Jackson County residents demand sheriff’s office changes practices

MARIANNA, Fla. ( WMBB ) — Jackson County residents gathered at a town hall meeting Tuesday night to discuss changes they demand to see at the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.

They say deputies must change how they treat the citizens they serve.

“Let me tell you, there are some more issues that are about to make their debut in Jackson County that have gone too long unaddressed,” NAACP Jackson County branch President Adrian Abner said.

This discussion stems from the alleged wrongful arrest of Ervin Mathis.

On July 4, 2022, the 61 year old was arrested by Jackson County Sheriff’s deputies who were responding to a domestic abuse call. The physically disabled man told deputies they were at the wrong house, but they took him into custody anyway. Many claim this behavior is a systematic issue that has existed for years, not just during Sheriff Donnie Edenfield’s term.

“There are people of all races that have issues going on with our law enforcement agency here in Jackson County. I see it as an issue among people, and especially we’re seeing a trend of people who have a voice and that speak out and say something about things. It’s not solely a race issue,” Abner said.

Residents say sheriff’s deputies will watch them or use intimidation tactics to keep them quiet on issues like the Mathis case. Jackson County local John McKinnie says he saw patrol cars posted outside of his house a number of times after bringing the case to light.

“They followed me to my gate. They were already in about 300 or 400 yards of private property. I asked them what they were doing, and they said they were just going down Tanglewood road. I said, well, Tanglewood Road is private property. I just turned around, went back and got in my truck,” said McKinnie.

Residents had the opportunity to fill out redress forms at the meeting. This gives them a chance to share more information about the Mathis case or other personal matters.

“Those forms are used when individuals have complaints, legal grievances. They submit their form and we review it, our Legal Redress Committee. Oftentimes, like the Mathis case, that form may be escalated. The Mathis case was escalated from our branch to our Florida state conference,” Abner said.

The NAACP Jackson County branch is also pursuing a patterns and practices investigation into the sheriff’s office.

“When we look at patterns and practices, that’s looking at incidents that have occurred that may reveal a trend or a pattern of people being treated disparately or people being ignored. Patterns and practices is there to address behavior and practices that need to be looked at and investigated further by entities outside of Jackson County,” Abner said.

Jackson County Sheriff Donnie Edenfield spoke publicly about the Mathis case for the first time Monday. He says his deputies followed the proper protocols, and he welcomes any investigation residents feel needs to be done.

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