Valdes seemed to ao very well. Hunter explained that in the early 1990's
CCSO arrested two youn; Hispanic males (the Gomez brothers) for AiitaValed Battery
and Aggravated Assault. This arrest stemmed. from an altercation ltlloc:al dance ~Iub.
The brothers were eventually convicted but VIctor Valdes filed a complamt on thell
behaJfand claimed that one of the arreslLng officers used a ra~lal slur dunngtne arrest.
Hunter stated lhat the complaint was investigaled but no tndependent thIrd party WItness
could be found and the complatnt was unfounded. Hunter commented Illat Valdes would
not let up on the issue and Hunter felt Ihat theIr relationship has not been good sinc~ thi~
incident.
(72)
When Hunter promoted Crain to Captain of Special Operations, Jady Hendry was (liven
command ofPRB. Hunter stated that he alwa s had confidence in He but now, i.o
retrOl CI, il He was not as e ective.. Hunler waul have I cd hi
. unter remark that when Jim WiIIilrDl took command ofPRB ill early 1991, a
review of Hendry's files indicated that severalmtemal cases were not prohr1Y
~. Hunter expresscd full confidence in the currenl commander 0 PRB, Jim
Williams, and Hunter feels that Williams has some excellent investiaators workins with
him
(69)
(75)
Sheriff Hunter wanted 10 ensure that it is understood that he takes responsibility for llDY
shortcominll5 durinll past internal affairs investiaations. Hunter stated several limes that.
while he is not satisfied with WI some thin s were done in the it was difficult
ea Ing with victim",,"'ilnesses from lmmokalee. Many of these people are reluctant to
trust the p<'\ice for a variety of reasons and this makes It difficult to gatllCrevl(tence for
anYIYpeo'C~.
SherifTHunLe,rthen discussed his relationship wilhGlendell Edison. Hunter recalled that
u\.cr the> ears he had heard rumors about criminal activity by Edsioo but does not
remember these rumors surfacing on a regular basIS and dOCS not remember any specific
a egationsinvo vmg dison unler escn leal egationsa aUiSl ison at e
h<'ard al m.etings 0 I lspanic Cham r 0 ommerce as a egations that were very
broadand.:eneraJin~
(73)
(70)
Hunter expressed a desire to improve relations v.ith Victor Valdes after Valdes' current
lawsuit against CCSO is resolved. Sheriff Hunter denied that Victor ~ald(~ ~as ever the
subjecl of harassment by ani'one at CCSO because he was a communIty aCllvlSt. Shenff
Huntcr insisted thath<' and his people have gone out of their way 10 be sensilive 10 Valdes
uverthe years because they realile how critical Valdes can beofan ypoliceactiontaken
against him
(74)
Sheriff Hunler dis(usscd the history of the PfOfes~ional Responsibility Bureau (PRE)
,lrlCe Hunter he~<lme sheriff Hunter's tirst appointment.1s commander ofPRB was
Curtis :>'Iills ~~ho "as there (or une year before he retired Hunter said that under Mills,
PRB "as a one'person unit bUllhat \!ills got assistance for the Criminal Illvestigation
Di\.ision (CID) "henever h.: nceded it
(76)
(77)
I lunter remembered discussinK police abuse problems .....ith Melinda Riddle but it was
always his impression that Riddle did not wanllO give up her sources and that Riddle had
no first hand knowledge of any criminal activity on the part of Edison. Hunler noted that
20
21
"'..~~
~
'I
"
"
:1
I
I)
r
PAG/8 UNDER THE FIRST AMENDMENT - FIRST EDITION - APRIL
In~t5liialiv~ Summ~
El2S0011
Inve'li\:.liHSumm&ry
EIHOOIJ
(78)
he first met Riddle when she approached him to reopen her brother's case. Hunter agreed
with Riddle lhat the initial investigation in 1979 was not properly done and Hunter
assigned two investigators to assist Riddle with her investigation. Hunter knows that
Riddle does not trust some of the deputies at CCSO and speculated that thi~ may be.,.
reason why Riddle was reluctant to give Hunter spccifk, names of victims or witnesses
INVESTIGATIVE FINDINGS
(79)
I
Hunter stated that if Melinda Riddle or Vittor Valdes had evcr Riven him SDecifh::,
verifiable information about Edison's criminal activity he would have certainly followed
lhroull.h on that information.
Hunter recalled that Edison seemed to have a lot of IlOlicv comnlaints filM at'
Ilt unter stat at I' was surprise when the CWTenl criminal Chazrs aaalRlt Edison
bcl1:lf1 to surface. Hunter does not remember that many cnmmal com amls a lIIM!
~ Hunter speculated that, bccau.se t:4ison was working in a high crime area, it was
normal to expect some people to complain about Edison's methods. Hunter described
Edison as always being interested in getting ahead in the department and willing to take
on special assignments to enhance his promotional opportunities.
fhe allegalions made by Viclor Valdes against Sheriff Hunter can be summariled as
follows
(84)
Sherir! Hunter kIlew about Glendell Edison's iIIegallldivities for almost ten
years lInd failed to do anything to stop Edison,
(80)
(85) .
Valdes alleges lhat, because Sheriff Hunter knew about Edison's illegal activities
and failed to act upon them, Sheriff Hunter is aD accomplice 10 Edisoo's Illegal
activities. Tbis allegation Implies Ihat Sheriff Hunter is not detacbed from
Edison's corruplion and somehow partidpated or profited from Edison's lIIegal
activities.
(81)
Hunter said that he had lifted weights with Edison on a fe~ occasions but had never
~ wilh Edison or his family. In summary, Hunter stated that he always thought
~~~asand"~dmin.istrallveru ~_:llU.!...__ no..!.~~~l_~~_':':'~s_ ed
m crun!"".. wrong omg.
(86) .
Finally, Victor Valdes slates that Sheriff Hunter is Dot qualified to lead the..:
current investigation of Glen dell Edison and other deputies who are UDder
suspicion.
Ibis Investigative Findings Secfionwill exal11ineeach of these lhreeallega tions
Individually on the following pages.
Hunter explained that he knew that Captain Jim Sanders and Edison had II close
relationship and that Sanders was always interested in Edison's career. Hunter said that
he encouraged a ij;lentoring system at CCSO and that Sanders was Edison's mentor.
Hunter never had the impression that Sanders was interfering with internal investiglltions
on Edison and Hunter just thought that Sanders was interested in Edison's advancement
v.ithin the department. Hunter stated that PRB is currently looking into criminal
allegations againsl Sanders and that Sanders has been removed from any command
authority with t; ,'CCSO. '
(87)
Sheriff Hunter knew ahout Gleodell Edison's illegal activities for almosl ten
-ye~arred to do ':~r11i1iiil~~~t~~on. "----~-_.._--.....-
(82)
Hunter stated that he ",,-as frustrated by the fact lhat his department did not identifv the
Crlmma.! activities 0 ison at I mue earlter ale. In hindsight, Hunter admited that the
PRS should have done a more through job wilh the allegations that carne in on Edison.
