JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Nine Duval County jail officers who were involved in an unspecified incident that led to an inmate’s death in April have been reassigned to different positions as the investigation continues, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office told News4JAX on Friday.
According to JSO, the eight corrections officers and a sergeant involved in the incident have been reassigned to positions in the courthouse, Records Unit, and the Property and Evidence Unit.
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The nine correctional staff members were removed from their positions on April 7 after the “incident” left inmate Charles Faggart, 31, in critical condition.
Faggart died three days later. According to his family, he had been “brain dead” since the incident happened early Monday.
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More than two months after the incident, questions about what happened and what exactly led to Faggart’s death remain.
A week after Faggart’s death, JSO released the names of the jail officers who are being investigated, along with a heavily redacted incident report.
The readable sections of the report paint the picture of a chaotic scene where officers said Faggart was acting so aggressively that he had to be restrained in a safety chair. Officers also said they witnessed him having what appeared to be a seizure.
Faggart’s attorney said the family was not notified before the report was published.
“The fact that this is the narrative being presented to the public, while the family continues to sit in the dark, is devastating,” the family’s attorney said in a statement following the report’s release.
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Days after the incident, Sheriff T.K. Waters formally requested the Jacksonville Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to help investigate the incident, saying in part that his agency requested the agency’s help to be as transparent as possible in the investigation.
Faggart’s autopsy report is now in the hands of the State Attorney’s Office, but prosecutors told News4JAX it cannot be released because of the ongoing investigation into his death.
According to a social media post, a protest was planned for Friday at 3:30 p.m. outside the courthouse to demand answers in Faggart’s death.