Corruption in Fruitland Park Police Department needs investigation

By Lauren Ritchie Orlando Sentinel

One of the most shameful practices in Florida is questionable cops bouncing from department to department, continuing to subject the public to brutal, unethical, unqualified or immoral police officers.

Those familiar with how police are certified in Florida know the dirty little secret. An agency allows a police officer to "resign" instead of being fired, any investigation into possible wrongdoing stops and the agency reports to the state certification system that the person simply left on his or her own.

The next agency to hire the officer learns from the state only that the person resigned. And the chain goes on.

An exhaustive series called "Unfit for Duty," published in December by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, detailed hundreds of officers whose departure in a state of limbo allowed other departments blissfully to hire them.

One of the officers listed in the Herald-Tribune's database was Chad Yeary, who resigned from the Marion County Sheriff's Office while the department was investigating a complaint about a moral infraction. Fruitland Park hired him and later promoted him to corporal.

This column earlier explored the circumstances surrounding Yeary's departure. It's worth a deeper look because Fruitland Park police Chief Terry Isaacs has made the bad choice to pass on Yeary and his problems to another unsuspecting department in the same way. How irresponsible.

About a month ago, Yeary left Fruitland Park amid allegations that he had paid an informant $20 to swear in an affidavit that the informant saw a suspected drug dealer in a location where he really hadn't.

When Isaacs started looking into the matter, the records detailing undercover drug buys in the case suddenly vanished, along with a recording device used to secretly tape the informant's cocaine transactions. They still haven't been found, the chief said.
This a defense attorney's idea of heaven. There's nothing like being able to question the integrity of a police officer to spread a little reasonable doubt to a jury. The State Attorney's Office is no fool. It dropped the five felony charges against Michael Benn, who was accused of selling cocaine at a house a city lot away from an elementary school. He walked out of jail last week.
Isaacs said he called Yeary into his office and flatly told him that he was being fired. Yeary, according to Isaacs, asked the chief to allow him to resign, and the chief said OK. Yeary had been cleared of wrongdoing on the corruption allegation, which came from the informant — or at least Isaacs wasn't able to prove it. What remained was minor, the chief said.

"He had a 'stupid attack' and lied to me as the chief and wasted several days when he could have stepped up to the plate and sucked it up," Isaacs said.

Maybe Isaacs finds lying in a police officer merely "stupid." In truth, it goes to the heart of the justice system. Liars shouldn't be police officers. And then there are the matters of the corruption allegation and the missing records and equipment. What happened there?

Isaacs had a choice about how to report Yeary's departure because the state now gives agencies 22 different ways to describe the way an officer left the department.

He could have told the truth — that Yeary "resigned in lieu of termination." The chief acknowledged that he had informed Yeary several times that he was being fired. Instead, Isaacs chose to say that Yeary simply resigned. Truth seems to be a quantity in short supply at the Fruitland Park department.

So, unless Yeary's next department does some serious background work, it won't learn of the bizarre story behind his departure from Fruitland Park. Nice. Just pass the problems to someone else.
Isaacs defended his decision to let Yeary resign and the way it was reported, saying it saved the city the money it would cost if Yeary decided to appeal a firing.

"The attorneys agreed it was the best way to handle it," Isaacs said.

The chief also argued that he could not assume that Yeary was resigning to avoid being fired. "Would I have changed my mind [about firing Yeary]? I don't know. I might have," he said.
What twaddle. This is a squirrelly way of playing with words that won't give Fruitland Park citizens any confidence in their chief. If an employee is told he's being fired and he asks to resign instead, then he "resigned in lieu of termination." Period.

What Fruitland Park did in passing off such an officer is ignominious and a disservice to the public. And more important, it yet again raises the question of whether this small town should have a police department, in which people carry guns without adult supervision.

Both the Lake County Sheriff's Office and State Attorney Brad King's office say they will investigate the matter — if asked. Fruitland Park city officials should be asking.

Robert Myers one of Borders “boys” from the jail moved to the courthouse. Assigned as Judge Hill’s bailiff was stalking courthouse females and everyone knew it. One of his victims is now married to another circuit judge. The insider courthouse solution to this problem was to have Mark Hill and Sergeant Unsworth talk to Robert about “his problems” and the judge had him re-assigned from his bailiff to courthouse security and uninvited from any more Christmas parties at Hill’s cabin in the woods. But that was it an armed known stalker was still wandering the Lake County Courthouse in a Deputy Sheriff in uniform with arrest power.August 27, 2011- Lake Deputy Robert Myers resigns amid internal investigation Court security deputy Robert Myers has resigned amid an internal probe that focused on conflicting statements he provided to law-enforcement officials investigating a domestic-battery allegation.

