Why some call CJ's death a "lynching" (Part 3)
Ten Orange County deputy sheriffs, three police dogs, and a police helicopter chased high school student Clarence “CJ” Lake last June and the 18-year-old ended up dead in a West Orange County lake.
“The way I see it, it was a modern-day lynching” Anthony family friend Dexter Neal said during a recent interview.
 |
| Where CJ was found |
The nightmare began shortly before 2 a.m. June 23 when the Sheriff’s Office received a call that a car had been burglarized at the Hawthorne Groves apartment complex on Good Homes Road.
Two boys – one of them a juvenile and the other an 18-year-old – were arrested close to the scene. A third boy -- later identified by deputies as CJ – fled on foot.
Though CJ was an honors student with no criminal history, the sheriff’s incident report said deputies tracked him to a storage shed on display at the Lowe’s home improvement store on the corner of Good Homes Road and State Road 50 – roughly a mile from the apartment complex.
Within minutes the sheriff’s posse guided by a police helicopter formed a loose ring around Lowe’s and Lake Sherwood.
The deputies were responding to a report of car burglary involving and criminal mischief. The loss was estimated at less $1,000, according to a court document. No violence or weapons were reported or involved.
“The amount of manpower they used for something so petty was not called for,” said Cadillya Anthony, CJ’s mother. She and her friends and family blame deputies for CJ’s death.
A Sheriff’s Office spokesman bristled at the notion that deputies were responsible CJ’s death. “It is categorically untrue that deputies chased Clarence into the lake. He was being sought for burglaries and in his fleeing, he ran into the water,” the spokesman wrote in response to questions.
For years the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and other Central Florida police agencies have banned high-speed car chases of vehicles unless the suspects are being sought for violent crimes such as shootings, rapes and the like because the pursuit can inadvertently cause serious injury or death.
“Deputies are always authorized to pursue in a foot chase of a suspected criminal if it is appropriate and safe,” the spokesman wrote.
 |
| Where the chase started |
It is the Sheriff and his command staff who decide on pursuit policies.
The spokesman didn’t think it was excessive use of resources to pursue a car burglary suspect with 10 deputies, 3 dogs, and a police helicopter.
“We’ll chase you for a Snickers” bar, the spokesman commented.
“The large number of burglaries to vehicles has however been a focus of the OCSO,” he wrote.
If CJ had successfully eluded deputies that night they would have caught him later because his car was found nearby, and two other boys arrested at the scene said they had been with CJ, according to the sheriff’s incident report.
Before CJ’s body was found in the lake, detectives visited CJ’s family twice and told his mother that he was suspected of car burglary. The Sheriff’s Office and Orange County Fire – Rescue brought in boats to search for CJ after he disappeared in the lake. The spokesman said more than 20 deputies, including detectives searched for CJ hoping he escaped from the lake.
Both CJ’s mother and a family friend promised that if CJ came home they would bring him to the Sheriff’s Office headquarters, according to the sheriff’s report.
Though Ms. Anthony doesn’t believe her son committed a crime, she said, “Everyone regardless of race, color or religion is entitled to a fair trial, which means you are innocent until proven guilty. Unfortunately, my son wasn’t given that right.”
Five months after CJ’s death, the Orange-Osceola State Attorney dropped charges against the other 18-year-old arrested in the case. In court documents, the prosecutor wrote: “This case is not suitable for prosecution.”
For more details on this tragic case, see Part 1 by clicking: http://www.newsorl32805.com/2018/04/how-sheriffs-manhunt-ended-in-tragedy.html
Part 4: Was the Sheriff’s Office “Making a difference” when it chased CJ?
Comments
Post a Comment