State Attorney Ginger Madden cites insufficient evidence after an extensive discovery process.
The Office of the State Attorney announced Tuesday that manslaughter charges have been dismissed against three Crestview police officers indicted in connection with the 2021 death of Calvin Wilks Jr. Read 250826 OSA1 Press Release – Death CW Jr corrected.
An Okaloosa County grand jury originally indicted officers Brandon Hardaway, William Johns, and Evan Reynolds following Wilks’ death on October 14, 2021. The grand jury had found probable cause to bring the charges.
Background: Police responded to Wilks’ home for a welfare check after reports of someone yelling for help, suspecting a disturbance. Wilks, 40, reportedly became combative and physically resisted officers, including kicking them and slamming the door; police tased him in response. Wilks became unresponsive immediately after being tased and died the following day at North Okaloosa Medical Center.
The official autopsy cited an irregular heartbeat after being restrained and tased, ruling the death as homicide, but also found cocaine, amphetamines, THC, and ecstasy in his system, which contributed to his death.
However, after what prosecutors described as an “extensive and comprehensive discovery process,” State Attorney Ginger Bowden Madden determined the evidence no longer supported criminal prosecution. The discovery phase included depositions of numerous witnesses and expert testimony from specialists in pathology, toxicology, and use-of-force techniques.
- “The additional evidence raised ‘serious questions’ about the cause and manner of Wilks’ death,” according to the press release. Madden stated that “the evidence as it now stands” fails to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers should be held criminally responsible.
“While the Grand Jury acted on the information before it, this decision reflects the evidence as it now stands,” Madden said in the statement. “I offer my condolences to the Wilks family for their loss, recognizing the impact this tragedy has had on all parties involved.”
The case highlights the difference between the probable cause standard required for indictments and the higher burden of proof needed to secure convictions at trial.