Myers, 43, who began his Lake County Sheriff's Office career as a jailer in 1995, submitted a letter to Sheriff Gary Borders, saying he believed his resignation "to be in the best interest of the Sheriff's Office and myself." The letter made no reference to the internal probe or a separate domestic-battery charge he faces.

Myers had been on paid administrative leave from the department since June, when he was charged with battery, accused of striking his live-in girlfriend Robin Douglas, a former deputy, at their home in Weirsdale.

A change of plea is scheduled for Wednesday, according to the Marion County Clerk of Courts website.

The Lake Sheriff's administrative probe was related to a different alleged battery — in which Myers accused Douglas of pushing and scratching him, an incident that led to her arrest and dismissal from the Sheriff's Office. The commission was preparing a review of Douglas' law-enforcement certification when Myers admitted to FDLE he had lied to cause her arrest and firing. Douglas was charged with battery and pleaded not guilty. The misdemeanor case was later dismissed by County Judge Donna Miller

On April 28, 2010, after co-workers noticed scratches on his face, Myers, who held the rank of corporal, told his supervisors he had been involved in a disturbance with Douglas. A sheriff's report said she acknowledged an altercation but described Myers as the aggressor, although she had no visible signs of injury.
Myers later recanted his sworn statement when questioned by an official with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's Criminal Justice Standards & Training Commission, sheriff's spokesman Lt. John Herrell said.

Some of the people around the courthouse know the facts but, Robert Myers also told others that on the morning of April 28, 2010 Sheriff Borders come to the bailiff’s office in the courthouse where they were meeting regarding his situation. At this time Robert had already selected “NO” and signed in the intent to prosecute box of a statement. Myers said Borders took him out into the hall and told himt its either her or you, make up your mind. If she reports you as the aggressor you will be arrested and lose your job.

Borders then ordered Corporal Evan Rosenstein to write the victims statement for Robert Myers who later admitted he didn’t even know was it said.
Robert Myers attorney Michael Graves represented him in Marion County court. He was allowed to resign amid an internal investigation ( IA-11-22) into his admitting he had lied to affect the arrest and firing of Robin Douglas. And of course that investigation evaporated when he resigned. His co-conspirator in the crime of lying to have someone arrested and publicly destroyed for life Gary Borders once again gets off scot free for his conspiracy to destroy the life of yet another human being.

How the Lake County Sheriff’s Office reported the severance of the employment of Robert Myers no one has bothered to ask. Why? Because it doesn’t really matter; he’s one of the boys and no matter what he will be protected by them. That’s the good ole boy system that is the Lake Sheriff’s Office and their well connected entities.

As for the Sheriff’s Office and Brad King investigating Fruitland Park Police for their actions; they probably will if asked. They probably will find all kinds of crimes and corruption. They will probably suggest Fruitland Park turn their Stone Age police department over to her friend “the sheriff” so he can run it professionally like he does the LCSO.

Funny thing when folks were trying to get the insider’s friend former Fruitland Park Chief Isom investigated Brad King responded he couldn’t find any wrongdoing with Isom stealing money from the evidence locker and using it to buy his online degrees. The people had to keep raising cane and raising cane until the FDLE finally sent their chief criminal in charge Tom Berlinger to demand a solution to the Chief Isom debacle.

Why do all these departments recycle the rotten within their agencies? Because our society is rotten and so morally challenged the so called leaders follow the advice of the agency lawyers hoping to avoid lawsuits from these badge and gun toting criminals. All the while they continue to recycle them on the public at large. Fruitland Park is just one of them. One that Lauren Ritchie hopes to help destroy and turn over to “the sheriff.” Look out Lady Lake, you will be next!

THE FDLE QUARTERLY REPORT SHOWS THE OUTCOMES OF THEIR OFFICER INVESTIGATIONS. MAKES YOU WONDER JUST WHO THAT OFFICER OR DEPUTY SHERIFF IS THAT'S STOPPING YOU ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. MAYBE THEY HAVE EVEN BEEN PROTECTED BY "CODE BLUE" AND HAVE A LONG HISTORY OF FAILURE TO DO RIGHT!

http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Content/getdoc/49...

