POLK COUNTY, Fla. – A lawsuit has been filed targeting Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd and two deputies concerning a child rape case from almost ten years ago, as indicated by court documents submitted on Friday.
According to the lawsuit, the victim, known as Taylor Cadle, was adopted by her uncle and aunt in 2012 when she was not yet 9 years old.
The document claims that her uncle, Henry Cadle, began “inappropriately touching her, with the abuse escalating to rape” on several occasions over the following years.
“(Taylor) kept the abuse a secret for years, due to her overwhelming fear of being returned to foster care if she reported the rapes,” the lawsuit reads.
It was not until 2016 that Taylor Cadle confided in her church minister’s wife, who then contacted law enforcement, according to court records.
This led to a lengthy investigation, but the detective assigned to the case concluded there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges against Henry Cadle, the lawsuit states.
“There is, however, enough probable cause to establish Taylor Cadle lied during a felony investigation,” the detective wrote. “It was determined Taylor falsified information in the initial investigation, and all lab results turned negative.”
In the court case that followed, Taylor Cadle’s aunt pushed her to plead guilty to “just get the case over with,” the lawsuit reveals.
Thus, at the age of 13 years old, Taylor Cadle pled guilty to giving false information to a law enforcement officer, landing her on probation and keeping her with Henry Cadle, court records say.
Per the lawsuit, the conditions of her probation included a curfew, community service, anger-management counseling, and letters of apology to Henry Cadle and the sheriff’s office.
Less than a month later, though, Henry Cadle again raped Taylor Cadle in his truck — but this time, the girl secretly recorded the incident via video footage and photographs, the lawsuit says.
That same night, Taylor Cadle called 911 to report the rape, and after Henry Cadle admitted to being in her photographs, the sheriff’s office moved to withdraw her guilty plea and vacate her probation, the lawsuit continues.
“Upon being shown the video and pictures, (Henry Cadle) confirmed it was him in the pictures and advised, ‘She set me up,’” an arrest affidavit reads.
In 2019, Henry Cadle was ultimately sentenced to 17 years in prison for sexual battery.
Now, Taylor Cadle is suing the detectives involved in her case, along with Henry Cadle and Sheriff Judd.
In her lawsuit, Taylor Cadle accuses the sheriff’s office of “unlawful practices,” taking particular aim at Judd’s policies.
“Sheriff Judd knowingly encouraged and authorized members of the PCSO to disregard and violate Constitutional and Fourth Amendment rights of victims, particularly minors with his tough-on-crime rhetoric, and criminalization of minors for making false statements,” the lawsuit reads.
In addition, the lawsuit argues that detectives weren’t properly trained on how to approach child sexual abuse cases.
As such, the lawsuit makes accusations of malicious prosecution, as well as failure to train and properly investigate these sorts of incidents. There are also accusations levied against Henry Cadle for rape, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and invasion of privacy.
The lawsuit seeks money judgments against Henry Cadle, Judd and the other two detectives who were involved in the case.
Meanwhile, the full lawsuit has been attached to this story and can be read below:
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