FDLE members from throughout Florida were honored in Tallahassee this week for their outstanding performances last year. Nearly 50 members from Jacksonville’s Regional Operations Center were honored, more than any other FDLE region.
FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass says, “FDLE has incredible members committed to thoughtful, innovative advancements that continue to make FDLE a premiere law enforcement agency in Florida, and the country. These members strive to enhance our criminal justice partnerships and to find ways to improve how we keep Florida’s citizens and visitors safe. I am honored to recognize these nominees and award winners for their selfless commitment to service and excellence.”
FDLE Jacksonville’s entire investigations and forensic team received the Distinguished Team of the Year award for their dedication to public safety following the shooting death of a Nassau County Deputy.
Distinguished Team of the Year – Investigations and Forensics, Jacksonville Regional Operations Center (JROC), Keesha Nauss, Mike O’Neal, Travis Smith, Joshua Mead, Andrew Shedlock, George Dandelake, David Meacham, Michael Clark, Garrett Carlisle, Rusty Rodgers, Daniel Pierson, Veronica Edwards, Scott Guess, Joel Palmer, Kacie Reynolds, Jason Still, Jami Pena, David Maurer, Margaret Rhatigan, Steven Hoesing, Robert Sammons, Peter Moulder, David Brock, William Bowes, Morgan Finley, Peter Soulis, Amanda Walton, Maggie Kleindienst, Tonya Rives, Jennifer Koonce, Marissa Delaney, Jami Beers, Mitchell Sheffield, Brad Thomas, Lisa Zeller, Jason Hitt, Daniel Escalada, William Spannhake, Maria Andreoli, Erin Morris, David DeHaan, Nicholas Coutu, Brooke Hoover and Maysaa Farhat
In the early hours of September 24, 2021, Nassau County Deputy Sheriff Joshua Moyers performed a traffic stop on a convicted felon. The felon shot Deputy Moyers and fled. Deputy Moyers succumbed to his injuries and an extensive manhunt began for his murderer. FDLE Jacksonville special agents, crime intelligence analysts and crime scene members responded and a Joint Command Center was established. FDLE led the joint investigation that included more than 20 local, state and federal agencies. After extensive investigation, the suspect was apprehended five days after Deputy Moyers was murdered. The JROC response was a 24-hour a day operation resulting in over 1,350 investigative hours and hundreds of forensic hours.
In addition, Jacksonville Crime Laboratory Analyst Molly Carter and Crime Laboratory Analyst Trainee Jennifer Eatmon were recognized as part of a team for the Innovation of the Year award.
Innovation of the Year – Biology Laboratory Information Management System (BIO-LIMS) Development Team, Rachel Aponte, Molly Carter, Christopher Conklin, Jennifer Eatmon, Chris Hendry, Maria Hiott, Victoria Kipker, Jack Martin, Tim Miller, Michelle Mullins, Steve Rutledge, Jillian White, Xujing Sun, Brandon Floyd, Donna Carney and Kurt Posey
With FDLE’s six regional laboratories, maintenance of forensic examination records is of the utmost importance, particularly when you consider the approximately 60,000 distinct cases and 1 million items of evidence handled in a calendar year. Case file storage space, cost and efficiency issues led to an initiative to go paperless and in 2021, the BIO-LIMS project was introduced. The BIO-LIMS team, alongside members from Information Technology Services, devoted thousands of hours, including weekends, to minimize impact to laboratory operations during normal working hours. This diverse team brought together distinct regional needs into an adaptable, innovative product that will improve consistency, minimize errors, reduce the physical paper footprint and simplify statewide quality review processes that will leave a long-lasting positive impact to FDLE’s service in the field of forensic Biology and DNA.
