The prosecutor in Franklin County says he's not concerned about the way evidence is being handling in the sheriff's office. |
The prosecutor in Franklin County says he's not concerned about the way evidence is being handling in the sheriff's office.
Cliff Hapgood says the report of one deputy taking a box of evidence home is unrelated to any pending cases.
This is the case that led to the indictment of Sheriff Ewell Hunt last month.
A special grand jury concluded evidence remains unaccounted for, and cites what it called a "systemic problem with evidence handling" that goes back to Hunt's predecessor, Sheriff Quint Overton.
"It's not a systemic problem in handling evidence," said Hapgood.
He says former drug investigator Allen Arrington is the only deputy who ever took evidence home with him.
"I don't mean to split hairs with you, but it's obviously a big difference if you have it locked up in a secured place in your office, or you've got it in an unsecured place at your house," said Hapgood.
"Well some of it was in the truck of a car," said News7's Keith Humphry.
"That's a locked, secured place," said Hapgood.
Court record shows Sheriff Hunt stands charged with a simple misdemeanor: "failure to maintain adequate investigative records."
Even Hapgood, with 30-some years experience, is hard pressed to explain the record-keeping charge.
"Could that give us a clue as to what's going on here?," asked Humphry. "I don't know. You see there's no way to know," said Hapgood.
Hapgood disqualified himself from handling the case. So he can't say much about the investigation or the case against Sheriff Hunt, but he's satisfied evidence is secure in the sheriff's office.
"I know that the drug people had their own file cabinets," said Hapgood. "There was not one evidence room where everything was stored in the drug department."
The special grand jury did spell out the charge this month. It alleged the sheriff failed to "maintain required documentation regarding evidence handling."
PREVIOUS STORIES:
