Florida Jail Chief’s Firing Upheld, Retaliation Lawsuit Headed to Trial
On February 2, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida scheduled trial to begin two years later on the claim of former Volusia County Corrections Director Mark Flowers, 60, that he was fired in retaliation for blowing the whistle on guard brutality.
The underlying incident unfolded on April 26, 2022, when detainee Justin Caruthers, 35, reported that guards gave him no commands when they arrived at his shared cell to remove his cellmate and then “pummeled” Caruthers without provocation. Flowers requested an internal affairs (IA) investigation, and Caruthers told IA investigators that he “was sitting on the bed” and not thinking guards were interested in him “because they didn’t give me any orders” when suddenly “somebody grabbed my right arm, pulled me, and connected me and then I just got [passed] around like a pinball.” He said he did not resist during the incident, even as “his head was slammed against the wall” and “he was punched multiple times in the head and face,” the investigators recalled in their report, before he was finally “slammed on the floor.” Caruthers could not identify the guards who hit him. The assault left him with bruised knees, black eyes, knots on his head and a cut above his right eye, he said.
However, the investigation found discrepancies in witness statements and an absence of conclusive surveillance footage. Jail nurse Crystal Christian observed part of the incident but couldn’t confirm head strikes. Guards denied striking the detainee above the shoulders, though some admitted using force after Caruthers allegedly resisted commands. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement reviewed the case, but no criminal charges were filed.
Meanwhile Flowers was diagnosed with cancer and took a two-month medical leave. When he returned to work in early August 2022, he heard rumors that County Public Protection Director Mark Swanson had questioned the impact of cancer treatment on Flowers’ work. County Manager George Recktenwald reportedly told him, “When you took over the Division, all I would get from people is how good of a job you are doing, now all I’m getting are complaints and people not happy with your leadership style.”
Flowers filed a complaint on August 12, 2022, accusing Recktenwald of covering up guard misconduct in the Caruthers incident. Three days later, Flowers was placed on leave. He got a termination notice on December 6, 2022. Swanson upheld the firing, which was effective on January 6, 2023.
Meanwhile, represented by attorneys Kelly H. Chanfrau and Taylor G. Carley of Chanfrau & Chanfrau in Daytona Beach, Flowers filed suit in state court accusing the County, Recktenwald and Swanson of violating his civil rights. Defendants removed the case to the federal district court, where it remains pending; PLN will update developments as they are available. See: Flowers v. Volusia Cty., USDC (M.D. Fla.), Case No. 6:23-cv-02365.
Additional sources: Daytona Beach News-Journal, West Volusia Beacon
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