(This story was updated with new information.)
One of the two Flagler Beach Police officers accused of wrongly arresting Jeff Gray as he stood with a sign on a public sidewalk outside the Funky Pelican restaurant will be suspended without pay for three days as a result of an internal affairs investigation.
The investigation, conducted by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, sustained two violations against Sgt. Austin Yelvington for violating department policy concerning “arrest procedures” a press release stated.
Yelvington will serve a three-day suspension without pay and has been ordered to attend a Florida Department of Law Enforcement verbal de-escalation training course, the release stated.
The investigation did not find any violations on the part of Officer Emmett Luttrell.
‘Unsatisfactory, unprofessional demeanor’
The internal affairs investigation was conducted by the Sheriff’s Office at the request of Flagler Beach Police Chief Matt Doughney. Yelvington had worked for Flagler Beach Police for about 13 years, according to a July 23, 2025, memo from Flagler Beach Deputy Chief Lance Blanchette to Doughney.
The memo noted that Yelvington had no prior disciplinary actions and that his personnel file contained “numerous letters of recognition and nominations for awards.”
“There is, however, an unsatisfactory, unprofessional demeanor issue on Sergeant Yelvington’s part represented in the videos. Sergeant Yelvington’s treatment of Mr. Gray, from start to finish, does not represent himself or the department in a positive light, nor does it portray the fundamentals consistent with providing citizens with high-quality customer service, respect, and empathy.”
What happened when Yelvington arrested Gray outside the Funky Pelican?
The incident occurred March 2, when Yelvington and Luttrell arrested Gray on a charge of armed trespassing. Gray was standing with a homemade sign reading “God Bless the Homeless Vets” on a public sidewalk outside the Funky Pelican restaurant. He had a pistol concealed in a pocket, which was not against the law. He also had set up cameras in the area.
He was released later that day on $2,500 bond.
The State Attorney’s Office quickly declined to file charges against Gray.
Gray, a St. Augustine resident, is a First Amendment auditor and has a YouTube channel called “HonorYourOath Civil Rights.” He also described himself as a Second Amendment auditor. Gray’s YouTube channel page states “Stay cool, be polite, assert your rights and always film the police.”
Yelvington violated department policies in Gray’s arrest
Yelvington violated department procedures by making an “improper arrest,” the report stated.
Gray was not on city property but rather on state Department of Transportation property, the report stated. Yelvington did not have the authority, nor did he secure it to issue trespass warnings on DOT property, the report stated. Yelvington did not have probable cause for the trespass after warning arrest.
The report goes on to say that “As the senior officer present at the scene, it was his responsibility to assess the facts and determine a course of action. In this case, Sergeant Yelvington failed to properly analyze the relevant facts prior to effecting the arrest.”
Yelvington violated a department policy stating that the “arresting officer is responsible for the safety and protection of the arrested person while in their custody,” the report stated.
Gray said to Yelvington that he did not fit in the back of the patrol car.
“Without engaging de-escalating techniques, Sergeant Yelvington placed his hands on Mr. Gray’s head and shoulders forcing him into the vehicle bending his neck and rubbing his head against the vehicle’s door frame,” the report stated.
The report continues: “Sergeant Yelvington’s actions were unnecessary and could have harmed Mr. Gray. His actions were inconsistent with the department directives.”
Investigation finds ‘significant weakness’
“The investigation revealed that Mr. Gray’s arrest was made without ‘probable cause,’ but it was also stated that it was made with ‘no personal bias or malice,'” Flagler Beach Police Chief Matt Doughney stated in the release. “The investigation also identified a significant weakness in our department’s ‘field training’ of new police officers, and that deficiency was at the core of this incident. The training deficiency has been corrected thanks to detailed information provided by our city attorney on trespassing and the freedom of speech on public property.”
Luttrell showed hesitation with arrest
Blanchette’s memo also stated that Luttrell’s part in the incident “was far less harmful than that of Sergeant Yelvington’s.”
It noted that Luttrell had been with the department for less than a year and stated that Luttrell “showed hesitation with the direction Sergeant Yelvington was leading this arrest.”
Report: Yelvington understands now why arrest lacked probable cause
In his interview with internal affairs, Yelvington described Gray’s behavior as “calm and did not observe him touching or harassing anyone upon his arrival.”
Yelvington said that the department has always treated the boardwalk and pier as city property. He said he has been treating it that way for the past 13 years.
“Because he though it was city property, he thought he was doing the right thing,” the report stated.
“However this is not something they were trained on, nor could Sergeant Yelvington recall who told him this was an acceptable practice of issuing trespass warnings,” the report stated.
Yelvington was also asked if whether the way Gray was “placed in the patrol car was consistent with Flagler Beach Police Department procedures.” He replied with “yes” without elaboration.
Yelvington said he now understood that there was no probable cause for arrest because Gray was on Department of Transportation property, not the city’s.
“In his heart, Sergeant Yelvington felt like they were doing the right thing, so they made the arrest,” the report stated. “Looking back he realizes now it was not right. But, also felt that if he left, Mr. Gray would have stayed up there and eventually he would have been forced to do something.”
Luttrell: Would apologize to Gray
In an interview with internal affairs investigators, Luttrell said he initially thought Gray was on Funky Pelican property which is owned by the city. He said managers at the Funky Pelican wanted Gray to move but Luttrell said he told them Gray was not doing anything wrong, but that he would try to get him to move.
Luttrell said that before Yelvington arrived his plan was to talk to Gray and observe if he was harassing anyone or if he was committing any crimes or ordinance violations. Luttrell said he did not see Gray harassing anyone.
Luttrell said Yelvington told him the sidewalk was city property.
Luttrell said that the way he understood it, people had to be doing something wrong to be issued a trespass warning.
When asked about the way Yelvington put the handcuffed Gray in the patrol car, Luttrell “explained that he would not have gone about that way and would have tried a different way … . He would not have pushed him in the vehicle.”
Luttrell said that on the drive to the Flagler County jail Gray said that his neck hurt. Luttrell said he made sure take “corners slowly to ensure no further injury.”
He did not recall if Gray asked to go to a hospital or whether Gray asked and he responded that there was a nurse at the jail. Luttrell said if he did not offer to take him to a medical provider, “that’s unfortunate.”
There was a period of time that both officer’s Axon cameras were muted. Luttrell said during that time Yelvington was recommending charging Gray with trespassing because he had gun in his pocket. Yelvington was also saying that he could be trespassed because the Funky Pelican was city property. He also said had Gray been standing “across the street they would not have touched it.“
During his interview, Yelvington said that most the conversation in the muted part was him explaining to Luttrell why they arrested Gray since Luttrell was “fairly new.” Yelvington also said he told Luttrell that if Gray had been on the west side of A1A they would not have done anything.
Luttrell said following this experience, he would “100%” not arrest Gray and would have “spoken up” saying he was unwilling to do so.
The report states that Luttrell “is very remorseful of the time that Mr. Gray did spend because it was a felony, so if he could see him again, he would 100% apologize to him for that day.”
The report notes that neither officer had any prior interaction with Gray or were aware of his prior interactions with other police agencies.
Luttrell said that on the way to the jail, a deputy informed him that he was bringing in an auditor.
Yelvington was unable to recall any training on the First Amendment or auditors. Luttrell said he had not received any such training.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Investigation: Flagler Beach Police officer violated policies in Funky Pelican arrest
Reporting by Frank Fernandez, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