!:!unter stated that he certainly was not satisfied with the way PRe handled some past
cases but Hunter also ex ressed concern over Valdes' definition of "specific allegations".
Hunter reiterated that ifhe had received information on lson that cou d ave n
corroboraled and verified,he would have certainly lakenaction against Edison
All persons interviewed from the Collier County Sheri Irs Office, including Sheriff
J-1unler,st.ltedthal they had heard rumorsor"s!Teettalk"regardingi lIegalactivityby
Edison during the paslleo years. The extent nfhow much an individual heard about
Edison seemed to vary according to how much time that individual spent in uniform
palrol or investigative activities in Immokalee. 11 stands to reason lhat deputies who work
in !nunokalee would naturally hear more rumors about Edison than higher ranking
members of CCSO who rarely engage in enforcement duties and oniy occasionally visit
lmmokalee
Hunter stated that he has never done anything to block any criminal ar imelOal
inV.eSligation within his department.
This reasoning is corroborated by the fact that PRB Investigator John Hisler, who spenl a
number of years workinll in Immokalee. was the person leas1 surprised when charRes
about Edison carne to tight. Conversely, Sheriff Hunter stated that he was surprised at the
e~lenl of Edison's involvement in criminal activity, SherilfHunter related that he
il1OligFitOt i'.dtson as an "adlOlT'llStratlve mghlmare llut recalls very tew QtSCUSSIOns
aOOUtl::dlsonthatlllvolvedcnmtnalallell.BtlOns -
(83)
'(88)
Sheriff Hunter was very cooperative during this lnlerview and pledged lhe full
c.ooperation of his department during theeourse of this inquiry.
(89)
Victor Valdes stated that he and other members of!he Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
orovided allegations ~~nst Edison to Hunt~, and ihat_lIunt~r did oot investigate these
22
23
J~>e5lLg.tjve Summary
El2100lJ
(90)
~~~?~l~~ Sherif:L~hmter st~led th~i!J:I~il.s provided specific allegalH)nS a,gainst any
officer, lnc,~udln~ Edison, he always aggressively pU"iiueifsuchallegat[cilii--- ---
"') -."" ..'."_""'C~'""-""" .""~'" !"""'" I
I VIctor Valdes does nol have any venfiable, first hand tnformatllJn regardlOg crimioal
activI!y on the part of Glendell Edi,llTl. Nor could Victor Valdes produce anyone who
had verifi~hle, fi,rst hand i,nformalion on Edison_, W,ithout such informa,lio nil is dilllleult
I for ShentT Hunter and .members ofP.~ to ~uild a c~e agams! EdIson or my other
deputy suspected ofcnmmal or admullstrattve vlolallons. As Ben Cram, fonner
I~~er o!!RB stated durin!!tis interview, ~~~ou can't prov~~_dido't happen".
In...tiIPh>eSumrn..-y
EI21001J
f..:l~~~,!~_I..!:~~I_o~t..e~...E~evious iI1V~ti&~tions ll.(~Qi.;;'~Q!!.!t~Ji\.~\.!hill.n()thin!l: 2'.JIS
done about Edison for almost_ten years
l-fh~"ev;:i~n;:eMiJU;te;.vic~-S-re-\:ear.;d{j;at-E'diSon;;'aSi~ve$ti-~;~;e~~gardi;;-g;:;um;;:-o--;;s
3.dminbll~tlve and niminal allegations butlhere was never enough evidence to suslain
IbeseallegatlOnS. ._~___
(92)
I
I
(93)
Several handwri"en notes from Sheriffl{unter were found in a review oflhe internal
affairs/intelligence ease files thaI directed PRB personnel to take specific actions in
certain cases involving Edison. These actions included finding and interviewing
witnesses/victims and conducting a polygraph 00 Edison_ These nOles indicate that,
v.hen presented with specific allegations, Sheriff Hunter directed members of PRB to
pursue these allegalions. Also, all CCSO personnel interviewed described Sheriff Hunter
as the type of law enforcement manger who does not tOlemle any form of police
corruption. Even some of the people produced by Valdes stated that they believed that
Sheriff Hunter was an hooest police administrator.
(96)
Finally, Victor Vllldes 1latu that Sheriff Hun!er is oot qualified to It.ad the
cllrrent Invcstigation of Glen dell Edison and other deputiu who are under
suspicion.
This preliminary inquiry did not reveal any evidence that Sheriff Hunter ever did
anything to block or hinder an internal investigatioo on Glendell Edison or any other
CCSOdeputy.
(98)
This preliminary inquiry revealed th~t CCSO has reopened and reviewed all previous
inlemal cases on Glenda.!e Edison and this review has resulted in four separate criminal
cases against Edison being presenled to Slale Attorney's Office. Al the present time,
~5~n.!i~ues to pUISU~ additional allegations against Edison and would welcome any
informa~iQ.l}_Ylctor Valde~_9r any other mem~the community could provide.
The intervicw with FDLE members Steve Emerson and Andy Rose revealed that they
thought that Inspector Jim WilliamS,the CllTTent PRB Commander, was both highly
motivated and competent. lbis preliminary inquiry fOWld that Inspector Williams has
three excellent investigators currently working in PRB and that Sheriff Hunter has
authorized unlirrliled overtime and additional resourccs to ensure that alJ leads in the
Edison case are thoroughly investigated.
It is the cnnclusion of this preliminarY inQuiry that Victor Valdes and any other citiun of
Collier County can feel comfortable that any comDlaint they submit to PRR will he
investil!.ated in an ?biective and Drofes~ionJl' mR""I'r.
(97)
Sheriff Hunler and other members of ecso admitted that, in retrospect, they are not
satisfied wilh the way previous allegations against Edison were handled. There arc many
different factors that impacted this problem (lack of personnel. caseload, growth etc...)
but Sheriff Hunter did not want these facton to cloud the fact that he and his people in
PRB should have done a better job when pw-suing previous allegations against Edison.
(94)
Valdes aile es that, because Sheriff Hunter knew ahout Edison's iIItaalactivitiu
and did not act upon them, en untet II an aecomp Ct to lIon s tla
activities. Tbis allegation Implie:sthat SberiffHunler II not detached from
Edison's corruption and $omebo~ participated or profited from EdlsOQ's lI1e&al
activitie~.
