ST. LUCIE COUNTY, FLORIDA – A St. Lucie County sheriff’s deputy is facing a criminal sex charge after a woman accused him of forcing her to perform a sex act on him while he was on patrol, Sheriff Ken Mascara said Tuesday at a news conference.
Matthew Blair Morris, 33, is charged with sexual battery by a law enforcement officer and official misconduct of a law enforcement officer after a 41-year-old Fort Pierce woman accused him of the crime, Mascara said.
“I promise this community we will fully and impartially investigate all such incidents,” Mascara said.
Morris, who had been placed on unpaid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, is in the St. Lucie County Jail without bail for the sexual battery offense and in lieu of $10,000 bail for the official misconduct charge. Mascara said he requested Morris be placed on a suicide watch because he feared the three-year deputy would harm himself.
“The actions of Matthew Morris are a stain on the honor and good name of every member of the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office, including me,” Mascara said.
Morris, who Mascara said is married with two children, told investigators the early-morning sex was consensual.
Mascara said there could be other victims and asks that anyone with information about the case to call the Sheriff’s Office detective bureau at 772-462-3230.
If convicted, Morris faces up to 30 years on the sexual battery charge and five years for the official misconduct charge, said officials with the State Attorney’s Office.
According to the affidavit, the incident took place between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. Sunday on the campus of the Fort Pierce Magnet School of the Arts while Morris was on patrol.
The woman told detectives that before the sex act occurred, Morris made contact with her twice. The first time was between 1 a.m. and 1:30 a.m. near North 11th Street and Avenue B, where he asked her if she had a boyfriend, she said, and the second time was about 2 a.m. on Avenue B, between North 10th Street and Dundas Court, where he asked her to meet him between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. at a park on South Indian River Drive, the affidavit states. The woman said they didn’t meet because Morris received a service call.
However, Morris later found the woman walking near 10th Street and Orange Avenue, and told her he wanted to talk with her about something and to walk toward the school, the affidavit states.
At the school, Morris exposed himself to the woman and said it would be “beneficial” for her to do what he wanted because he regularly works in the area and that it would not be “beneficial” for her and her friends if she refused, the affidavit states.
During the encounter, the woman said Morris had his hand on his gun and she feared he would harm her if she didn’t follow his commands, the affidavit states. After the incident, Morris hinted that he had a second woman in the area who would perform sex acts on him, the affidavit states.
“I would like to thank the victim involved in this incident for her courage to come forward,” Mascara said.
Sunday’s incident was not the first time the Sheriff’s Office had problems with Morris, according to internal affairs reports.
He has been disciplined twice in his three-year career, most recently receiving a two-day suspension without pay in May after he pushed an umpire at his son’s Little League game. Another incident took place in 2009, when Morris and another deputy searched a home without showing the resident a warrant. Later, the homeowner got a copy of the search warrant but it didn’t have his address on it.
In Morris’ annual reviews, supervisors said he had a “proactive philosophy” and he “possesses the needed skills to achieve advancement.”
From 1995 to 1997, Morris took part in a two-year mission trip to Honduras with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“I want to assure the people of St. Lucie County that I will not tolerate any misconduct or lawlessness by any member of the Sheriff’s Office,” Mascara said.
Appeared HereST. LUCIE COUNTY —
A St. Lucie County sheriff’s deputy is facing a criminal sex charge after a woman accused him of forcing her to perform a sex act on him while he was on patrol, Sheriff Ken Mascara said Tuesday at a news conference.
Matthew Blair Morris, 33, is charged with sexual battery by a law enforcement officer and official misconduct of a law enforcement officer after a 41-year-old Fort Pierce woman accused him of the crime, Mascara said.
“I promise this community we will fully and impartially investigate all such incidents,” Mascara said.
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Morris, who had been placed on unpaid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, is in the St. Lucie County Jail without bail for the sexual battery offense and in lieu of $10,000 bail for the official misconduct charge. Mascara said he requested Morris be placed on a suicide watch because he feared the three-year deputy would harm himself.
“The actions of Matthew Morris are a stain on the honor and good name of every member of the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office, including me,” Mascara said.
Morris, who Mascara said is married with two children, told investigators the early-morning sex was consensual.
Mascara said there could be other victims and asks that anyone with information about the case to call the Sheriff’s Office detective bureau at 772-462-3230.
If convicted, Morris faces up to 30 years on the sexual battery charge and five years for the official misconduct charge, said officials with the State Attorney’s Office.
According to the affidavit, the incident took place between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. Sunday on the campus of the Fort Pierce Magnet School of the Arts while Morris was on patrol.
The woman told detectives that before the sex act occurred, Morris made contact with her twice. The first time was between 1 a.m. and 1:30 a.m. near North 11th Street and Avenue B, where he asked her if she had a boyfriend, she said, and the second time was about 2 a.m. on Avenue B, between North 10th Street and Dundas Court, where he asked her to meet him between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. at a park on South Indian River Drive, the affidavit states. The woman said they didn’t meet because Morris received a service call.
However, Morris later found the woman walking near 10th Street and Orange Avenue, and told her he wanted to talk with her about something and to walk toward the school, the affidavit states.
At the school, Morris exposed himself to the woman and said it would be “beneficial” for her to do what he wanted because he regularly works in the area and that it would not be “beneficial” for her and her friends if she refused, the affidavit states.
During the encounter, the woman said Morris had his hand on his gun and she feared he would harm her if she didn’t follow his commands, the affidavit states. After the incident, Morris hinted that he had a second woman in the area who would perform sex acts on him, the affidavit states.
“I would like to thank the victim involved in this incident for her courage to come forward,” Mascara said.
Sunday’s incident was not the first time the Sheriff’s Office had problems with Morris, according to internal affairs reports.
He has been disciplined twice in his three-year career, most recently receiving a two-day suspension without pay in May after he pushed an umpire at his son’s Little League game. Another incident took place in 2009, when Morris and another deputy searched a home without showing the resident a warrant. Later, the homeowner got a copy of the search warrant but it didn’t have his address on it.
In Morris’ annual reviews, supervisors said he had a “proactive philosophy” and he “possesses the needed skills to achieve advancement.”
From 1995 to 1997, Morris took part in a two-year mission trip to Honduras with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“I want to assure the people of St. Lucie County that I will not tolerate any misconduct or lawlessness by any member of the Sheriff’s Office,” Mascara said.
