That's hard to say. Honestly there are so many men in Jefferson County who seem to think this is the perfect look for them that it could be very difficult for someone to tell them apart - especially if you've never met in person. From the sound of the report, he had no idea but that doesn't mean much. I've seen too many police reports leave out information or add things that didn't happen.
People are under the impression that police don't lie but my experience has been they lie just as much as anyone else and sometimes far more. The big difference is that their word is ALWAYS assumed to be true by judges and juries. I believe that is one of the biggest problems we have with any LE - they are always given the benefit of the doubt and assumed to be nothing but honest and having integrity. Because of this, they are literally allowed to "police" themselves which inevitably leads to incompetence and corruption. And I don't believe this problem is specific to only Jefferson County - I'm willing to bet that there are many, many counties across this country, especially large rural counties, that have the exact same problem. The only way to fix this problem is for the public to decide to hold these departments accountable thru outside reviews, citizen reviews, or some other independent policing. Otherwise, all this incompetence, corruption, and favoritism will continue.
I had an attorney tell me once that policing and the judicial system were about enforcing the LAW, and often the law has very little to do with JUSTICE. At the time I thought he was simply jaded by too many years in the system but I've learned he was dead on. I'm hoping that Florida's LE working this case are competent, unbiased, and interested in justice and the law. Unfortunately after experiencing the exact opposite for most of my life, I'm not going to hold my breath.
