According to an independent review, Sgt. Austin Yelvington of the Flagler Beach Police Department broke the city’s arrest policies last March when he detained a man who was waving a sign in support of homeless veterans outside the Funky Pelican restaurant on the pier.
Yelvington will be suspended without pay for three days. The man, Jeff Gray of St. Augutstine, received a public apology from Matt Doughney, the city’s police chief.
Emmett Luttrell, the other Flagler Beach police officer who made the arrest, was judged to have complied with protocol and was not disciplined.
In a statement he prepared and posted on the city’s Facebook page soon after this item was published, Doughney is cited as saying, “I would like to offer a public apology to Mr. Gray on behalf of the Flagler Beach Police Department.” Although I can’t go back in time and alter what happened on March 2nd, our department has taken advantage of educational opportunities pertaining to First Amendment rights ever since. In order to continue educating our police officers on their First Amendment rights and safeguard the public’s rights and civil freedoms going ahead, we will be looking for new training possibilities.
After Gray’s arrest garnered national news, sparked harsh condemnation from city commissioners, and damaged the city’s reputation, Doughney handed over the investigation of the two officers to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Prior to this incident, Yelvington had a strong and professional record, according to City Manager Matt Doughney. His actions that day were regrettable, to be sure.
Mark Strobridge, the chief of the sheriff’s office, said that Cmdr. George Bender, who oversees all internal affairs investigations at the department, carried out the probe, but he was unable to recall when it was finished. Strobridge approves all internal investigations. More than a week ago, it was given to Doughney. Martin claimed to have received it last week, gone over it over the weekend, and given Doughney his recommendations. He approved of the suspension’s duration.
“I supported that decision because it was made by the chief,” he said. Prior to the initial publication of this piece, Doughney was not reachable. Both Doughney and the Sheriff’s Office were asked to conduct the inquiry, but neither was able to do so prior to the publication of the piece.
Gray, 55, was arrested on a felony charge of armed trespassing on the morning of March 2 after displaying a little cardboard sign that said, “God Bless the Homeless Vets.” He was armed since he had a gun with him. (See: A man outside Funky Pelican who was arrested for armed trespassing holds a sign that reads, “God bless homeless veterans.”
Carrying the gun was not against the law. As it turned out, there was nothing unlawful about what he had been doing; the arrest vanished from the court docket and the State Attorney’s office dismissed the charges within four days.
Gray had been standing at the sidewalk’s edge in front of the Funky Pelican, the pier’s eatery, according to body cam footage. He did not obstruct consumers or pedestrians using the sidewalk. A Funky Pelican employee said that he was harassing individuals by calling 911. “Please, I would like him to trespass,” she begged. He is standing out front and bothering all of our guests. There is no sidewalk seating at the Funky Pelican. Every visitor is seated inside.
Emmett Luttrell, the first responding officer, accurately pointed out that, in theory, what he is doing is not illegal. Technically, it wasn’t required because Gray wasn’t breaching the law at all. Requesting that he walk in one direction or another is the most that authorities could do. Luttrell described it as a straightforward request. Gray didn’t want to.
Yelvington, who came soon after, had a different perspective. Actually, Yelvington pointed to the sidewalk and said to Gray, “We can trespass you from here.” We can, the officer stated of Funky Pelican employees, but they can’t since the sidewalk is public property. In theory, Yelvington was right. To be considered trespassed, however, Gray would have needed to be defying the law or city code. Yelvingon’s belief that he should be trespassed was insufficient justification for trespassing him.
That’s exactly what took place. Yelvington was sarcastic with Gray after he was arrested (let me guess). Don’t you use force to push Gray’s head into a patrol car and threaten to sue me, take me to court, have me arrested, fire me, and go the full nine yards? Gray might have been acting a little theatrically. However, it was not his script to be handcuffed and escorted into a patrol car.
Gray had been informed by Yelvington that trespassing is common in the city.Records from the past two years attest to it, and the city commission might find them interesting given the Gray event.
Yelvington will soon be serving his ban.
In addition to finding no probable grounds for Gray’s arrest, the internal affairs review also found no evidence of personal bias or malice. Doughney’s release states that the investigation also found a serious flaw in our department’s field training of new police officers, which was the main cause of this incident. This finding is puzzling given that Yelvington, the veteran, did not follow procedures, while Luttrell, the new recruit, did.
The message said, “Our City Attorney’s comprehensive information on trespassing and the freedom of speech on public property has helped to rectify the training deficiency.” Notably, the publication was made late Friday, when most people’s focus is elsewhere, in keeping with a frequent practice among governments that aim to minimize negative news.
Authorities are aware of Gray’s reputation as a First Amendment supporter who deliberately tests public agencies’ adherence to free speech regulations. HonorYourOath Civil Rights Investigations is a YouTube channel where he shares recordings of his regular interactions with law enforcement.
After the St. Johns Sheriff’s Office investigated the case instead of turning it over to an outside agency and, controversially, declared the death to be a suicide, the New York Times published a lengthy article in 2017 about Gray holding a protest sign in the lobby of a public building where then-Sheriff David Shoar was hosting an annual awards dinner. The article focused on the shooting death of Michelle O. Connell, the girlfriend of St. Johns County Sheriff’s deputy Jeremy Banks authorities at the time. O Connell had been slain, according to the placard. Shoar had taken Gray away by force.