25
This preliminary inquiry did not reveal any evidence lhat SherilfHlJnter was involved in
311~ manner with the criminal activity of Glen dell Edison
(95)
[n the exit inlerview wilh Victor Valdes, Valdes stated that he did not inlend to imply that
~ff Hunter somehow iO!lteiTfrom U1endell Edtson s IllegiiTiC!lons. Vallles aM
some members orlhe Hisp.anic Chamber of Commerce ase the al egatlon that Shenff
24
. '~
UNDER THE F'IRST AMENDMENT - FIRST EDITION - APRIL, 1999 PAG/9
ATTACHMENTS
1A-S; Valdes Comp]~lnf lInd letter from GOH!rnor Bu~h
IA-6; Internal Affairs File on Glcndell Edi50D
IA-7: Criminal Casts Againsl Glendell EdisQlI.
IA-8: CCSO Internal Affairs Procedures
(99) IA-9: Noll'S from Hunter on rrevi~us Edison Cases
(100) IA-IO: Valdc~..'.-<;:lI~I~~ntlCrimina!_History with CCffi.......
lA.II: Department of Justice Letter to Valdes
26
H E H 0 R A H 0 U H
TO:
P.R.U. File
fROH:
Ja.ckie Kline, Chief - operation:J2'4:
H.'lY 1. 1992
DATE:
RE:
Case # 92-lt
~~~~~==~==~~~=~~=~==============*====-==-._---=-=.==-==----=-----
On Wednesday, April 29, 1992. in a meeting with Sheriff
Hunter, Danny Schryver (legal advisor). Victor Valdes and the
complainants, this writer was advised that Hr. Valdes had
additional witnesses concerning this complaint.
Hr. Valdes stated that he would provide this writer with the
names of these witnesses.
As ot this date, Hr. Valdes has not yet provided this writer
with the names or any additional information.
EXHIBIT NQ 6
JK:ck
cc:File
EXHIBIT NQ 5
OFFrCE OF TiE ST~lE ATTORNEY
rWEItTlETH JU[,rCIAL CZRCUlT or FLORIDA EXHIBIT NQ 7
FELO~( INTA~E PiSf'OS:T!ON NOTICE
10 : c 1..,. ~ "t' t ".. C ''OJ "t s, Coli i.. r C 0'-,'" t."
D~t..: J'Jr,~ 17, 1992
RE: BRUNO GOME?
(t,..r..r,dant)
Court Ca~.. No, 9~-202
O~l~ or Arr~~t ~~0~08
A<I..",c..: 1I"r..~. i "<I R".." rt Nl'.
NSO/92-13336
P"Of "d.! CI,..",~,,~
SA!) D,,,-po,,iti,,n
I. AGG ElAfTERY
1. NO INFORMATION
~. MiG f<Al1Lf,r
~. NO I NFORMAT I ON
"
3.
"
"
~~~=~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~:~~~~==~~~~
XX A. NO INFORMATION. H... ~.at.. of F10T'id. her..b... aronounc.... tl,,,t ",,"
,nfo r"'~t i O<l W 111 1..11. r i I d'd ",;I", i r.., t tile [Ief"n':!"n t On thE' follow in<l
eha r~.. (s) :
AGG8AVATED (lATTERY X 2
Re'1;or,: INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE TO PROSECUTE a"d LFGALLY
!NSUfFICIENT TO P~OSECUTE
t1. CHANGE or CHARGE. Th" St~te or Flon';;! h..,e,b.., a"f,ounce!. th"
foll~win~ ch~~~. and fllin~ ~r char!eCs) a~.tn~t ti'.. [IefE'nd"nt.
',oJ;
':)
:~',,'1
C. AU-D<'::-CHARGE. Thl' St.te of Florida h"r"b~ .."nu'u,c..~ th" filin!!
or tJ-,,, (...Illowr},!1 ,dr:lition"J l:11.r~e(s) i1~un<;t till' r,..r..nd.nt:
/?,;,
i~'
O.OTH[F,.
nISTRIflUTIOHI
Cl.r'" of Court.
n. f.nd.n t ~D...tfl)s~,..ca~r'1:t~
Sh.rlff's r,p'~f'.."t.1Il9nt.. ',"""
Arr.titir". ,AIII.ocV ,"
50'10 rill' r.,' . .
J.il w",.. (1,~' ~::"i2.~!L"
-,,c/ "fT"
" -~~-
.' II. '.
flY:
F". fl'ALESSANW\O
-': :1iMu
stant Sl~le AlturnE''''
n W. C;u.t..r
0"-'"
~
~..
\~~, "
PAG/tO UNDER THE FIRST AMENDMENT - FIRST EDITION - APRIL, 1999
REBUTTAL TO THE FDLE'S INVESTIGATIVE SUMMARY
Rebuttal to the investigative summary
completed by Michael O'Connell, inspector of
the Florida Department of Law Enforcement
(FDLE) by order of the Honorable Jeb Bush.
This investigation was conducted in response
to a formal complaint submitted by this
writer, Victor A. Valdes, Chief Editor of Las
Naciones News.
In page two of this supplement you will find
three letters marked exhibits A. 8 and C.
Exhibit A. is the letter sent to the Governor of
the State of Florida, on January II of this year,
by this writer. Exhibit B is the letter from the
Honorable Jeb Bush sent to Commissioner of
the FDLE. .lames T. Moore. Exhibit C is the
letter from FDLE's Commissioner. James T.
Moore to Governor Bush.
Also. we would like to refer you to our last
edition, dated First Edition April, 1999, where
you can read about the foundation of our
accusations against Sheriff Don Hunter and
the Collier County Sheriff Office (CCSO).
Although, we are going to rebut, argue and
reject part of the investigative summary, as
well as confirm and support others, we war"
to stress that we believe that Inspector
O'Connell. conducted a honest investigation
as evidenced by his report. However. we
strongly believe that the investigation is
inconclusivc duc to thc fact that Mr.
O'Connell had to work under a deadline set
by the Governor. Mr. O'Connell agreed with
us, an investigation of such magnitude cannot
yield a realistic conclusion when facing the
constraint oftimo:.
Fourteen years of bad administration,
.inefficaey, open and blatant neglect about
the complaints made by citizens, corruption
and violations of civil rights, cannot be
investigated in a few days of preliminary
inquiry work.
According to Inspector O'Connell (see
number 14 in page five of the summary and
page numbcr 3 of this supplement) he
o:stablished that ho: held a total of five
interviews with this writer (as the accuser) in
the week of February 8, 1999. This writer
provided Mr. O'Connell with a short list of
witnesses since we were aware of the short
time he had to conduct the investigation.
Only a few individuals were interviewed
from this short list of witnesses due to the
fact that Inspector O'Connell did not have
the necessary time to contact all ofthe names
from the list, of which many are currently
living out of the state.
This writer wish to remark and reiterate
that even though we are refuting the
context of the investigative summary, we
have faith in the professionalism and
integrity of Inspector O'Connell of the
F.D.L.D., and again, he did a honest job.
Once more we ask the Honorable Jeb Bush.
Governor of Florida. that a full investigation
be completed of all of the allegations we
made in our letter to him dated January II.
