Deputy Ken Turner Accused of Obtaining Prescription Pills Illegally

SARASOTA COUNTY


A Sarasota sheriff's deputy quit his job and is under criminal investigation for doctor shopping after being accused of obtaining thousands of prescription pills from local physicians.

Deputy Ken Turner resigned last month in the midst of an internal affairs investigation. The inquiry, authorities say, showed that Turner went to 11 local doctors, obtained more than 1,700 pills and often visited pharmacies in his sheriff's uniform.

Legal observers say the allegations may jeopardize criminal cases worked by Turner, and local defense attorneys plan to review his role in several trials.

"We will look at all the cases that he was involved in," said Elliott Metcalfe, the public defender.

"Any time you have an instance of criminal behavior, of lying, of drug addiction, a witness's credibility comes into question," he said. "It's something we have to look into."

The number of cases that Turner would have been called to testify in as a witness was not immediately clear, but Sheriff's Office records show that he made at least four arrests in the four months he is accused of buying the drugs.

Three of those cases are still open.

"The sheriff is concerned and he will be talking to the State Attorney's Office," said Lt. Chuck Lesaltato, an agency spokesman.

Turner started at the Sheriff's Office in November 2001, briefly worked in the community policing division and was on patrol since June 2005. He made $50,000 a year.

Internal affairs records show that department officials were tipped off to potential drug use in August, when he had a doctor's appointment and was prescribed a powerful narcotic, oxycodone.

When Turner did not tell his supervisors about the prescription -- as is the practice in most police agencies -- investigators began to check out local pharmacies, looking for instances where the deputy was obtaining drugs.

They reportedly found that between July and September, Turner received 24 prescriptions and 1,737 pills. Lt. Mike Mercurio spoke with several local doctors, who said they did not know that other physicians were prescribing the pills.

Turner resigned Oct. 6. He could not be reached for comment.

A few days later, internal investigators turned over their findings to criminal detectives. A department spokesman said Monday that a criminal investigation was ongoing.