The Orlando Sentinel reports that Orange County Deputy Cameron Turk, 32, has been charged with burglary and petit theft. A woman dialed 911 after seeing a man, she didn’t know, trying to get into her minivan, which was parked in her driveway at her home.
Investigators say when searched, Turk had about $5 worth of the woman’s belongings in his pockets. Turk told the arresting deputies he was depressed and suicidal which promoted a mental health evaluation. According to UF Health, the Baker Act is a Florida law that enables families and loved ones to provide emergency mental health services and temporary detention for people who are impaired because of their mental illness, and who are unable to determine their needs for treatment. The Act was named after Maxine Baker, former Miami State representative who sponsored the Act in 1972. People who require the use of the Baker Act have often lost the power of self-control, and they are likely to inflict harm to themselves or others.
Turk has been placed on unpaid leave pending a criminal investigation. According to the Sheriff’s Office, Turk was hired at the sheriff’s office in 2014 and worked in the agency’s Youth Services Division.