Internal affairs investigation released into Nate Allen arrest

The truck was too tall, he didn't match the description and the police didn't use the right law.

Those are some of the problems highlighted in a 646-page report the Fort Myers Police Department released Friday on the wrongful arrest of NFL player Nate Allen on Feb. 16.

Internal affairs reports show it took almost three hours for the department to become aware that a mistake was made in arresting Allen because the wrong statute was applied. The recommendation to release Allen on his own recognizance was echoed by the state attorney's office at 8:50 p.m. that same night. Even then, Allen was held until almost 10:30 p.m.

Allen, a Cape Coral High graduate who's now a defensive back for the Oakland Raiders, was taken into custody after a 16-year-old victim identified him as a man masturbating in a car next to hers along Cleveland Avenue. He was held for over five hours — for a misdemeanor offense.

Officer Timothy McCormick was called to the scene for backup, and Sgt. Jacquelyn Garrett was in charge, according to reports.

During his interview, McCormick said he was the one who handcuffed and detained Allen, but after he saw the size of Allen's truck versus the victim's car, he said he didn't want anything to do with the case from that point forward, reports say.

He said his chin was up to the window in order to see into Allen's truck, and the victim would've had to be at a similar height to see what she claimed. That's when he started feeling uncomfortable, he said.

When asked if he expressed this to anyone else, McCormick said he told everyone at least once that he didn't think Allen was involved, reports say. Garrett disputes this to investigators calling McCormick a liar and saying he never mentioned his feelings during the course of the arrest.

At a news conference last week, Allen stood by his lawyer as they vowed to sue the city and its police department in federal court because of the way the case was handled. Sawyer Smith, Allen's attorney, said the Fort Myers City Council needs to hold the police department accountable. He said there needs to be an "explanation as to how we go from here and how we begin restoring trust in our police department and our city leadership."

McCormick also had problems with the victim's description, which was a man between 40 and 50 years old with gray facial hair.

"But Mr. Allen does not look anywhere between 40 and 50 years old and his facial hair was just growing," McCormick said in his interview. He said Allen's facial hair was barely visible with the color of his skin.

McCormick said he found the law that relates to children under 16 to show to other officers but he didn't decipher it or give an opinion. The law was chosen by Officer Rebecca Milhoan, who read the statute out loud to her fellow officers at the scene. They all agreed it was correct.

But the victim was driving alone at the time, and she had to be at least 16 years old to do so, meaning the statute did not pertain to her.

Milhoan resigned from her position prior to the completion of the internal affairs investigation. She told investigators she had not realized the statute pertained to victims 15 years old and younger.

McCormick put Allen in another car and left the scene.

The Fort Myers Police Department declined to comment because of pending litigation.

More than 10 people were interviewed for the internal affairs investigation. Phone records requested as part of the investigation show that a number of top Fort Myers Police Department administrators were trading calls and text messages about Allen's case, including Chief Doug Baker, Capt. James Mulligan, Capt. Melvin Perry, Lt. William Newhouse, Lt. Victor Medico and Lt. William Mustante.

During his initial interview, Sgt. Shawn Yates, who was exonerated as a result of the department's internal review, said he received a phone call from Garrett at 5:33 p.m. informing him that Allen had been arrested and advising him of the circumstances. Yates said he then contacted Detective Audenia Thomas, who specializes in sex and child crimes, because he wanted to make sure they had a good interview with the victim because the nature of the allegation was "pretty damning, or could be."

Yates said he gave Thomas an abbreviated rundown of what Garrett said had occurred and told Thomas to involve the department's Child Protective Team, or CPT.

"And this is one of the things in reviewing, looking back on this case ... where I see the potential problem," Yates said. "(The CPT interview is) gonna add a couple of hours to what eventually, you know, caused a problem with this case."

The Child Protective Team did not interview the victim until shortly after 8 p.m., two-and-a-half hours after Allen's arrest. It was around 8:10 p.m. that Medico realized the mistake in the statute. Medico, the public information officer, told an investigator he realized the kind of attention the story was going to get when he received a call from ESPN looking to confirm Allen's arrest. He was at home at the time of the call, but suited up and returned to work. There, he began working with officers who were on the scene to put together a news release, when he noticed they charged Allen under the wrong law.

Still, more than two hours passed before Allen would be released. After his discovery, Medico notified Mulligan, who was acting chief at the time because Baker was out of town, reports say.

Yates said he received a phone call by Mustante at 8:44 p.m. telling him that they had to release Allen because the charge was a misdemeanor, not a felony. However, Yates said he told Mustante he wanted some time to run the facts by Francine Donnorummo, the department's liaison at the state attorney's office.

"I'm a supervisor and I should know the majority of this stuff but it's not an area of expertise," Yates said.

During a 10-minute conversation with Donnorummo that ended at approximately 9 p.m., Yates said they discussed releasing Allen with a summons to appear in court at a later date. In an email to the investigator, Donnorummo said she told them to release Allen on his own recognizance.

Newhouse and Donnorummo spoke on the phone after that. In his statement to investigators, Newhouse said he didn't agree with releasing Allen on his own recognizance to be summoned in the morning because that would imply he had been arrested. Instead, he thought it would be better to fully interview him and then have him released.

"She gave the suggestion of ROR," Newhouse said of releasing Allen on his own recognizance. "I didn't agree with that. That we needed to let the guy go."

Allen was released at 10:25 p.m. He was in custody for approximately five hours. Weeks later, the state attorney's office released its own investigation clearing Allen's name.

The actual perpetrator of the crime has yet to be arrested.

Matt Sellers, the president of the police union, said he could not comment on the punishment given to the four officers because he represents them.

However, he said the investigation uncovered that Baker lied in his statements to investigators about a call he made to Perry the night of the arrest about needing to release Allen because he was charged with a misdemeanor.

Phone records show it was a missed call.

"In my opinion, there is clear evidence that the chief was untruthful and in my opinion, I think he should leave," Sellers said.

Though a spokesman declined to comment Friday, the chief has called it an isolated incident. In previous comments, he apologized to Allen for his detainment and said the punishments given out will "correct actions in the future."

The officers' discipline

The internal affairs investigation reprimanded four officers:

Sgt. Jacquelyn Garrett was given a weeklong suspension without pay for failing to properly investigate a crime and falsely arresting Allen. She is a 16-year veteran.

Detective Audenia Thomas was given a three-day suspension without pay for failing to properly investigate when called to assist road patrol. She is a 17-year veteran.

Officer Gloria Camacho was ordered to undergo written counseling for failing to check on Allen in his holding cell at least once every 30 minutes. She is a seven-year veteran.

Former Officer Rebecca Milhoan received a written reprimand for failing to interpret the Florida statute regarding lewd and lascivious arrest, resulting in Allen's arrest. Milhoan, who started in 2007, resigned from the force May.

A fifth officer, Sgt. Shawn Yates, was exonerated.