1999. Tho: preliminary inquiry conducted by
Inspector O'Connell focused on the Glendell
Edison case. and did not touch at all on the
allegations of police misconduct, brutality,
harassment and violations of civil rights as
Governor Bush ordered in his letter to
Commissioner James T. Moore dated January
27. 1999. See exhibit B in page # 2 of this
supplement.
We'll analyze the investigative
summary step by step.
Wo: havo: tako:n tho: libo:rty of undo:r1ining tho:
sentences and of making some numeric
annotations to the margin of the investigative
summary to Icad you to the specific rcbuttal
in this supplemental. in order that can you
follow our argument.
Reter to the letter Irom Commissioner James
T. Moore to Govo:rnor Bush dated March 10.
1999 marked exhibit C. Letter A indicato:s tho:
allegations brought to the attention of
Governor Jeb Bush. Only the case of Glen dell
E-dison was investigated, and even this, was
not done completely due to the lack of time. not
touching the police misconduct, brutality.
harassment and violations of civil rights.
We will proof, with the investigative
summary and our analysis, that in all hono:sty.
it has been demonstrated that Sheriff Don
Hunter of Collier County was aware of the
criminal activities of Sgt. Edison and that he
failcd to propo:r1y conduct an investigation of
these criminal activities.
['he paragraph marked C clearly indicates
that Shcriff Huntcr conducted several
investigations about Edison's alleged
criminal activities. but those investigations
were not extensive enough as to produce an
arrest. Sheriff Ilunter himself. did not pay
attention to the accusations made by this
writer against Edison since 1989, neither he
paid attention to the complaints made by
other members of the community. as
evidenced by the witnesses interviewed by
Inspector O'Connell.
The current inquiry. because of the short
time. did not allow the interview of all of the
eye witnesses of Edison's criminal activitio:s
between 1988 and 1992. However. Sheriff
Don Hunto:r could have eonducto:d a
comprehensive investigation when the
evidence, names and dates were made available
to him. but instead, he opted to dismiss several
complaints made directly to him by different
citizens at different meetings.
This writer cannot identify who was the
person -or persons- protecting Mr. Edison,
CONTINUE PAGE N" 11
UNDER THE FIRST AMENDMENT - FIIiST EDITION - APRIL 1999 PAG/11
COMES FROM PAGE NO 10
but we can demonstrate that at least, there
was a cover-up:
In July of 1984 this writer presented a
complaint before the department of Internal
Atlairs of CCSO, then under the command
of Shcriff Aubrcy Rogcrs. This complaint
was presented before the Investigator Charles
I.. Stoner. against Glendell Edison for police
brutality. Now, April of 1999. the complaint
is nonexisto:nl. it was not found; is like it was
never done. Seo: exhibit # I in page # 14 of
this supplement.
To validate what we have said. please see
exhibits # 2 and # 3 in page # 14 of this
supplement. This is a letter from the then
Dcputy Chicf Raymond Barnctt. You can
rcad that in fact there was a complaint filed
by Victor A. Valdes against Glendell Edison
and others deputies, for the brutal beating of
Lazaro Viera. Deputy Chief Barnett stated in
the letto:r. that after reviewing the investigation
conducted by the Sheriff Department, and
then he goes on giving the same old excuses
normally cmployed by the Sheriff Officc.
Then, it has been proven, beyond reasonable
doubt that:
o In fact there was a complaint filled by
Victor A. Valdes against Edison in 1984.
as thc Ictter by Captain Barnett would
indicate.
o There was an "investigation" conducted
by the Sheriff Office as result of the
complaint mado: by Victor A. Valdes, as
the letter by Captain Barnett would
indicate.
Then, isn't pertinent to question?:
I) Where are the complaints' records?
2) Where are the investigation's record
3) Where is the official determination of
the case?
According to a letter from Inspector Jim
Williams of the Sheriff Otlice -see exhibit
# 1, page # 14- no documents were found in
tho: archives of the CCSO pertinent to the
complaint or the investigation.
Then, we have the right to ask:
. Who had access to the records in the
CCSO?
. Who destroyed, misplaced or disappeared
the documents in the case against Edison?
We don't know who did it, but positively
someone must have disappeared these
documents to protect Edison or in an attempt
to polish the image of the Sheriff Office.
It is from that moment -July of 1984- that we
initiated our ongoing investigation of Edison
and the dirty maneuvers of the Sheriff Office,
first commanded by Sheriff Rogers, and
subsequently by his heir, SheritfHunter, who
refuso:d to hear the complaints from the
community.
Throughout the years. we continued our
investigation and our public complaints. Wc
took it as a mission because we felt compelled
by our civic and journalistic responsibilities.
Our moral position on this issue has resulted
in years of harassment, prosecution, that
turned in years of nightmares for this writer
and his family. But the theme of persecution
and harassment is for another edition. Wait
for it!
REBUTTAL OF THE
INVESTIGATIVE SUMMARY
See Page 2 # (1) Of The Summary & Page
# 3 Of The Supplement:
Governor Bush ordered the preliminary
inquiry of all the allegations presented to him
by this writer. However, only the case of
Edison was partially investigated, leaving the
allegations of police brutality, harassment
and violations of civil rights untouched by
the investigation. As wo: go to press, I'm
sending Governor Bush some old editions of
our newspaper with complete detail of our
complaints.
See Page 2 # (2) Of The Summary &
Page # 3 Of The Supplement:
The strongest proof that Sheriff Hunter had
personal knowledge of Edison's criminal
activities, and that he did not take the
necessary actions during 14 years, is that
Edison freely committed the crimes. That the
few investigations initiated never brought
consequo:nco:s for Edison.
See Page 2 # (3) Of The Summary &
Page # 3 Of The Supplement:
The foundation of the allegations made by this
writer is not derived from the press conference
given by Sheriff Hunter on December 4, 1998
about Sgt. Edison. The foundation of our
allegations arc the ro:sult of 14 YO:arS of this
writer's investigative work about Edison and
the corruption in tho: Sheriff Otliee.
See Page 4 # (8) Of The Summary &
Page # 3 Of The Supplement:
The allegations made against Mr. Edison
now, are the same allegations made by this
writer to Sheriff Hunter in presence of
several community leaders in 1989 and since
then. The allegations made now are the same
allegations Sheriff Hunter did not give any
credit. allowing Mr. Edison to remain in the
force while engaged in criminal activities for
more than 10 years under the protection of
the CCSO's badge. Many individuals have
brought thcir complaint to Shcriff lIuntcr
since he took over the CCSO.
See Page 4 # (12 & 13) Of The Summary &
Page # 3 Of The Supplement:
Special Agents Emerson and Rose refer to this
wrilt:r as a community activist. Special Agent
Rose stated that past commanders for Internal
Affairs have not been very effective. Special
Agent Rose speculates that this ineffectiveness,
coupled with Captain Sanders' protection of
Edison, allowed Edison to "run free" for the
past 15 years.