So why aren't they correcting their mistake and giving that Deputy back her job?Hmmmm...does law enforcement admit they are wrong?

jUSTPLAINWRONG wrote:

So why aren't they correcting their mistake and giving that Deputy back her job?Hmmmm...does law enforcement admit they are wrong?

Of course not! They can do no wrong. They control everything, media and all, and They will never admit they set her up. After all it was the elected sheriff of the county who ordered the setup to begin with. All the facts are right their for all to see. In this little gay friendly agency the gays band together against the straight females with a vengence. Seems they want to defeat their competion or something. No fixing any of this when the powerful becomes the judge, jury and excutioner all rolled into one.

On August 31, 2010 Breaking News - Lake Deputy Gary French had been accused of choking wife Michelle in a dispute about his Playstation 3.

He was not charged or arrested that day after his wife accused him of choking her with a towel when she threatened to take away his Playstation 3 because he lied to Mount Dora Police who responded to the call; his fellow Law Enforcement officers took his word at the scene over that of his wife. But, French admitted during an internal investigation conducted by the Lake County Sheriff's Office that he lied to Mount Dora police when he said his wife put a towel around her neck and squeezed it.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office said Deputy Gary French admitted during his internal affairs investigation that he lied to Mount Dora police during his criminal investigation.

French told police his wife put a towel around her neck and squeezed to make a red mark, but admitted during the internal investigation that he made that up.“He confessed that it was a lie after the State Attorney’s Office decided not to prosecute in the case.” HIGH QUALITY INDIVIDUAL HERE!

The sheriff’s office will forward the information to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission to see if there is probable cause to further investigate the deputy’s actions. SURE THEY DID!

French has already been suspended without pay and, now, his authority to make arrests has been taken away. He will be transferred to the Lake County jail to serve as a detention deputy and will receive a written reprimand. REALLY!

Things happen between couples everyone knows that. Should someone lose their job because they have a little domestic dispute that gets out of hand? Let’s visit the Gary Don French’s history of domestic violence.

1998 CF 001674 – Gary French pled guilty to felony battery. But in a stunning reversal of his plea before Judge Mark Hill and represented by then Assistant Public Defender and now County Judge James Baxley – Gary French was allowed to withdraw his felony plea and plea to the lesser offense of Misdemeanor Battery. A little probation and a few checks to the Lake County Probation Office coffers.

Later he becomes a Lake County gun toting badge wearing Deputy Sheriff.

2008 DR 002423 – Injunction for protection filed by wife Sarah granted by Judge Takac.

February 9. 2009 – Divorce granted to Sarah from Gary French by Judge Mark Hill.

December 18, 2009 – Married Michelle in the Lake County Clerk’s Office by a Deputy Clerk

August 2012 – Choked Michelle over a dispute about his Playstation 3 and lied about it. Mount Dora Police took no actions until the incident was leaked to the media who surprisingly printed it causing Sheriff Borders to fake an investigation and move him to the jail.

The sad thing is he should have never been hired into Law Enforcement to begin with. But, he was; he got a second chance. The second chance was when he was hired into Law Enforcement to begin with.

But even now all these years later if you the Lake County voting taxpayer happens to get arrested and taken to the Lake County Jail you might very well meet an expert in the field of Domestic Violence who thanks to his connections with Lake County officials has beat the system at least three times.

Hey, while we’re asking everyone to investigate Fruitland Park and their possible mishandling of a criminal employee’s termination, let’s visit a few more similar Lake Sheriff’s employees and how their crimes and incidents have been handled as well. More to come.

Is the Lake County Sheriff's Office a great place to work? You bet it is if you are in the right click!

Today's featured Lake County Sheriff's Office employee of less than stellar human qualities is Lake Jail employee REX EDWARD HARNESS. Mr Harness is a resident of Citrus County, Fl.

Let's just cut to the chase on this one. Citrus County case # 2009 MM 000617 (2/28/2009) DOMESTIC BATTERY TOUCH OR STRIKE.Divorced early 2008; Married on 6/14/2008 - 8 months later she is the victim of violence. Cash bond posted by JAY PELTON.

Court records indicate FDLE was notified. The case was later dropped at the request of the victim. Insiders say Rex Harness Baker Acted himself.

