Duration of suspension indefinite. Deputy Travis Nolan sustained on two counts. Deactivation of body cam in violation of department policy and failure to intervene during unlawful search. Recommended disposition, suspension without pay, 90 days with mandatory retraining upon return. Sergeant Marlon Keats sustained on four counts.
Ordering an unlawful search, falsifying a citation basis, evidence tampering, and improper use of personal communication device during a law enforcement action. Recommended disposition, suspension without pay pending federal investigation, referred to the state attorney's office for potential criminal charges. Captain Reed Hollister sustained on two counts, countersigning a materially false incident report and denial of timely access to council in violation of Florida statute 901.23. Recommended disposition, administrative reassignment pending federal review. Not sustained, Hollister's involvement in the text message directive.
The panel found insufficient evidence to establish that Captain Hollister acted on the text messages instruction, though the temporal proximity between the message and his arrival at the station raises questions warranting further investigation. Insufficient evidence. Hollister received the message at 2:29 p.m. He arrived at the station at 2:51 p.m. 22 minutes later, carrying a prepared folder with pages already inside. The panel noted the timing and chose not to connect the dots. The DOJ announced a pattern or practice investigation into the Wakefield County Sheriff's Department 4 weeks after the IIA findings were released.
A three paragraph press statement posted on a Friday afternoon, the traditional burial ground for news the government wants acknowledged but not amplified. The statement cited 34 USC section 12,61 and referenced allegations of systemic civil rights violations, including unlawful stops, excessive use of force, and destruction of evidence. The investigation would take an estimated 12 to 18 months. A federal monitor would be appointed if findings warranted. The department was expected to cooperate fully, expected to.
Gavin Ror's suspension was upheld by the county commission after the police union filed a grievance challenging the IIA panel's findings. The union argued that Ror had acted in good faith based on a civilian report of suspicious activity and that the use of handcuffs was consistent with officer safety protocols. The grievance was denied 4 to one with one commissioner abstaining. Ror was also indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of deprivation of rights under color of law 18 USC section 242. His attorney entered a plea of not guilty.
The trial was scheduled for 11 months later. Travis Nolan served 67 days of his 90-day suspension before reaching a settlement with the county, the terms of which included a confidentiality agreement. He returned to duty on a restricted assignment. Desk work, no patrol, no public contact. His body cam log was flagged for automatic audit review for 24 months.
Marlon Keats resigned from the Wakefield County Sheriff's Department 5 weeks after the IIA findings. He was not terminated. He resigned, which preserved his pension eligibility. The state attorney's office filed charges of evidence tampering and official misconduct. His attorney negotiated a continuance.
The case remained pending with a preliminary hearing date set for 7 months out. Reed Hollister remained on administrative reassignment, moved from watch commander to a logistics coordination role at the county's emergency management office. Same rank, same salary, different desk. His name appeared on no further incident reports. The federal investigation scope specifically included his administrative conduct, but no individual charges were filed against him.
The manila folder he carried on the day of the arrest, the one with pages already inside when he arrived, was subpoenaed by the AUSA's office. Its contents were entered into the federal case file under seal. What those pages contained was never disclosed publicly. Belle Odum completed her mandatory bias training, a 4-hour online course administered by a third-party vendor. She received a certificate of completion which was placed in her personnel file alongside the written reprimand.