A Department of Juvenile Justice Detention Officer, Anthony Sandora, aged 60, faces child abuse charges for battering a 15-year-old male inmate at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center. According to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, the incident unfolded on March 11, when the inmate, whose identity remains undisclosed due to legal protections for minors, reached out for staff assistance and began to kick his cell door after being ignored by the officer on duty.
Deputies say that Sandora responded to the inmate's frustration by entering his cell and slapping him in the face, and then pushing him onto the bed. The officer proceeded to throw the young man’s possessions out of the cell. This display of authority took place at the detention center located at 5255 140th Avenue North. The scene escalated, deputies advised, after the inmate attempted to flood his cell approximately five minutes later. Sandora is said to have re-entered the cell, grabbed the inmate by the neck, pushed him back onto the bed, and punched him in the face. Following this altercation, the inmate was moved to an isolation cell and, according to the report, did not sustain any injuries.
Within a day of the incident, on March 12, Sandora was arrested and charged with one count of Child Abuse. Following his arrest, he was taken to the Pinellas County Jail, as stated in the official report released by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
Anthony Sandora, who was with the Department of Juvenile Justice for nearly 10 months, faced immediate termination for violations of the department’s policies. The authorities have confirmed that the investigation into the incident remains ongoing to ensure a thorough examination of the facts. As developments continue, the Department of Juvenile Justice is reckoning with the ramifications, of one of its own crossing the line from enforcer to perpetrator.
