The office of State Attorney Brian Haas changed how it handles cases of juveniles suspected of lying to law enforcement about sexual assaults following a 2016 Polk County case that received national attention recently.
In that case, a 12-year-old girl was charged with making false statements to a Polk County sheriff’s detective about being raped by her great uncle, who was also her adoptive father; the detective said the evidence did not back up her claims.
It was only after he raped her again and she secretly took photos and videos of the act that the uncle was prosecuted, pleaded guilty and sentenced to 17 years in state prison.
Despite criticism of a detective’s work on the case, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office has not changed its policy regarding questioning victims alleging sexual abuse, which states detectives should “be compassionate.”
“Oftentimes, those who you think may be untruthful are found to be actual victims,” the policy states. “Don’t take that chance.”
The detective in the case, Melissa Turnage, was issued a “letter of retraining” in late October of this year after her supervisor listened to a recording of Turnage’s sometimes harsh questioning of the pre-teen.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd declined to comment for this article.
PBS Newshour profiled the case in October in a report produced by the Center for Investigative Reporting. It was part of a multiyear investigation that identified hundreds of similar cases across the country in which police criminalized the people reporting sexual assault.
The changes: Jacob Orr, a spokesman for the State Attorney’s Office for Florida’s 10th Judicial Circuit, said they were horrified to learn that the girl – Taylor Cadle, now 21 – had been telling the truth all along.
“The State Attorney’s Office was provided evidence that (Taylor) did not commit any crime, but was the victim of horrible abuse,” Orr said. “Immediately, this office moved to vacate her sentence and dismissed the charges against her.”
The office also prosecuted the uncle, Henry Cadle, who was sentenced to 17 years in prison on Feb 15, 2019. He is currently serving that time in Graceville Correctional Facility in Florida’s Panhandle. He is also a registered sexual predator and will be on probation for the rest of his life if he is ever released.
Since that case, the State Attorney’s Office created a policy that “requires administration be consulted prior to charging a juvenile that claims to be a victim of sexual abuse,” Orr added. “Since that time, three cases have been filed in similar situations; however, each of those included irrefutable evidence proving the falsehood.”
Letter of retraining: On Oct. 17, as PBS NewsHour worked on its report, PCSO Capt. Dina Russell issued a letter of retraining to Turnage.
“While reviewing the case file, I listened to an audio interview you conducted with the victim,” Russell wrote. “During review, it is clear you were trying to determine if the victim was being truthful regarding her allegations. Several of your questions and comments were inappropriate. While your intent may have been to elicit the truth and gather essential information, referencing personal circumstances such as foster care or financial hardships can create an environment of discomfort, fear, mistrust and is simply unacceptable.”
Russell said Turnage violated the general order that deals with competency, job knowledge and proficiency. She was required to successfully complete a course in interview and interrogation techniques from the Police One Academy Online.
“Please use this as a learning tool for awareness regarding the proper interview techniques when questioning victims,” Russell wrote. “I am confident you will take the appropriate steps to prevent any similar events in the future.”
The original case: In 2013, Taylor Cadle was 9 years old and sent to live with her great aunt and great uncle, Henry and Lisa Cadle, at their home in the Green Swamp near Polk City. Taylor’s biological parents struggled with drug issues and she and her younger brother had first been placed in foster care before a judge felt the two children would be better off with the couple. The couple adopted Taylor and her brother.
Taylor said the sexual abuse by her uncle began after her arrival.
In the original 2016 affidavit Turnage filed, Taylor graphically described several sexual batteries and sexual assaults she endured at the hands of Henry Cadle – at least once while Lisa Cadle slept beside her.
The case zeroed in on the most immediate assault, which Taylor said took place on the evening of July 30, 2016 – the day before she reported it. Taylor said she had told her uncle she wanted to visit an aunt who was dying of cancer in a Tampa hospital. On the way home from that visit, she said they stopped at a Taco Bell for dinner and then a Zephyrhills convenience store, where she said Henry Cadle bought condoms. On the way to their home, he pulled over along the side of Rockridge Road and raped her, she said.
It was a routine that she said she was familiar with: He would pull over; at his command she would climb from the backseat of the truck or car into the passenger-side front seat; he would walk around to her side of the vehicle and assault her. If a car drove by, she was instructed to lie down on the floorboard while he would pretend to urinate.
The next day, as the family went to a church in Brandon, the Cadles took Taylor’s phone away from her because she was texting someone and not playing a game. The former was not allowed, but the latter was. When they arrived at church, Taylor was crying and the pastor’s wife pulled Taylor aside to ask what was wrong. That’s when Taylor divulged that Henry Cadle had been forcing her to have sex with him for years. The pastor’s wife called law enforcement.
The Cadles both said Taylor was lying because she had gotten into trouble over her phone.
Detective’s findings: A Hillsborough County deputy arrived at the church and questioned Taylor. Then Detective Turnage was called in because the assaults had all happened in Polk County.
Despite detailed, graphic descriptions of the abuse that had taken place for three years, Turnage had to find evidence to back up Taylor’s statements and prove Taylor’s case in court. But what she found were a list of inconsistencies, among them:
- No condoms found in Henry Cadle’s truck when Taylor said he had put them in a pocket along a door.
- No video evidence from the Zephyrhills convenience store showing Henry Cadle went there when Taylor said he had.
