Florida correctional officer charged for lewd, lascivious battery of a child

Jeff Jones

PUTNAM COUNTY, FL – Earlier this morning deputies from Flagler County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 40-year-old former state Department of Corrections employee on a Putnam County Sheriff’s Office warrant.

Derrick Lewon Davis, of Palatka, is charged with capital felony sexual battery on a child younger than 12 years old and a first-degree felony of lewd and lascivious battery on a child aged 12 to 16 years old. The victim is the same in both counts.

According to detectives, the victim came forward in March in order to stop the abuse. The victim and Davis were well known to one another and abuse was carried out over years.

“The victim is a child who stood up to someone who should have been a protector, not a monster,” Sheriff H.D. ‘Gator’ DeLoach said. “On top of that, he was a corrections officer in a prison. His actions are reprehensible, immoral and frankly evil.”


Davis was arrested by Flagler County deputies on his way to work in Palm Coast. Davis had previously quit his job with the state of Florida. Davis did not and has never worked at the Putnam County Jail. He was employed through the state of Florida. He was taken to the Flagler County Jail and will be transferred to the Putnam County Jail in the near future.

“We want to thank our law enforcement partners for quickly acting on our warrant and getting this monster off the streets,” DeLoach said.

Due to the nature of this investigation, there is no further information for release at this time. Davis is not currently in the Putnam County Jail, so we are unable to provide a photo at this time.

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