JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan said on Friday her office is “closely monitoring” the investigation into the unspecified incident that left an inmate dead and resulted in nine Duval County jail officers being removed from their positions.
Deegan sent News4JAX a statement following the death of Charles Faggart, who died on Thursday afternoon after being “brain dead” in the hospital since Monday.
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“My heart goes out to the Faggart family. We’ll be closely monitoring the investigation to understand what led to this tragic situation,” Deegan wrote.
On Tuesday, Sheriff T.K. Waters announced that eight correctional officers and a correctional sergeant were removed from their positions and stripped of all their correction authority following the incident, which happened on Monday morning.
Waters said he would not give details about the incident or how the inmate was injured because it was still an open investigation.
On Thursday, Plata told News4JAX that Faggart “was beaten.”
In a statement to News4JAX following Faggart’s death, JSO said, “detectives have and will continue to remain in communication with the family through its attorney.”
JSO’s statement also says in part:
“Detectives continue to work diligently to gain a complete understanding of the facts and circumstances that led to the brain death of Charles Faggart after the April 7th incident at the Duval County Jail. This is an active, dynamic investigation that requires, amongst other things, the opinion of the Office of the Medical Examiner.”
Waters said on Wednesday he had formally requested the Jacksonville Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to help investigate the incident.
In a statement to News4JAX, the attorney for Faggart’s family, Belkis Plata, said that they will not rest until they know exactly what happened.
“We intend to hold every individual involved in this tragedy accountable — both in the criminal justice system and in the civil courts,” Plata wrote. “We continue to call on the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to do what is right — to show this family mercy — and to give them the dignity of knowing the truth before they bury their child.”
Two local advocacy groups have also spoken out for accountability and justice.
“I reiterate that we must not only improve conditions in the jail and prevent further deaths, but also reduce the need for people to be in jail in the first place,” Kelly Frazier, Northside Coalition of Jacksonville president, said in a statement.
The Jacksonville Community Action Committee also issued a call for transparency in Faggart’s death, pointing to similar incidents that furthered the organization’s push for JSO to form a civilian oversight and public safety committee.
Inmate records show Faggart was arrested for simple domestic assault and criminal mischief.
JCAC is inviting the public to a rally at 1 pm. on Sunday, on the steps of the JSO Memorial Building at 501 E Bay St., to “demand justice for all victims of police and jail violence.”
JCAC said that while Faggart’s family is grieving, “this moment is about more than one tragedy.”
