Court records detail differing accounts of how a complaint against a Gadsden County school resource deputy was handled.
Erin Hill
Gadsden County News Service
Two school administrators and two law enforcement officials face criminal charges after investigators determined that allegations of sexual abuse involving a Gadsden County High School student were discussed during an April 2025 meeting but never reported to Florida’s child abuse hotline.
The charges against Gadsden County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Christopher Daniels, former Gadsden County High School Principal Tamika Hughes-Leeks, former Assistant Principal James Darren Vernon and Lt. Tiffany Parsons-Buckhalt stem from an investigation into former school resource deputy Sedale Canidate, who was arrested in July on charges involving sexual misconduct with students.
Arrest warrants issued Nov. 4 accuse the four officials of failing to report suspected child sexual abuse after attending an April 11, 2025, meeting during which a student disclosed allegations against Canidate.
The affidavits filed by the State Attorney’s Office describe an investigation in which responsibility for handling the student’s complaint was passed between school administrators and law enforcement officers. Some officials told investigators they believed the allegations had already been investigated or reported. Others questioned the student’s credibility.
Investigators found no corresponding report to the Florida Department of Children and Families and no official police report documenting the disclosure.
The records also allege that concerns about Canidate had surfaced before the April meeting.
A meeting involving the accused deputy
According to the affidavits, the April 11 meeting included Daniels, Parsons-Buckhalt, Hughes-Leeks, Vernon, the student and Canidate.
The student disclosed allegations of sexual abuse involving the deputy, who had been assigned to Gadsden County High School.
The matter became the subject of internal discussions about who should handle the complaint.
Hughes-Leeks told investigators that the student’s mother had previously approached her at a store, upset that allegations involving her daughter had not been addressed by an earlier school administration.
She said she notified Superintendent Elijah Key, who directed that the matter be referred to law enforcement personnel.
During the April meeting, Hughes-Leeks said she stopped the discussion after learning that Canidate was the subject of the complaint and asked him to leave the room. She also requested that Daniels and Parsons-Buckhalt step outside before the matter was turned over to Daniels.
Hughes-Leeks told investigators she believed the allegations had already been reported and investigated during the previous school year.
Lieutenant questioned student’s allegations
The affidavit against Daniels describes how the complaint was handled after the meeting.
Daniels was identified as the person responsible for investigating the allegations.
On May 7, 2025, nearly a month after the student’s disclosure, Daniels prepared a memorandum to Sheriff Morris A. Young addressing the complaint.
The memorandum outlined questions about the student’s account and expressed doubts about whether the alleged incidents had occurred as described.
Daniels wrote that the information available to him did not support the allegations.
According to investigators, Daniels did not obtain a formal case number, make a report to the Department of Children and Families or complete an official police report concerning the student’s disclosure.
The affidavit also describes a text message number that Daniels said had been provided by the student. Investigators examined his handling of that information, including whether additional investigative steps had been taken.
During a July 20, 2026, interview, Daniels acknowledged that he had not contacted the Department of Children and Families about the allegations.
Investigators also examined statements suggesting that Daniels and other officials had relied on previous assessments of the student’s credibility.
The criminal charge against Daniels alleges that he knowingly and willfully failed to fulfill his reporting obligation.
In a statement provided to Gadsden County News Service, the sheriff’s office said Daniels surrendered at the Gadsden County Jail following an investigation by the State Attorney’s Office for the 2nd Judicial Circuit.
Young said law enforcement officers have a duty to report crimes associated with allegations of child abuse and that failure to fulfill those responsibilities carries serious consequences.
The sheriff also said an arrest does not establish guilt and that Daniels is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Daniels was placed on administrative leave Friday, Nov. 6, pending an administrative review, according to the sheriff’s office.
School safety official believed complaint had been transferred
Parsons-Buckhalt, who held school safety responsibilities and served as a reserve lieutenant with the Quincy Police Department, also faces a charge of failing to report suspected child sexual abuse.
Her affidavit describes responsibilities that included school safety oversight and reporting certain incidents involving students and employees.
During an interview with investigators, Parsons-Buckhalt acknowledged being aware of complaints involving Canidate during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years.
She said she understood that Daniels had taken responsibility for investigating the April complaint and believed the matter had been referred to the sheriff’s office.
According to the affidavit, Parsons-Buckhalt also recalled being advised that the student’s previous allegations had been found to lack credibility.
