published: Friday, January 02, 2009

Year in Review: Despite problems, Benton re-elected

By TREY CHRISTY

trey.christy@newssun.com

SEBRING -- It was a busy year for the Highlands County Sheriff's Office evidence room as it was inventoried multiple times.

The initial inventory was headed by Steven Newell, a 32-year law enforcement veteran who worked on a part- time basis with the HCSO.

He resigned Aug. 6 in protest of Benton's handling of his report.

The report was sent to Benton with a date of Feb. 19 but not released in full for months.

The 13-page report was whittled down to five pages for release to the public months before.

Benton's reasons for not releasing the report were because it was highly flawed, she said, adding she had "no confidence in the inventory (Newell) conducted."

Jerry Hill, state attorney for the 10th judicial circuit, made his knowledge of the still lingering "concerns" of the evidence room apparent on Aug. 29 in a letter to Benton.

"Evidence processing and storage is an increasingly large job. It also is most often the key to a successful prosecution," he wrote.

Benton's five-page report noted 33 items that were missing.

"It appears these items were inadvertently placed in a location for disposal and were disposed," the five page report stated.

After a two-hour meeting between Hill and Benton on Sept. 10, Hill ordered her to take another inventory.

He required all the guns, drugs, cash and DNA evidence be accounted for along with 25 percent of the 35,000 bulk items -- all within 30 days.

"By requiring that these matters be presented in one month, the public can be assured nothing is being hidden until after the election," Hill wrote in the letter dated Sept. 11.

Benton's handling of the evidence inventory was a big part of her opponent's campaign.

Ron Grimming, who ran against Benton, mailed out fliers describing the Newell report and its findings.

Grimming was endorsed by the Police Benevolent Association, who also sent information to voters.

"We think (Benton) has totally shown she is incapable of handling this job," said Jim Spearing, a political consultant for the PBA, in mid October. "Everything (in the evidence room) is now suspect as far as for criminal defense lawyers."

This was echoed by Hill in a final letter to Benton on Oct. 17 in response to his required inventory.

"Every item taken into the evidence room must be properly processed or it can in fact become the centerpiece of an effective defense," he wrote.

Some marijuana growhouse cases have been compromised and the State Attorney's Office is having to litigate defense motions as a result.

Benton acknowledged there was a problem and said her agency was overwhelmed, ran out of space, and that human error was a factor as well.

Over the course of the year, she said the county's evidence handling has greatly improved.

Hill agreed, writing that he was "convinced that the evidence handling and evidence protocol are far better today than it was in the recent past."

As the election came closer Benton said the evidence room was no longer a problem.

"We feel really confident that the problems have been identified, solutions have been implemented and the future is only going to be better," she said just weeks before the election.

After her re-election, Benton said she planned on using Grimming's criticisms to strengthen the sheriff's office.