A Duval County school police officer has been taken into custody on serious charges including felony domestic battery by strangulation and false imprisonment. The officer, Kevens Louis, aged 30, encountered these accusations following an incident with a former romantic partner, as reported by Jacksonville Today. The altercation is said to have occurred when the officer texted his ex-partner to retrieve her belongings from a residence on New Kings Road. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office arrest report detailed that Louis insisted for her to come inside, which she resisted.
Further unsettling news comes from a separate incident involving a substitute teacher. Abdiel Badillo-Martinez, a homeless substitute teacher, was arrested under the charges of bringing firearms and a knife onto school property. The discovery was made when an employee noticed a gun in the substitute's car and alerted the authorities, leading to a thorough vehicle search which uncovered multiple loaded firearms, ample ammunition, and a knife, as stated by First Coast News. Badillo-Martinez purportedly informed police that he had acquired the firearms during his time as a police officer in Puerto Rico, a position he hadn't held for over four years.
Following the discovery of weapons in Badillo-Martinez's car, the school principal, Teresa Dowdell-Brown, issued a statement reassuring parents of the actions taken to ensure student safety. "The safety of your children is our first goal, and we all share in the partnership to keep our campus secure. In that regard, I appreciate your partnership in keeping our students and staff safe and for your support of our school,” Brown's statement read, as reported by News4Jax.
During the police investigation, students were cleared from the school building, returning to their classrooms only after safety was confirmed. The arrest of Badillo-Martinez has led to his immediate removal from the substitute teacher roster from Duval County Public Schools to prevent any future risk.