See Page 5 # (IS) Of the Summary
& Page # 3 Of The Supplement:
This writer explained to Inspector O'Connell
that Sheriff Rogers did not properly
investigate the use of force by Mr. Edison
and other officers, against Lazaro Viera. The
current inquiry by Inspector O'Connell did
not investigate this specific complaint
because if he did, he would have found that
the complaint files and the subsequent
investigations were either stolen, thrown out
or destroyed by someone within the Sheriff
Officc, prcsumablc to protcct Mr. Edison and
his accomplices. See exhibit #1 Page # ]4 of
the supplement
See Page 5 # (18) Of The Summary
& Page # 3 Of The Supplement:
This paragraph reflects what appears to be
the criminal history of this writer. For years
this writer has been denouncing that he has
been victim of false arrests and persecution
by the Sheriff Office. For years we have said
that it has been done in an attempt to silence
this writer by fabricating a criminaf image
that would create an impression of someone
who is disobedient of the law. All with the
intent of discrediting the complaints and
denounces made by this writer against the
corrupt elements in the Sheriff Office.
See Exhibit #4 & Page # 14
Of The Supplement:
r-
'1
ry
PAG/12 UNDER THE FIRST. AMENDMENT - FIRST EDITION - APRIL, 1999
COMES FROM PAGEN!! 11
As you read the Sheriff Office's letter, you
might think that this is a long crimin<\1 record
of this writer. Lets review the details:
ARREST DATE
CASE
11112/93 Driving with a suspended
license on 10/7/93.
11/12/93 Driving with a suspended
license on 10/27/93.
09/20/90 Bad check.
04/09/88 Resisting arrest without
violence.
All of these charges wcre dismissed by the
State Attorney for lack of evidence or for not
being true. leaving plain open the Sheriff's
deputies intentions. Others cases, not
mentioned in this letter, had the same result.
The cases were either, no prosecuted by the
State Attorney, dismissed by a judge or
acquitted (cleared of the charged); there were
close to 12 dismissed cases. This writer only
received a conviction in cases of 4/9/88,
7/1/92 and 1/20/93, those cases were false
accusations or set ups. We have always said
that the system failed with the conspiracy
carried by various clements who tried to
discredit this writer.
One of these cases is for having screamed
"STOP POLlCE BRUTALITY IN COLLIER
COUNTY" A racist judge scntenced this
writer to probation and to wash the patrol
cars of the same officers who were
denounced by this writer as having
committed police abuse or misconduct. The
irony is that this writer was tried and
sentenced lor having used the right of
freedom of thc speech. See exhibit # 5, Page
#9 of this supplement.
See Page # 6 (19) Of The Summary
& Page # 4 Of The Supplement:
We read: "Valdes has no first hand knowledge
regarding criminal activity by Glendell Edison."
However, during the years 1988, 1989, 1990
and 1991 this writer had in his hands elements
and the witnessed where available and willing
to testifY, but Sheriff Hunter not only dismissed
our allegations, but began a persecution which
still is carried today.
The harassment and false charges were of
common knowledge, the alleged victims of
Edison and the witnesses began loosing faith
and terror got hold ofthem, a~ the hara~sment by
Sheriff Hunter's hoodlums <\gainst this writer
increased, as it became publ ic through the media
covef'lge. For all of these reasons, we don't
accept what is stated in par'lgffiph #19.
In this same page # 6, marked with # (20) wc
can add that Sheriff Hunter did not pay
attention. did not lollowed his men's
investigation in the Internal Affairs department,
he did not make sure that thc invcstigations and
the findings were done properly. See
paragraph marked # 93 of page # 24 and page
# 8 of this supplement: "Sheriff Hunter and
other members of the CCSO admitted that. in
retrospect, they are not satisfied with the way
previous allegations against Edison were
handled:'
For fourteen years we have denounced Mr.
Edison. This writer has been viciously
persecuted hy the men, first of Sheriff
Rogers. then of SherilT Hunter, for not giving
up. Now. 10 years later, they admit that they
are not satisfied about their own investigative
work. and like Special Agents Emerson and
Rose stated, this "allowed Mr. Edison to have
a "tree run" tor th" last 15 years.' See page
#4 (13) of the summary, and page #3 of the
supplement.
LIES UTTERED BY SHERIFF HUNTER
AND JACKIE KLINE, CHIEF OF
OPERA nONS, OF THE CCSO.
See Page # 16 (55) Of The Summary
& Page # 6 Of The Supplement:
Captain Kline declared that he did not attend
many meetings with the community and has
never received any allegations against
olliccrs IrOJn Victor Valdes. Altcr you see
this statcm..:nt. ..:xaminc ..:xhibit II 6, page II 9
of the supplement. You will see a mcmorandum
signed by ('aptain Klinc in which he speaks
of a mcctin~ with Valdes, Sherill Huntcr and
others. induding th..: complainants. This
memorandum, initialed by Klinc himself,
comes Lo proof one of the many ties. You, the
reader. bc the j udgd
See Page # 20 (68 & 69) Of The Summary
& Page # 9 Of The Supplement:
Sheriff Hunter testified that two Hispanic
males were sentenced for aggravated assault
and aggravated battery (referring to the
Gomez brothers), and that this motivated the
escalation of the had relations with Valdes.
This is another lie! Even though Moises
Gomez was innocent, he was sentenced for a
lesser crime. In the case of his brother Bruno,
the State Attorney, much against the wishes
of Hunter's men, declared insutlicient
evidence and legally insutlicient to prosecute.
See exhibit 117. Page II 9.
This is another of the many lies employed by
the Sheri!T Office to make believable a
wrongful version given of an actual
drcumstance or case. This is done every Lllne
this office wants to cover up something or
conspire against someone. Like we always
said. distorted faels and lies comes out of the
mouth of Sh..:rifT Hunter all the timcs.
Another issue in the case of the Gomez
brothers, is that we gave to the Sheriff Oftice
a list of nine witnesses and never they were
called.' ;'1"'..
There have been many investigations; many
years of investigations have gone by. These
have been years of risk takcn facing a horde
of rabid pigs; years of tileing a handful of
corrupted mcn wearing a honorable uniform.
tJnilorm which has hem strippe.d of its glory
by the dishonest and criminal actions of a
tew men in CCSO.
Only a lCw are corrupts, hut others even
though arc honcst. sufter Irom short vision
and very little capacity to recognize in which
sid..: the reason r..:st. the love for justice and
the duty towards the community. Those men
persecuted this writer with fury and enrage,
and sadly enough, ev..:n though this writer has
proven that he holds the truth, they continuc
with their harassmcnt and persccution.
Nevertheless, this writer has madc the vows
to dctcnd the justic..: and th..: civil rights,
including thc first amendmcnt. Again, wc
reach to our Governor for justice.
