A months-long cloud over the Kissimmee Police Department got a little darker last night when a veteran officer walked herself into the Osceola County jail. Lt. Lacey Santone, already under an internal microscope, surrendered after being charged in connection with allegedly poking around in police computer systems she was not supposed to access.
Arrest and charges
According to WFTV, Santone turned herself in at the Osceola County Correctional Facility, where she was booked on two counts. One of those counts accuses her of accessing the department's computer system without authorization. Officials had not yet released the precise statutes or any scheduled court dates, leaving the legal fine print for another day.
Department context
The arrest lands in the middle of an ongoing rebuild inside the Kissimmee Police Department. The agency has been working through leadership changes and reforms following an earlier shakeup that included the resignation of the former chief. The city tapped Charles "Chuck" Broadway as police chief in an effort to shore up public trust and calm the waters inside the department, as outlined by the City of Kissimmee.
Earlier reporting and internal probe
Before Thursday's booking, the case was already on the radar of investigative reporters. WFTV 9 Investigates previously reported that Santone had been promoted to lieutenant in December, only to be placed on administrative leave as both a criminal probe and an internal investigation got underway. Internal affairs records obtained by the station alleged she accessed building security cameras and other systems without authorization. Those documents are now part of the backdrop to her new criminal charges.
Where she was processed
Santone was processed at the county jail in Kissimmee, where the Osceola County Corrections Department oversees inmate intake and services. The agency provides public information about the facility and its operations online. At the time of reporting, charging documents had not been released, and a corresponding booking record had not yet appeared on the county's public inmate roster, according to the Osceola County Corrections Department.
Legal context
On paper, the alleged conduct lines up with Florida's Computer Crimes Act, which defines offenses involving unauthorized access to computer systems in the Florida Legislature materials under Chapter 815 of the Florida Statutes. Penalties for a third-degree felony are set out in separate guidance from the Florida Senate in Chapter 775 and can include as much as five years in prison and fines up to $5,000. Exactly how that framework might apply to Santone will not be clear until formal charging documents are released and prosecutors spell out their case. For now, the combination of criminal files and internal affairs records will drive the next moves in Kissimmee's latest police controversy.
