JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The arrest of now ex-Jacksonville Sheriff’s Officer Christopher Barr, 28, could potentially impact other criminal cases, law enforcement experts tell First Coast News.
Barr is accused of using police databases to give information to criminals who there's a "strong possibility" are related to gang activity, Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters answered Wednesday when JSO announced Barr's Jan. 27 arrest.
The State Attorney’s Office is conducting a review to determine which cases, if any, will be impacted by Barr’s arrest. The office has yet to determine a timeline for the review.
First Coast News Crime and Safety Expert Ken Jefferson believes because Barr worked for JSO for only four years, doing a deep dive may not be too difficult.
“Everything that he's been involved with, they have to take a look at whether he made an arrest or he contacted someone and that person avoided arrest,” Jefferson said. “They're gonna have to take a deep dive on every aspect of his career.”
The State Attorney’s Office tells First Coast News Barr will be added to the Brady Information System. The so-called “Brady List” is a list of law enforcement employees who’ve been charged with crimes, shown bias, or are considered dishonest and are a liability if called to testify.
“Having been a recruiter in the past, there’s a lengthy vetting process that one goes through,” Jefferson said about the process of becoming a JSO officer.
Police records show Barr received three in-house complaints and one citizen complaint between October 2021 to September 2023. Five of the seven allegations against him within the complaints were “sustained.”
Most of the allegations are listed as "secondary employment violations." Jefferson explains this means Barr violated a JSO policy. The two allegations under the citizen complaint are "failure to conform to work standards" and "violation of body-worn camera policy" and they were sustained.
First Coast News has requested those reports from JSO.