Honorable Jeb Bush,
Sir, do not let unfinished what only you
have been capable of initiate. In your letter
to Commissioner Moore, you spoke of a full
investigation if the preliminary inquiry
would support our allegations.
You have seen that the inquiry conducted
by Inspector O'Connell has just touched
only onc of the allegations presented to
you, he just touched the tip of the iceberg.
Please, do not let the corrupt and
demoralized Sheriff Office to continue
being a treat to the same citizens they have
been entrusted to care for their safety and
security .
CONTINUE PAGE N~ 13
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COlLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
330 I Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112-4902
Telephone: (941) 774-8400
FAX (941) 774-0225
Email: attarney@naples.net
July 2, 1999
Heidi F. Ashton
Romiro Manolich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. Pettit
Marni M, Scuderi
Marjorie M. Student
Melissa A. Vasquez
Rabert N. Zachary
Mr. Leo R. Cardona
557 106th Avenue North
Naples, Florida 34108
Re: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Mr. Cardona:
Congratulations on your appointment to the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board (HAAB). For
your information, 1 enclose the following for your perusal:
A. A copy of 92-926, et seq., of the Collier County Code, relating to the Collier County
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board. This is the HAAB Ordinance in its codified form.
B. A copy ofa December 22, 1995 memorandum from David C. Weigel, County Attorney,
to all County Boards relating to Government -In-The-Sunshine Law (9286.011, Florida Statutes).
C. A copy of a June I, 1999 memorandum from Marni Scuderi, Assistant County Attorney,
to David Weigel, relating to ethics questions posed by the Environmental Advisory Council.
Although this memorandum refers to the Environmental Advisory Council, it relates directly to
conflicts of interest issues that must be considered by every advisory board member.
If you have any questions regarding the attached materials, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
e-:?~ ;lJ
/'
Ramiro Manalich
Assistant County Attorney
h;pub;ram;haab;foffilllr;upp.
attachments
cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney
John C, Norris
District 1
James D. Carter. Ph.D.
District 2
Timothy J. Constantine
District 3
Pamela S. Mac'Kie
District 4
Barbara B. Berry
District 5
qJoa~ o/-e~ -e~-e~
3301 East Tamiami Trail. Naples, Florida 34112.4977
(941) 774-8097. Fax (ll41) 774-3602
June 23, ] 9'19
0',
:. ,.
'-. .''/
'. ~ t;7~~~
."I'.?
L~:)
t,:,:::
,""~')
. -'t"
Mr. Leo R. Cardona
557 106th Avenue North
Naples, FL 34108
l",J
.,
Subject: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
:-".,
C)Jo
"'1
Dear Mr. Cardona:
While convened in regular session on June 22, ] 999, the Board of County Commissioners voted
to appoint you as a regular member on the above-referenced advisory committee. Your
appointment will expire on June 25. 2003, or at such time as the Board re-appoints you or
appoints your successor.
As with any advisory group, the primary purpose is to assist and advise the Board of County
Commissioners. By law, however, the ultimate decisions rest with the Commission. At times.
the Commission's decisions may not reflect the recommendation of the advisory group because
many facts must be taken into consideration.
By copy ofthis letter, we are requesting Ramiro Manalich, Chief Assistant County Attorney, to
provide you with any additional information you will need as a member of this committee.
On behalf of the Board of County Commissioners, I wish to extend our appreciation to you for
your willingness to serve the residents of Collier County as a member of this advisory board.
Very truly yours,
~~
Pamela S. Mac'Kie, Chairwoman
Commissioner, District 4
PSM:sf
cc: Ramiro Maflalich, Chief Assistant County Attorney
John C _ Norris
District 1
James D. Carter, Ph.D.
District 2
Timothy J. Constantine
District 3
qJoard o/-e~ -e~-e~
3301 East Tamiami Trail. Naples, Florida 34112-4977
(941) 774.8097. Fax (941) 774-3602
June 23, 19'19
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Pamela S. Mac'Kia
District 4
Barbara 8. Berry
District 5
Mr. Frank Loney
131 Tahiti Street
Naples, FL 34113
Subject: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Mr. Loney:
While convened in regular session on June 22. 1999, the Board of County Commissioners voted
to re-appoint you as a regular member on the above-referenced advisory committee. Your
appointment will expire on June 25. 2003. or at such time as the Board re-appoints you or
appoints your successor.
On behalf of the Board of County Commissioners. I wish to extend our appreciation to you for
your willingness to continue serving the residents of Collier County as a member of this advisory
board.
Very truly yours,
~c:;
Pamela S. Mac'Kie, Chairwoman
Commissioner, District 4
PSM:sf
cc: Ramiro Manalich, Chief Assistant County Attorney
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COlLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112-4902
Telephane: (941) 774.8400
FAX (941) 774.0225
Email: attarney@naples.net
July 2, ] 999
Heidi F. Ashton
Ramiro Manalich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. Pettit
Marni M. Scuderi
Mar[orie M. Student
Melissa A. Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
Ms. Maria Grimaldo
203 North 8th Street
Immokalee Florida 34]42
Re: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Ms Grimaldo:
You may have already received some of the below-listed materials upon appointment to the
HAAB, however, the following is being provided for your information
I. A copy of 92-926, et seq., of the Collier County Code, relating to the Collier County
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board.
2. A copy of a December 22, I995 memorandum from David C Weigel, County Attorney,
to all County Boards relating to Government -In- The-Sunshine Law (~286,O]], Florida Statutes).
3. A copy of a June I, 1999 memorandum from Marni Scuderi, Assistant County Attorney,
to David Weigel, relating to ethics questions posed by the Environmental Advisory Council.
Although the last item refers to the Environmental Advisory Council, this memorandum
relates to conflicts of interest issues that must be considered by every advisory board member.
If you have any questions regarding the attached materials, please do not hesitate to contact me
Sincerely, _
~ (/?~U
Ramiro Manalich
Assistant County Attorney
h;pub;ram;haabJonnltr;app.
attachments
cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney
MEMORANDUM
FROM:
Sue Filson, Administrative Assistant
Bo~~ounty. Commissioners
R~~lief Assistant County Attorney
TO:
OATE:
September 9, 1999
RE:
Approved Minutes of Meetings of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Please llnd attachcd a copy of the approved minutes of the Hispanic Afl'airs Advisory Board
meeting for July 22, 1999. If you have any qucstions. plcase do not hesitate to contact me.
RMlkn
attachment
cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COlLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112-4902
Telephone (941) 774-8400
FAX (941) 774.0225
Email: attorney@naples.net
July 15, 1999
Heidi F. Ashton
Ramiro Maiialich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. PeHit
Marni M. Scuderi
Marjorie M. Student
Melissa A Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
Board Members
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Re July 22, ] 999 Meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Members:
Attached please find the Agenda for the July 22, ] 999 Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Meeting. rfyou have any questions or comments, please contact me or Ramiro at 774-8400.
