Florida Deputy Charged With Sexual Assault







To highlight corruption in law enforcement today has almost become a regular practice by the media and other activists campaigning for more accountability to be placed upon police officers for committing crimes either on or off-duty. Though many police officers do not welcome such exposure of fellow officers being caught committing immoral and unethical acts, there is an appropriateness to it.

With that in mind, shifting my focus to a story found on CNN, I have decided today to blog and reflect upon a Florida Deputy. Deputy, rather former deputy, Evan Cramer, was arrested for committing sexual assault on a woman while on duty. The sad realization to this particular deputy’s incident is that he used the leverage that the victim had an outstanding warrant out for her arrest. Upon learning that she was wanted, Cramer placed the woman in his patrol car and drove two miles to an empty parking lot, which is where the sexual act took place. The woman finally arrived home at 2 a.m., yet she waited until much later in the day to report the misconduct of the officer. 

Appropriately, at the bond hearing, Evan Cramer was given an $850,000 bond by the judge. To those who know how the system of bail bonds work, Cramer will have to post at least ten percent of the bond, which amounts to $85,000. Cramer even asked for a public defender for his case after pleading not guilty to the charges. The victim in this particular case even further elaborated on the deputy’s conduct by stating that he spoke as if he had committed such acts before with other females.

Incidents such as this destroy the trust of law enforcement officers from the community. Especially in today’s society, when citizens have a propensity to be litigious and demonstrate their disdain for law enforcement agencies by protesting, this incident only further damages the image of police officers across the nation. 

I am not one to condemn fellow police officers or cast doubt upon the badge. I take great pride in my service to my community, as well as my service to my country. However, officers such as Evan Cramer are responsible for the degradation of the image, perception, and trust that the citizens of this country have for law enforcement officers. This type of behavior not only brings to mind questions about the severity of criminal charges; It also creates, at least in a reasonable person’s mind, the doubt of how ethics are reinforced in a law enforcement agency.

Clearly this violation is direct disregard for the Police Officer Code of Ethics and the ethics policy of the department he was working for. It also brings to mind the further pondering of, “What was he thinking?” 

What makes police officers such as Evan Cramer commit such atrocious acts while hiding behind the authority that the badge gives them? What makes police officers completely disregard their ethical and moral obligation to the community and their profession? Would it be appropriate for the court that is trying this case to consider any mitigating circumstances such as what may be happening in Evan Cramer’s life? 

Essentially, there is no excuse for such egregious acts being committed by police officers. We, as ambassadors of the law, have a duty and obligation to hold ourselves to a higher standard while performing our duties. We have an obligation to ensure that we do not commit any acts that are direct violations of the ethical implications that being a police officer carries with it. 

Evan Cramer should be held accountable for his actions and charged with the highest criminal offense that is appropriate to the allegations brought upon him. Perhaps even more disturbing is that he committed this act while wearing the uniform, may have committed the act in the past, and believed in his mind that committing such acts was appropriate. 

Food for thought: Should law enforcement agencies work toward designing some type of vetting program that will give an indication as to the ethical standard that candidates hold themselves to?

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Comments

  1. Hmmmm. Question though. What more can you do other than a thorough background, polygraph, and cameras in the car? Two cops per car?

    The one upside of this incident is, if the allegations are true, the system is working as the deputy has been arraigned.

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  2. When in the academy, an instructor put up a slide of newspaper article headlined something like, "Cop arrested for domestic violence." He then told us: "From this day forward, if YOU do something wrong, the newspaper headline will start with the word COP. It will make the rest of us look like sh*t. So, DON'T screw up." I've remembered that ever since. Good words to live by.

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