- No DNA evidence found in Taylor’s underwear, on Taylor’s clothes, in Henry Cadle’s truck or in Lisa Cadle’s car.
- Taylor first saying Henry Cadle had raped her 20 times in the previous week, then saying it was five times, then saying three times.
When Turnage returned for a follow-up interview with Taylor, she repeated questions she had asked Taylor before (a common detective technique), asked if she was making the accusation because she was mad at her uncle and also warned Taylor that if she continued to accuse Henry Cadle, there would be consequences.
Turnage asked in an angry tone: “If you’re mad because you got your phone taken away, let’s say that now and be done with it.” … “Do you want to go live back in foster care? Because more than likely, if he’s arrested, they’re not going to let you stay there. If it’s not the truth, you’re fixing to hurt a lot of people.”
Taylor told Turnage, “Everything I told you earlier is not a lie.”
Charges: On December 14, 2016, Turnage submitted an affidavit to the State Attorney’s Office, stating that Tayor had provided false information to a law enforcement officer.
“Based on the facts gathered and the available evidence, there is not enough to support the elements of a criminal charge against Henry Cadle,” Turnage wrote. “There is, however, enough probable cause to establish (Taylor) lied during a felony investigation. It was determined (Taylor) falsified information in the initial investigation, and all lab results returned negative.”
Taylor was then charged as a juvenile with lying to law enforcement. In May 2017, Lisa Cadle convinced Taylor to plead guilty to get the case over with as soon as possible. On June 27, 2017, she was placed on probation and Henry Cadle was allowed to live with Taylor again at the Polk City house the Cadles shared.
One month later, Henry Cadle raped Taylor again. But this time, she managed to take a video and photos of evidence and the rape, the affidavit shows. The cellphone time- and date-stamped all the photos and video. She also hid the condom box under the truck’s seat, where a different detective later found it.
When they returned home, she called 9-1-1. She was 13 years old and Henry Cadle was 58. In February 2019, he was sent to prison.
Cadle was not available to LkldNow for comment.
Turnage background: Turnage is a decorated veteran of the Sheriff’s Office, with a commendation for saving a woman’s life. But she also has several disciplinary actions on her record.
On Feb. 14, 2011, Maj. Larry Williams commended Turange (then DeReus), for her “quick action” in saving the life of a woman who had locked herself out of her home and, when she tried to force a window open, had accidentally cut her wrist.
“You then applied a sterile gauze pad and pressure to the victim’s laceration to prevent the victim from bleeding out,” Williams wrote. “You are commended on a job well done. Great job!”
Other commendations:
- In 2010 for identifying two suspects participating in bank fraud and personally capturing one of the men
- In 2015 for earning her master’s degree in business administration while working full-time.
- In 2018 for helping colleagues secure and repair their homes following Hurricane Irma,
- In 2019 for earning a master deputy rank for those “who have distinguished themselves as seasoned veterans who are committed to continuous learning and mentoring of fellow members.
- In 2020 as part of a team, for helping to capture a fleeing car thief.
- Also in 2020 for gifting a disabled and ill Oklahoma girl with law enforcement memorabilia and traditional birthday gifts.
Turnage discipline: Her personnel file also shows four discipline actions taken against her. Because the Polk County Sheriff’s Office claims Florida administrative rules allow for the facts of the disciplinary action to be expunged from a law enforcement officer’s records after five years, officials provided only a list of the dates of Turnage’s discipline and their results:
- 6-17-2018 – Suspension from duty without pay (it doesn’t say how long)
- 12-16-2016 – Letter of reprimand
- 12-28-2015 – Letter of guidance
- 8-2-2009 – Letter of retraining
However, Reveal, the publication of the Center for Investigative Reporting, obtained copies of the details of those disciplinary incidents. They reveal three errors in the cases of sex abuse of children.
Two days after Turnage filed the affidavit accusing Taylor of lying in 2016, she received a disciplinary letter from a lieutenant regarding another juvenile sexual assault case.
The man Turnage arrested in that case had no tattoos, while a video of the assault showed visible tattoos on the suspect, Reveal reported. “It is imperative that as a detective you look at the totality of the circumstances and all evidence present in developing probable cause to make an arrest,” the disciplinary letter read. “You are a valued member of this agency and I am confident this will not recur.”
Reveal also reported Turnage was suspended for eight hours in November 2015 when she failed to read a key part of the Miranda rights to a man suspected in a child sexual assault and his confession was suppressed.
In December 2015, she left for Christmas vacation without bringing a suspect in for questioning or informing her supervisors after she interviewed children who alleged their father was raping them, Reveal reported. An arrest was made when other detectives discovered the seriousness of the accusations.
“Your decision to not complete this investigation or advise me of the interview results is inexcusable,” her supervisor wrote in a letter that year, Reveal reported. “Disclosures made by children in this case must be acted upon immediately if the investigation allows for it.”
Polk’s juveniles charged with obstruction: From 2019 to 2023,Polk County juveniles were charged with obstructing justice, which includes false reporting, at more than twice the state average, Reveal reported.
Data from Florida’s Department of Juvenile Justice shows that 176 juveniles were charged with misdemeanor obstruction of justice during that period. The median annual rate of children for Polk was 21 per 100,000 juveniles; the state average was 10.
