Fla. officer who arrested woman cleared in her death
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A Blountstown police officer who arrested and handcuffed a Florida woman a little more than an hour before she died at a hospital will not be charged with a crime.
The decision, made by State Attorney Glenn Hess, puts an end to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's criminal investigation into the December incident. The death of 57-year-old Barbara Dawson made international headlines and caused skepticism by some who alleged she was mistreated.
Hess said the decision was made based on an FDLE investigative summary.
"The State Attorney's Office is closing this case with a finding that the actions of (Officer) John Tadlock were appropriate under the circumstances and there was no criminal law violation," Hess wrote in a May 16 letter to FDLE Special Agent Travis Lawson.
FDLE spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger said the investigative report was not yet available.
Tadlock arrested and handcuffed Dawson at Calhoun Liberty Hospital in the early morning hours of Dec. 21 after Dawson refused to leave after being discharged. Dawson, who was disconnected from her oxygen machine, complained of trouble breathing as she was led to the police car. She later collapsed in the parking lot and died from a blood clot in her lung.
Following Dawson's death, community members questioned the actions of the Blountstown Police Department and Calhoun Liberty Hospital staff. Two nurses and a paramedic were fired as a result of the incident. FDLE and the state Agency for Health Care Administration launched investigations. AHCA fined the hospital after it found 10 deficiencies related to Dawson's treatment and that of another patient.
Blountstown Police Chief Mark Mallory said Tadlock acted correctly from a law enforcement standpoint. Tadlock, Mallory said, could only take the guidance of hospital workers, who told him during the arrest that Dawson was fine despite her pleas.
"The loss of anybody's loved one is still a tragedy," he said. "I just don't believe that there was any action by the police that led to any of Ms. Dawson's conditions."
After her death, Dawson's family hired the prominent civil rights law firm Parks and Crump, based in Tallahassee. Efforts to reach the attorneys were unsuccessful on Friday.
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