Si"~Y
Kathry~~ay" M. Nell, CLA
Office of the Collier County Attorney
Ikn
attachments
cc: Ramiro Manalich, HAAB Liaison and Chief Assistant County Attorney, w/attachments
David C. Weigel, County Attorney
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COlLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
July 15, 1999
Heidi F. Ashton
Ramiro Maiialich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. Pettit
Marni M. Scuderi
Marjorie M. Student
Melissa A. Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112.4902
Telephane: (941) 774.8400
FAX (941) 774.0225
Email: attorney@naples.net
Board Members
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Re July 22, 1999 Meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Members:
Attached please find the Agenda for the July 22, ] 999 Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Meeting. rfyou have any questions or comments, please contact me or Ramiro at 774-8400.
5;,,,;;,
Kathry~ay" M. Nell, CLA
Office of the Collier County Attorney
/kn
attachments
cc: Ramiro Manalich, HAAB Liaison and Chief Assistant County Attorney, w/attachments
David C. Weigel, County Attorney
MEMORANDUM
FROM:
Sue Filson, Administrative Assistant
BO~ Commissioners
Ramiro aftali~h: ~hief Assistant County Attorney and HAAB Liaison
TO:
DATE:
July 2, 1999
RE:
Applicants Seeking Appointment to the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
At its regular meeting held June 24, 1999, the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board (HAAB)
unanimously recommended that Andrew J. Fox, Jr., be appointed to their board. In addition, the
HAAB previously recommended that Christopher O. Bent be appointed to their Board.
Please have the Board of County Commissioners consider applicants Christopher O. Bent and
Andrew 1. Fox, Jr., for appointment to this Board.
Thank you for your assistance in this regard. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to
contact me.
RM/kn
attachments
cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney
HAAB Members
.
MEMORANDUM
TO:
Sue Filson, Administrative Assistant
BO~ Commissioners
Ramiro anali~h: ~hief Assistant County Attorney and HAAB Liaison
FROM:
DATE:
July 2, 1999
RE:
Applicants Seeking Appointment to the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
At its regular meeting held June 24, 1999, the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board (HAAB)
unanimously recommended that Andrew J. Fox, Jr., be appointed to their board. In addition, the
HAAB previously recommended that Christopher O. Bent be appointed to their Board.
Please have the Board of County Commissioners consider applicants Christopher O. Bent and
Andrew J. Fox, Jr., for appointment to this Board.
Thank you for your assistance in this regard. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to
contact me.
RMlkn
attachments
cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney
HAAB Members
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COlLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112-4902
Telephone: (941) 774.8400
FAX (941) 774.0225
Email: attorney@naples.net
July 2, ] 999
Heidi F. Ashton
Ramiro Manalich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. Pettit
Marni M. Scuderi
Mariorie M. Student
Melissa A. Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
Ms. Maria Grimaldo
203 North 8th Street
Immokalee Florida 34142
Re: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Ms Grimaldo:
You may have already received some of the below-listed materials upon appointment to the
HAAB, however, the following is being provided for your information
]. A copy of 92-926, et seq., of the Collier County Code, relating to the Collier County
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board.
2. A copy of a December 22, 1995 memorandum from David C Weigel, County Attorney,
to all County Boards relating to Government -In-The-Sunshine Law (9286,01], Florida Statutes).
3. A copy ofa June 1,1999 memorandum from Marni Scuderi, Assistant County Attorney,
to David Weigel, relating to ethics questions posed by the Environmental Advisory Council.
Although the last item refers to the Environmental Advisory Council, this memorandum
relates to conflicts of interest issues that must be considered by every advisory board member
If you have any questions regarding the attached materials, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely, ._____--
c;z- W~C/n
Ramiro Manalich
Assistant County Attorney
h:pub;ramJmab;fornl1tr,app
attachments
cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COLLIER COllNTY ATTORNEY
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112.4902
Telephane: (941) 774-8400
FAX (941) 774-0225
Email: attorney@naples.net
July 2, ] 999
Heidi F. Ashton
Ramiro Manolich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. PeHit
Marni M. Scuderi
Mariorie M. Student
Melissa A. Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
Ms. Maria Grimaldo
203 North 8th Street
Immokalee Florida 34142
Re: Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Ms. Grimaldo:
You may have already received some of the below-listed materials upon appointment to the
HAAB, however, the following is being provided for your information
], A copy of 92-926, et seq, of the Collier County Code, relating to the Collier County
Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board.
2. A copy ofa December 22, 1995 memorandum from David C Weigel, County Attorney,
to all County Boards relating to Government -In-The-Sunshine Law (9286,011, Florida Statutes).
3. A copy of a June], 1999 memorandum from Marni Scuderi, Assistant County Attorney,
to David Weigel, relating to ethics questions posed by the Environmental Advisory Council.
Although the last item refers to the Environmental Advisory Council, this memorandum
relates to conflicts of interest issues that must be considered by every advisory board member
If you have any questions regarding the attached materials, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely, __,
~ ;;~c/:.
Ramiro Manalich
Assistant County Attorney
h;pub;ram;haabJonnl tLUpp.
attachments
cc: David C. Weigel, County Attorney
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COLLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
July 15, 1999
Heidi F. Ashton
Ramiro Manalich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. Pettit
Marni M. Scuderi
Marjorie M. Student
Melissa A Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112-4902
Telephone: (941) 774-8400
FAX (941) 774.0225
Email: attorney@naples.net
Mr. Christopher O. Bent
] 50 Third Avenue North
Naples, Florida 34] 02
Re July 22,1999 Meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Mr. Bent:
I am enclosing for your information the Agenda for the July 22, 1999 Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board Meeting. ]fyou have any questions, please contact me or Ramiro at 774-8400.
Si"?1
Kathryn "Kay" M. Nell, CLA
Office of the Collier County Attorney
/kn
encl.
cc: Ramiro Manalich, HAAB Liaison and Chief Assistant County Attorney, w/attachments
David C. Weigel, County Attorney
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COLLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
July 15, ] 999
Heidi F. Ashton
Ramiro Manalich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. Pettit
Marni M. Scuderi
Marjorie M. Student
Melissa A. Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112.4902
Telephone: (941) 774.8400
FAX (941) 774.0225
Email: attorney@naples.net
Andrew 1. Fox, Jr.