Investigators documented a statement attributed to her in Daniels’ memorandum questioning the validity of the student’s allegations.
The affidavit alleges that Parsons-Buckhalt nevertheless had an independent responsibility to report suspected child abuse.
Assistant principal questioned timeline
Vernon, who was serving as assistant principal, also attended the April meeting.
During a January 2026 interview, Vernon told investigators he had been aware of allegations involving the student but believed there were inconsistencies in the timeline because Canidate had not been assigned to the school during part of the period described.
According to the affidavit, Vernon said the complaint went no further.
Investigators allege that Vernon and Hughes-Leeks failed to report the disclosure despite their responsibilities as mandatory reporters.
Investigators found no record of a report
At the request of the State Attorney’s Office, investigators searched Department of Children and Families records for reports involving the student, Canidate and personnel associated with the school.
The search found no corresponding hotline report before November 2025.
Investigators also checked law enforcement and school records but located no official report documenting the April allegations.
Under Florida law, individuals who know or reasonably suspect that a child has been abused must report that information to the state’s central abuse hotline.
An internal conversation, referral to a supervisor or informal assessment of credibility does not replace that reporting requirement.
The four defendants are accused of violating those obligations.
November complaints led to investigation
The April allegations resurfaced after two other female students approached Gadsden County High School teacher Charles Hobbs II on Nov. 10, 2025, with complaints about Canidate.
The students described inappropriate comments and interactions involving the deputy.
Hobbs explained his responsibility as a mandatory reporter, and the complaints were subsequently brought to school officials and reported to the Department of Children and Families.
Investigators examining those complaints learned of the earlier allegations and began reviewing how the April meeting had been handled.
The investigation resulted in Canidate’s July 10 arrest on charges including sexual battery by a law enforcement officer, lewd and lascivious conduct and attempted solicitation of lewd or lascivious conduct.
His case remains open, with a case management hearing scheduled for Jan. 19, 2027, before Circuit Judge Ronald Flury, according to court records.
Canidate is represented by attorney Courtney Freeman. He has not been convicted of the charges.
Court records show cases remain open
Court records show that all four defendants were charged Nov. 4 with failure to report suspected child abuse, abandonment or neglect under Florida Statute 39.205(1).
The cases were assigned to Circuit Judge Ronald Flury. Arrest or notice-to-appear documents and probable cause affidavits were filed, and bench warrants were executed Nov. 4.
Records show that Vernon and Parsons-Buckhalt entered written pleas of not guilty Nov. 6.
Vernon, represented by attorney Adam Komisar, also filed a request for discovery and demanded a jury trial.
Parsons-Buckhalt, represented by attorney John M. Leace, filed demands for discovery, a jury trial, a copy of the charging information and statements of particulars.
The docket records provided for Daniels and Hughes-Leeks show arrest documents and release-on-recognizance slips filed Nov. 5 but do not list pleas as of those entries.
All four cases remain open, with no disposition recorded.
Superintendent addressed allegations in July
During a July school board meeting, Gadsden County Schools Superintendent Elijah Key told board members that allegations involving Canidate had been reported to the Florida Department of Children and Families by three school administrators. He identified Franklin, former Principal Tamika Hughes-Leeks and former Principal Marlon Ball.
Key also explained that he relied on Quincy Police Lt. Tiffany Parsons-Buckhalt to make the report. However, he said he could not find anything in writing showing that one of the principals he had previously named had received the allegation.
Key said the allegations were referred to law enforcement because Canidate was employed by the Gadsden County Sheriff’s Office.
The district’s policy says employees must report suspected child abuse to the state hotline immediately. In a memo to staff, Key said notifying a supervisor does not fulfill that requirement.
At the board meeting, Key read the section of School Board Policy 2.80 that directs the superintendent to forward qualifying complaints to the Department of Children and Families.
The arrest affidavits state that investigators found no corresponding report to the state’s child abuse hotline following the April 11, 2025, meeting attended by Hughes-Leeks and three other officials who now face criminal charges.
Hughes-Leeks told investigators she had notified Key about the allegations before the meeting and believed the complaint had already been reported.
The affidavits do not establish whether the reports Key referenced in July concerned the same disclosure discussed during the April meeting.
Attempts to reach Key and the State Attorney’s Office for comment were unsuccessful. Neither had returned calls as of Tuesday’s deadline.