But once again,if you the Lake County voting taxpayer happens to get arrested and taken to the Lake County Jail you might very well meet an expert in the field of Domestic Violence who thanks to his connections with Lake County officials has beat the system

So,apparently, the two male deputies got off the hook, but the female deputy walked the plank! WTH ...who's policing the police???

Actually counting his first incident where Robert Myers lied and said the female deputy was the aggressor at this time the count is three, but stay tuned because it is still growing.

Robert Myers - Even though he resigned after the second Dom Viol that he was arrested on because it was out of his protection area he was not arrested for filing a false police report and the female deputy was not reinstated or paid full salary to some settlement regarding the fact that she was set up by orders of the sheriff himself.

Gary Don French-

Rex Edward Harness-

for once lauren ricthie has written something that the public cares about, all the sorry excuse for men leo's that need to rethink why they become cops cuase none of them protect or serve, and this p.o.s. gary borders who not even qualified to be sheriff, just cuase daniels was run over he was appointed, and gary cycles these guys more than anyone, right through his bedroom door

Today’s featured LCSO less than stellar employee with a gun and a badge is RICK ARVIN HARMON. While his real history is long and full of abuses of the females in his life, we’ll just hit the highlights. He abused his now exwife wife when they lived in Cypress Point just south of the Howey bridge on several occasions. On at least one of those occasions so severely that the neighbor’s called the Howey police department and they responded. Divorce and bankruptcy later he found another victim. This one had some money and a business. That’s all gone and another bankruptcy as well. Beautiful log cabin near the great Captain Todd Luce all gone too!

Then on January 7, 2012 while responding to a routine call and traveling east on SR 40 at Veterans Road Deputy Rick Harmon struck a pedestrian; 18 year old Eric Clemons who according to the FHP report by Trooper Brierly, the pedestrian “was walking in the east bound lane close to the shoulder of the road.” The driver Deputy Harmon told troopers he was “unable to avoid the pedestrian in the roadway.” FHP’s report stated “this crash remains under investigation.” Another interesting revelation in this report is the fact that Rick Arvin Harmon lives in Orlando, Florida. If in fact Harmon was living in Orlando in January 2012 why then was he assigned to the northern most point of Lake County Sheriff’s Office coverage to begin with?

Lake Sheriff’s PIO James Vachon immediately reported the FHP said Harmon was not at fault in the accident, so he would not be placed on any type of administrative leave.

The interesting facts here regarding the January 7th 2012 crash is insiders say Deputy Harmon was on his computer at the time of the crash regarding the routine call he was responding to. Law Enforcement on computers while driving are just as dangerous as the public at large texting while driving. At the time of this crash was he or was he not pre-occupied with a computer screen? If this is true it should have been addressed immediately by the FHP.

eustis wrote:

for once lauren ricthie has written something that the public cares about, all the sorry excuse for men leo's that need to rethink why they become cops cuase none of them protect or serve, and this p.o.s. gary borders who not even qualified to be sheriff, just cuase daniels was run over he was appointed, and gary cycles these guys more than anyone, right through his bedroom door

The subject matter of Lauren Ritchie's article is as you say "something that the public cares about."

However as you can see the article was pointed directly at one agency in Lake County and one agency only. Persons would have to understand her connections to "the sheriff" to appreciate just why she would write this article. Anyone who is dumb enough to think she cares about the morals or quality of the human employee'ss wearing guns and badges in Lake or any other county has another thought coming.

The real motive behind this article was to see how much support she could conjure up for "her friend the sheriff" to take over the Fruitland Park Police Department. They made suggestions towards that when Fruitland Park was finally forced to run Isom off but the council wouldn't buy it.

I'm sure her feeble brain thinks if she can cause more desention and chaos "they" might go for it this time. It's simply to build the sheriff's power base.

As dumb as she is and as non informed as she is as to what is really going on at the LCSO she doesn't may not realize Borders has already got more theives and spouse and significant other abusers on his payroll than he can count.

He's also got a bunch of old lover's running their mouth's and sharing their pillow talk. Seems he's like the AFLAC Duck in the boat, he's got more leaks than he's stoppers or, should I say more leaks than he can stop using our money to by them off. I always figured it would come to this. You can't control everybody all the time.

