An upstate New York man says his Central Florida getaway turned into a nightmare when Osceola County deputies handcuffed and pinned him at a Davenport vacation rental during an "attempt to locate" in March 2025. He claims the encounter left him with a torn rotator cuff that required surgery and sidelined his life for more than a year. His new federal lawsuit seeks monetary damages and demands a jury trial.
According to WESH, the complaint names four Osceola County deputies and also lists two others who were later exonerated by the sheriff's office. An internal affairs investigation sustained violations against two deputies, and the agency imposed 32-hour suspensions and mandatory retraining for some personnel, the report said.
The suit says the deputies were responding to an "attempt to locate" request from the Polk County Sheriff's Office, but alleges the address listed in that request did not match the Davenport rental where deputies went in and detained the man.
Department Facing Recurring Litigation
The Tantalo filing arrives as the Osceola County Sheriff's Office is already under legal and public scrutiny from other recent civil cases. A separate federal lawsuit, stemming from a 2022 gas-station taser incident that left a man badly burned, survived a motion to dismiss in March 2026, as reported by ClickOrlando. That case has kept questions about deputy use of force and judgment squarely in the spotlight.
Plaintiff And Attorney Push For Accountability
Tantalo's attorney, James Slater, argues that deputies continued force and detention after witnessing unlawful entry and seizure, according to WESH. The complaint describes Tantalo being handcuffed and pinned to the ground inside the Davenport rental while his wife, Karen, dialed 911 after hearing his screams.
Along with damages, his legal team says he is seeking a public reckoning in court over how the encounter unfolded and how long it went on.
What Comes Next
The case is pending in the U.S. Middle District of Florida in Davenport, and the usual grind of civil litigation means discovery and motion practice could run for months. The sheriff's office has already imposed administrative discipline in connection with this incident, and the federal lawsuit now asks a judge and possibly a jury to decide whether Tantalo's rights were violated.
For residents, the lawsuit serves as a stark reminder of the stakes when law enforcement shows up at the wrong home during search operations, and of how quickly a vacation rental can turn into a crime-scene-style confrontation.
