JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — (Note: The video above was first published Jan. 25.)
A former Jacksonville firefighter lieutenant fired following his arrest on a felony sex charge involving a minor will receive his full pension, and could be headed toward a plea deal with prosecutors.
First Coast News has learned that Renaldo Lampkins’ pension was approved by a unanimous vote of the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Fund Board of Trustees. It enables him to collect 51% of his average salary, beginning in February 2023, for the rest of his life -- about $47,000 a year.
When asked about the decision, fund Deputy Director Steve Lundy said there are just two ways a pension can be withheld – if an employee has been convicted of a crime, or if he attempts to defraud the pension fund.
Lampkins, a 17-year JFRD veteran, was fired in January for “conduct unbecoming” following his September arrest on charges of unlawful sexual activity with a minor and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The teenage girl said Lampkins pressured her to engage in sex acts and made her touch his penis. He has pleaded not guilty.
That criminal case could be headed toward a plea deal. First Coast News exclusively obtained a letter from the alleged victim’s mother to the Assistant State Attorney prosecuting the case, objecting to what she calls “the plea agreement you’ve proposed.”
The letter indicates that Adair Newman, director of the Special Victims Unit of the State Attorney’s Office, told the alleged victim’s mother that the felony sex charge has at best a 50/50 chance of success. It says she proposed dropping the felony and allowing Lampkins to plead guilty to a misdemeanor battery instead.
“I remain not in support of the plea agreement you’ve proposed for Mr. Renaldo Lampkins,” the mother wrote, adding that her daughter’s “wishes are that we see it through, and that she has a personal obligation, even at [age redacted] to do what she can to protect other girls …. I could not be more proud of the humility, bravery and compassion that she continues to demonstrate, despite the gravity and impact of this ordeal.”
Explaining her objections, she wrote, “It is my fear that Mr. Lampkins will reoffend, and that the access he has to the public through his position with the Jacksonville Fire & Rescue Department is frightening." (She wrote the letter before Lampkins was fired.)
The mother, whom First Coast News is not naming to protect the teen’s identity, acknowledged the plea deal might happen anyway: “Thus, I ask that in this process you will at minimum:
1. Require that Mr. Lampkins undergo a psychosexual evaluation; and
2. That I be allowed to attend the sentencing hearing when scheduled and read a victim’s statement
As First Coast News previously reported, Lampkins was accused of forced sexual intercourse with a different woman in March 2019 but was never arrested or charged.
Newman declined comment other than to say no deal has been made. The case does have legal vulnerabilities, however. The alleged victim is too old to bring a charge of lewd and lascivious molestation, which applies only to teens 15 and under. And the existing charge -- unlawful sexual contact with certain minors -- requires, by statue, some form of sexual penetration, which is not alleged in this case.
If Lampkins pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor battery, he would not be required to register as a sex offender and would theoretically be eligible to work again as a firefighter. A guilty plea would not affect his pension benefits retroactively.
Lampkins, through his attorney Hank Coxe, declined comment.