Florida Sheriff Wayne Ivey, who threatened to kill anti-ICE protesters as “graveyard dead,” has a history of corruption, racial profiling, and bribery in local campaigns, despite calling himself a “constitutional sheriff.”
Ivey issued the threat at a press conference on Thursday. His warning elicited cheers from MAGA supporters but widespread condemnation from others. The viral moment also highlighted his history of corruption, which dates back to 2018.
Lee Edward Anderson, a Black man, sued Sheriff Ivey and a former Brevard County deputy for false arrest and imprisonment after a late-night traffic stop in 2018, according to Click Orlando.
Anderson claimed that he was racially profiled and falsely charged with drug possession. The charges were later dropped after video evidence showed he did not have any drugs, prompting the deputy to resign.
In 2018, Gregory Edwards, a 37-year-old veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder, was discovered dead in a restraint chair while being held in a Brevard County jail.
Sheriff Ivey was accused of attempting to conceal his department’s misconduct, which resulted in Edwards’ untimely death. A federal judge later ruled that the jail staff did not violate Edwards’ constitutional rights.
In 2019, Ivey was charged in a federal court with accepting $15,500 in checks to Brevard County charities from Donald Donagher, who was seeking a countywide debt collection contract for Penn Credit Corporation.
According to the indictment, Ivey and Donagher conspired to bribe three Florida court clerks, which failed. Donagher accepted a plea deal and agreed to pay a $225,000 fine.
The following year, Brevard County recorded five fatal officer-involved shootings, including a traffic stop that killed two teenagers.
Sheriff Ivey’s office refused to cooperate with the families in their search for answers, failing to provide information and delaying the release of the teens’ bodies for several days, according to Florida Today. Furthermore, despite the deputy’s violent history, no criminal charges were filed against him.
Ivey was sued again in 2020, this time for defamation, after featuring David Austin Gay’s photo in a “Wheel of Fugitive” video. Gay claimed he lost his job and suffered mental health problems as a result of Ivey’s negligence. The case was eventually thrown out.
During Brevard County’s 2022 election cycle, Ivey allegedly approached two candidates, one for County Commission and the other for School Board, and urged them to withdraw from their races in exchange for political jobs paying up to $50,000 per year.
According to Florida Today, both candidates, who are current or former law enforcement officers and military veterans with distinguished service records, declined the offer.