Different Strokes wrote:

On August 31, 2010 Breaking News - Lake Deputy Gary French had been accused of choking wife Michelle in a dispute about his Playstation 3.
He was not charged or arrested that day after his wife accused him of choking her with a towel when she threatened to take away his Playstation 3 because he lied to Mount Dora Police who responded to the call; his fellow Law Enforcement officers took his word at the scene over that of his wife. But, French admitted during an internal investigation conducted by the Lake County Sheriff's Office that he lied to Mount Dora police when he said his wife put a towel around her neck and squeezed it.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office said Deputy Gary French admitted during his internal affairs investigation that he lied to Mount Dora police during his criminal investigation.
French told police his wife put a towel around her neck and squeezed to make a red mark, but admitted during the internal investigation that he made that up.“He confessed that it was a lie after the State Attorney’s Office decided not to prosecute in the case.” HIGH QUALITY INDIVIDUAL HERE!
The sheriff’s office will forward the information to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission to see if there is probable cause to further investigate the deputy’s actions. SURE THEY DID!
French has already been suspended without pay and, now, his authority to make arrests has been taken away. He will be transferred to the Lake County jail to serve as a detention deputy and will receive a written reprimand. REALLY!
Things happen between couples everyone knows that. Should someone lose their job because they have a little domestic dispute that gets out of hand? Let’s visit the Gary Don French’s history of domestic violence.
1998 CF 001674 – Gary French pled guilty to felony battery. But in a stunning reversal of his plea before Judge Mark Hill and represented by then Assistant Public Defender and now County Judge James Baxley – Gary French was allowed to withdraw his felony plea and plea to the lesser offense of Misdemeanor Battery. A little probation and a few checks to the Lake County Probation Office coffers.
Later he becomes a Lake County gun toting badge wearing Deputy Sheriff.
2008 DR 002423 – Injunction for protection filed by wife Sarah granted by Judge Takac.
February 9. 2009 – Divorce granted to Sarah from Gary French by Judge Mark Hill.
December 18, 2009 – Married Michelle in the Lake County Clerk’s Office by a Deputy Clerk
August 2012 – Choked Michelle over a dispute about his Playstation 3 and lied about it. Mount Dora Police took no actions until the incident was leaked to the media who surprisingly printed it causing Sheriff Borders to fake an investigation and move him to the jail.
The sad thing is he should have never been hired into Law Enforcement to begin with. But, he was; he got a second chance. The second chance was when he was hired into Law Enforcement to begin with.
But even now all these years later if you the Lake County voting taxpayer happens to get arrested and taken to the Lake County Jail you might very well meet an expert in the field of Domestic Violence who thanks to his connections with Lake County officials has beat the system at least three times.
Hey, while we’re asking everyone to investigate Fruitland Park and their possible mishandling of a criminal employee’s termination, let’s visit a few more similar Lake Sheriff’s employees and how their crimes and incidents have been handled as well. More to come.
Is the Lake County Sheriff's Office a great place to work? You bet it is if you are in the right click!

http://www.youtube.com/watch...

wow... wow .. just wondering who is going in the barrel next. Not that there ain't plenty of these suckers on the wrong side of the bars they are supposed to be arresting and guarding. It is refreshing to see these corrupt suckers exposed for what they are. How can someone like Borders be so stupid to think the real people don't know what's going on?

I guess when you live the lying life of a closet homo and are dumb enought to think that no one notices you could convice yourself of anything.

Hello Gary Borders, everyone with one ounce of brains knows your a homo. Most folks only care about the fact that you are a liar about it.

Be a macho homo and like Obama admit you're a homo , it's liars people ate not homo's.

Sheriff's can be arrested for theft of public properties. Sheriff's can be arrested for destroying computer files. Some areas of Florida do not turn their heads to the corruption in their law enforcement and other government agencies.

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20090404...

Jacksonville FBI takes Sheriff's investigation to the Federal Grand Jury. The 2009 FBI investigation into the Lake Sheriff and other local government officials stalled. Why? Who stopped this investigation when Richard Nixon himself didn;t have the power to stop the Watergate investigation.

http://tallahasseeo.com/2012/05/13/grand-jury...

too bad you cant get arrested for sucking d**k, cuase borders would've been in prison a long long long time ago

Being gay is no crime,but the way the Sheriff has handled the above cases may very well be.
The Sheriff needs to make some things "right" if he's going to need votes!