180 Central Avenue
Naples, Florida 34102
Re: July 22, 1999 Meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Mr. Fox:
r am enclosing for your information the Agenda for the July 22, 1999 Hispanic Affairs
Advisory Board Meeting. rfyou have any questions, please contact me or Ramiro at 774-8400,
Si"7Z
Kathry1!:Kay" M. Nell, CLA
Office of the Collier County Attorney
Ikn
encl.
cc: Ramiro Manalich, HAAB Liaison and Chief Assistant County Attorney, w/attachments
David C Weigel, County Attorney
COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COLLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
July 15, 1999
Heidi F. Ashton
Romiro Manalich
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. PeHit
Marni M. Scuderi
Marjorie M. Student
Melissa A. Vasquez
Robert N. Zachary
3301 Tamiami Trail East
Naples, Florida 34112-4902
Telephone: (941) 774.8400
FAX: (941) 774.0225
Email: attarney@naples.net
Board Members
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Re July 22, 1999 Meeting of the Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Dear Members:
Attached please find the Agenda for the July 22, ] 999 Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Meeting. If you have any questions or comments, please contact me or Ramiro at 774-8400.
Si'~Y
Kathry~ay" M. Nell, CLA
Office of the Collier County Attorney
Ikn
attachments
cc: Ramiro Manalich, HAAB Liaison and Chief Assistant County Attorney, w/attachments
David C. Weigel, County Attorney
John C. Noms
District 1
James D. Carter, Ph.D.
District 2
Timothy J. Constantine
District 3
Pamela S. Mac'Kie
District 4
Barbara B. Berry
District 5
qJoa'J<d ol-f5011w/Jl -fi:U~nq; -00mmu5:UOmYJ<:J
3301 East Tamiami Trail. Naples, Florida 34112-4977
(941) 774-8097' Fax (941) 774-3602
May 4. ] 999
Mr. Frank Rodriguez, Chairman
Collier County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board
Post Office Box 990244
Naples, Florida 34101
~A.'~ F ;!.q<< Ie
Dear Mr. R~uez:
Thank you very much for your letter of April 26, ] 999, in reference to Resolution No. 99-205
regarding English as the Official language of Collier County Government
I appreciate you taking the time to write and share your views with me. While I do not agree
with your views, I will certainly take your comments under consideration should this be brought
before the Board of County Commissioners in the future.
Once again, Mr. Rodriguez, thank you for sharing your views with me and if] may be of
assistance to you in the future, please contact my office.
Very truly yours,
---,
/
/john C. ~~orris
Commissioner, District I
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MEMORY TRANSMISSION REPORT
TIME
TEL NUMBER
NAME
JUN 18 '99 10:31
19417740225
COUNTY ATTORNEY
NBR FILE
DATE
TIME DURATION PGS TO
DEPT NBR MODE
STATUS
035 24
JUN.18 10:30 01/03
2
18132625203
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Ii\
\;if COLLIER COUNTY
DAVID C. WEIGEL
COLLIER COUNTY ATTORNEY
Collier County 00..",,,,,,,,, Center
3301 Bast Tamiami 'l'rail
Naple., Florida 34112-4002
Telephone: (941)774"8400
FAX: (941)774-0225
E-mail: attomay@naple..nel
Heidi F. A.hton
Ramiro MaftaHoh
Thomas C. Palmer
Michael W. Pettit
Mami M. SQuderi
Marjorie M. Student
MelisSA A. VaaqUIZ
Rohert N. Zachary
FACSIMILE TRANSMITTAL SHEET
TO: MR. FRANK RODRIGUEZ
COMPANY: c/o FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF NAPLES
TELEPHONE NO: (941) 435-7635
NUMBER OF PAGES
FACSIMILE NO: (941) 435.7684
(INCLUDING COVER SHEET)
2
******.********.*.*******************.*****..*************************************************.****************..***************
FROM: RAMIRO MANALICH, CHIEF ASSISTANT COUNIY ATI'ORNEY AND HAAB LIAISON
**************.***************...********.***************.**********.**************************...*******************.*.*******
SUBJECT: 5/4/99 LE'ITER FROM COMMISSIONER NORRIS
.*.*******.***************.*.*********.********.****.*.**********.*.***.*******.****************.*****..*******...***...***....
ATTACHED IS A LETTER FROM COMMISSIONER NORRIS RESPONDING TO YOUR LEITER OF
APRIL 26, 1999, IN REFERENCE TO RESOLUTION 99.205 WHICH ESTABLISHED ENGLISH AS
THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGE OF COLLIER COUNTY GOVERNMENT. IT APPEARS THAT TmS
LETTER WAS INADVERTENTLY SENT TO THE WRONG DEPARTMENT.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT ME AT 774-0225.
..********.***************.******************************************.*****.**************************..****************.**.*..
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FDLE
Aorida Department of
Law Enforcement
Post Office ::lox 1489
Tallahassee, Aorida 32302-1489
(850)410-7001
www.fdle.state.fl.us
Jab Bush, Govemo:,
Katherine Harris, Secretary of State
RobertA. Butterworth, Attomey General
Robert F. Milligan, C.omptroJ/er
Bill Nelson, Treasurer
Bob Crawford, Commissioner of Agr:-:ulturs
Tom Gallagher, Commissionerof Ed~~on
James T. "Tim" Moore
Commissioner
March 10, 1999
Honr.rab!e Jeb Bush
Governor
Tne ::apitol
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0001
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RE: FDLE File EI-25-0013
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Dear Governor Bush:
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On January 27,1999, you requested the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) to cond:id a
preliminary inquiry into allegations concerning possible criminal misconduct on the part of Collier
County Sheriff Don Hunter. These allegations, brought forward by Mr. Victor Valdes of Naples, Florida,
include accusations of police misconduct, brutality, harassment and civil rights violations.
When interviewed, Mr. Valdes alleged specific misconduct on the part of Sheriff Hunter. According to
Valdes, Sheriff Hunter was aware of criminal conduct by former Collier County Sgt. Glendell Edison
and failed to properly investigate the criminal activities of Sgt. Edison.
This letter is to inform you that we have completed our preliminary inquiry into this matter and found no
criminal violations by Sheriff Hunter. Our investigation revealed that Sheriff Hunter conducted several
investigations into allegations regarding criminal activity~~ Edison, but none of these previous
investigations produced sufficient evidence to arrest Edison. Sheriff Hunter stated that, in retrospect, he
was not satisfied with the quality of some of these past internal investigations, and he has taken measures
to ensure that all future complaints against officers are thoroughly and professionally investigated.
Finally, our inquiry revealed that Sheriff Hunter has formed a task force to look into all criminal activity
on the part of Sg!. Edison. This task force includes members of the Collier County Sheriffs Department,
FDLE, the Florida Department ofInsurance and the State Attorney's Office. Members of this task force
have re-opened all past complaints against Sgt. Edison, and their efforts have resulted in four separate
criminal cases being presented to the State Attorney for prosecution.
We have also reviewed the results of our inquiry with State Attorney Joseph D' Alessandro of the .
Twentieth Judicial Circuit, and Mr. D' Alessandro concurs with our findings. A copy of our Investigative
Summary is attached for your review.
Sincerely,
.- I
.... 0r--
)ames T. Moore
i__Commissioner
JTM/mo
Attachment
Committed to
SeMee . Integrity . Respect . Quality