A Florida Department of Law Enforcement video shows guards striking Anderson.

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY and CATHERINE DOLINSKI
The Tampa Tribune

TAMPA – Authorities filed felony manslaughter charges today in the death of Martin Lee Anderson, a 14-year-old who died at a state-run boot camp in the Panhandle earlier this year.

The indictment says the eight caused Anderson’s death through “culpable negligence.” The teen’s family has alleged that a videotape shows guards smothering Anderson while disciplining him at a Bay County boot camp in January.

In a news conference this afternoon, Benjamin Crump, attorney for the family of Martin Lee Anderson, said the family can have some piece of mind.

“This charge equals to us humanity and justice for Martin Lee Anderson,” Crump said. “We know this is only one step, but it’s a big step.”

> Video: Security Camera Tape

Gov. Jeb Bush referred the case to Hillsborough State Attorney Mark Ober, who has overseen an investigation that included a new autopsy on Anderson’s body.

The manslaughter charge is a first-degree felony, punishable under Florida statutes by up to 30 years in prison.

> Documents: Statement | Letter To Medical Examiner | Letter To Governor

Crump said the family believes “Mark Ober did a courageous thing today.”

“Martin Lee Anderson is looking down today and saying my mother and father can rest easy,” Crump added.

Anderson’s parents addressed the media briefly.

“Today is a good day for me. I’m finally getting justice for my baby,” Anderson’s mother Gina Jones said. Anderson’s father Robert Anderson said the charges were a weight lifted off his shoulder.

In a letter sent to Gov. Jeb Bush dated today, Ober said that the eight people are in the process of being arrested. It was unclear this morning how many were in custody.

Ruth Sasser, a spokeswoman for the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, said all eight left employment of the sheriff’s office when the boot camp was shut down in June.

“None of these eight were rehired or transferred or anything,” she said. “They left the day the boot camp closed.”

Some other boot camp employees were transferred or rehired by the sheriff’s office after the boot camp closed, Sasser said, but the sheriff’s office was aware that these seven drill instructors and the nurse were under investigation. Sasser said were the only sheriff’s office employees under investigation.

The people charged were Henry Dickens, Charles Enfinger, Patrick Garrett, Raymond Hauck, Charles Helms, Jr., Henry McFadden, Jr., Kristin Schmidt, and Joseph Walsh II.

Schmidt was a nurse who could be seen on the video watching as the drill instructors used force on Anderson. Although boot camp drill instructors did not need to have sworn officer certification to work at the boot camp, four of the seven did attain that certification, Sasser said. Dickens, Garrett, Hauck and Helms were all sworn officers, meaning they had attended and graduated from a police academy. Sasser said none currently work in law enforcement.

In a one page order, Ober wrote that the eight people failed to “provide Martin Lee Anderson with the care, supervision or services necessary to maintain his physical or mental health that a prudent person would consider essential for the well-being of a child, or by failure to make a reasonable effort to protect [Anderson] from abuse, neglect or exploitation by another person.

“Today, Hillsborough County State Attorney Mark Ober announced the completion of his investigation into the death of Martin Lee Anderson,” said Governor Jeb Bush. “I want to thank Mr. Ober, his team and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s office for their diligent work.

“The long-awaited results released by Mr. Ober and the arrests being made today following his thorough investigation are a very important part of the judicial process. Seven guards and a nurse are in the process of being arrested for aggravated manslaughter on a child, which is a first degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

“We will follow the development of this complicated case closely, and hope at the end of the day justice will be served. We also hope that when the process is completed, Martin Lee Anderson’s family will have the answers to the questions they legitimately have.  My thoughts and prayers remain with their family.”

“There was no rush to judgment; they did it right.” Said Anthony J. Schembri, Secretary of the Department of Juvenile Justice. And I’ve been involved in a lot of investigations like this in my career. I’m happy to see they took their time and they did it right. I’m delighted.”

“It’s always sad when police officers break the law and bend the rules,” he said. “But I think that we need to be, we need to look at our own ethics. We need to be policemen in charge of our own ethics. We’re not getting paid to abuse people.”

Upon learning of the indictments, Rep. Curtis Anderson and other members of the Black Legislative Caucus emerged from the House Chamber, where new House members were receiving a crash course in legislating.

“We all knew based on the videotape that a crime had been committed,” said Richardson, D-Tallahassee. “It was obvious to anyone who saw that video tape. And what the caucus and the student groups have been calling for almost a year now is that someone be held accountable for those actions. We’re glad now that the state attorney who investigated this case has come to the conclusion that a crime was committed based on his investigation and that those individuals will be held accountable for the death of martin lee Anderson in the Bay County boot camp.”

Richardson said the indictments send a message “that children who are in the care of the state of Florida not be treated that way by those who are employed by the state or contracted by the state. And if that happens, then someone will be held accountable. And we hope that in the future, that justice will not take so long to be brought forward. And that’s what the parents have been asking for. That someone be held accountable for the death of their son while he was remanded to the care of the state.”

Richardson and the other caucus members were measured in their enthusiasm, however, given the months of delay. “Obviously, there has been frustration on the part of the parents as well as those who have been advocating for justice. And what we have been saying is, justice delayed is justice denied. But again, we’re just glad we’ve gotten to this point, that those indictments have been handed down, and those who are responsible for perpetrating this heinous act on a young child like that will now be held accountable and will have to answer to the justice system for their answers.”

In the end, Richardson, it’s critical to keep faith in the system and allow it to run its course. “I think that those who will be responsible for judging the actions of those boot camp employees will see what all of Florida and indeed, all of the nation and world saw on that video tape: that a crime was committed, and a child was killed—brutally killed at the hands of those individuals that were involved. But we’re going to let the justice system run its course and I think that in the end, justice will prevail.

Former drill instructor McFadden, 33, attended Brandon High and spent about 10 years in the U.S. Air Force before moving to the Panama City area, his father said Tuesday.

The father of two only had been at the boot camp about six months and still was in training when Anderson died, Henry McFadden Sr. said.

“He was a super troop, a super guy,” he said. “He was such a dedicated young man.”

McFadden’s wife remains on active duty in the Air Force in the Panama City area, which is why he began working at the boot camp, his father said.

McFadden Sr. defended his son’s innocence.

“We’re not happy about what happened at all,” he said. “That’s a dad’s concern. You’ll always be a protector and a provider. … It’s just not a good feeling to have something like this hanging over you all the time.”

Reporter Josh Poltilove contributed to this report.

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