Charlotte County Sheriff's Office

History

The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office was formed in 1921, when Florida Governor Cary A. Hardee appointed school teacher James H. Lipscomb as sheriff for the county; 16 men have served as Sheriff of Charlotte County to date. In its early days, much of its focus was on enforcing laws restricting the sale and use of alcohol under prohibition.

Charlotte County Jail

The current county jail is located at 26601 Airport Road in Punta Gorda, near the Punta Gorda Airport and the Charlotte campus of Florida SouthWestern State College. It was built in 2001 and has a capacity of 1,074. It is described by the sheriff's office as a "direct supervision jail," differing from conventional jails in that an officer is stationed within the housing unit. The sheriff's office and health provider Corizon Health have been criticized after numerous inmates have died in custody at the Charlotte County Jail and lawsuits were filed by the inmates' families.

Jurisdiction

The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office has jurisdiction throughout Charlotte County, which is divided into four districts. District 1 covers the area west of the Myakka River, including Boca Grande, Englewood, the Gulf Cove area of Port Charlotte, Knights Island, Little Gasparilla Island, Placida, and Rotonda West. District 2 covers the northwestern portion of Port Charlotte known as Murdock. District 3 covers the eastern portion of Port Charlotte from Midway Boulevard to Interstate 75, and from the Sarasota County line to Charlotte Harbor. District 4 covers the rest of Charlotte County, including Cleveland, Deep Creek, and Punta Gorda.

Notable cases

Denise Amber Lee

Main article: Murder of Denise Amber Lee

On January 17, 2008, Denise Amber Lee, who was 21 years old at the time of her death, was kidnapped from her home in North Port and taken to Charlotte County where she was raped and murdered by an individual named Michael King. Numerous calls were placed to 9-1-1 emergency services in relation to the incident, some of which were routed to the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office. Notably, a 9-1-1 call was placed by Jane Kowalski, a woman from Tampa, who thought she was witnessing a child abduction while traveling on U.S. 41 in Port Charlotte. It has been argued that information provided by Kowalski could have saved Lee's life had the information been properly relayed to deputies in the field searching for Lee and her abductor. King was apprehended by the Florida Highway Patrol while turning onto Interstate 75 from Toledo Blade Blvd in North Port; Lee had been fatally shot in the head and her body buried in a shallow grave off of Plantation Blvd in North Port. This incident led to the passing of the Denise Amber Lee Act, which established additional training for 9-1-1 dispatchers in Florida.

Fallen officers

The CCSO has lost four officers and one K-9 in the line of duty since 1983. The first officer to fall in the line of duty was Deputy Sheriff Curtis Moore, who was mortally wounded after a woman pulled out in front of him from a condo complex as he drove his police motorcycle in Placida on April 24.

Two officers and one K-9 were fatally shot by criminals while two officers have been killed in traffic crashes.

Elected sheriffs

Source:

• J. H. Lipscomb (1921-1941)
• Arthur F. Quednau (1941-1957)
• Travis Parnell (1957-1965)
• Richard A. Stickley (1965-1966)
• John P. Shannon (1966)
• David Deegan (1966-1967)
• John P. 'Jack' Bent (1967-1977)
• Alan L. LeBeau (1977-1981)
• Glen E. Sapp (1981-1985)
• J.M. 'Buddy' Phillips (1985, 2003)
• John J. McDougall (1985-1986)
• Glen E. Sapp (1986-1989)
• Richard H. Worch Jr. (1989-2001)
• William E. Clement (2001-2003)
• J.M. 'Buddy' Phillips (2003)
• Bill Cameron (2003-2005, 2009-2012)
• John Davenport (2005-2009)
• Bill Prummell (2012-present)

References

References

1. "Mission and Vision Statement". Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
2. "budget". Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
3. "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Charlotte County, Florida".
4. Dale White. (2012-08-14). "Prummell wins race for Charlotte sheriff". Sarasota Herald Tribune.
5. "Records Services Unit {{!}} City of Punta Gorda, FL".
6. "Facility Information". Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
7. "History of the Sheriffs of Charlotte County". Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
8. Lindsay Williams. (2005-04-03). "Moonshine Stills Thrived in Prohibition Days".
9. "Facility Information". Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
10. (2016-06-28). "SNN: Tour of Charlotte County Jail". [[Citadel Communications]].
11. Lauren Sweeney. (2017-11-18). "In-custody deaths spawn questions, lawsuit". [[WINK News]].
12. "Patrol Divisions". Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
13. "Our Story...". The Denise Amber Lee Foundation.
14. Anderson, Zac. "Nathan Lee picks up the pieces".
15. "Jane Kowalski 911 call".
16. NBC, Dennis Murphy Correspondent Dateline. (2008-06-07). "The detective's daughter".
17. "Denise Amber Lee". [[Suncoast Media]].
18. Borresen, Jennifer F. A.. "Green Camaro key evidence in linking crime scenes".
19. "CS/SB 1694–911 Emergency Dispatchers [SPCC]". Florida House of Representatives.
20. O'Neill, Ann. (August 28, 2009). "Jury: Death for man who murdered cop's daughter". Cable News Network.
21. "Charlotte County Sheriff's Office, Florida, Fallen Officers".
22. "Deputy Sheriff Curtis M. Moore".
23. "In Memory".
24. "Our History". Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.