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Alleged Battery Of Escambia County Jail Inmate Leads To Arrest Of Two Corrections Officers
April 14, 2026
Two Escambia County corrections officers have been arrested following an investigation into the battery of an inmate that occurred at the Escambia County Jail.
Sharif Dawud Hale, age 42 of Cantonment was arrested on charges of felony battery with great bodily harm and tampering with physical evidence. Larry Ken Martin, age 32 of Flomaton, was charged with providing false information to law enforcement regarding a felony.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation after an inmate was found on March 15, 2026, with a severe hand laceration requiring surgery and a rod insertion, a cracked rear molar, and head injuries. According to the reports, investigators determined the injuries occurred during an overnight shift between 03:53 a.m. and 03:55 a.m. after two officers entered the inmate’s cell for an unsanctioned encounter.
According to internal records and witness statements detailed in the reports, the officers failed to notify supervisors before entering the cell, which is required protocol during “lights out” hours. One witness told investigators she heard an officer state he “had to teach [the inmate] a lesson” because the inmate was “talking smack”.
Investigators said the inmate alleged that Hale “stomped” on him while he was on his bunk and intentionally twisted his finger. According to the reports, investigators observed security footage showing the Hale and Martin re-entering the cell approximately 10 minutes later. Investigators stated it appeared this second entry was an attempt to remove physical evidence, specifically beads that had broken off a bracelet during the struggle and a fragment of the inmate’s tooth.
While investigators noted that Martin appeared to attempt to calm Hale down after the initial encounter, the reports state he maintained a false account of the events during multiple interviews. According to the reports, Martin claimed the inmate was already bleeding and suggested the injuries were self-inflicted by “hitting the walls” or using a metal table, a theory investigators said was inconsistent with medical evidence and intake records.
Both men were booked into the Escambia County Jail and each released within minutes on bond — $50,000 for Hale, and Martin on a $5,000 bond.
According to the arrest reports, medical staff at the Escambia County Jail concluded that the victim needed further care and he was ultimately transported to Baptist Hospital. Hospital records indicated that he was admitted and required surgery for his injuries, which included the surgical implantation of a rod and pins in his hand, the reports state.
According to jail records, the inmate victim, a 35-year-old Pensacola man, remains in jail without bond on an unrelated charge of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and a probation violation.
Mugshot for Hale and Martin were not released.Under Florida’s public records laws, the identities and photographs of correctional officers are often protected from disclosure.
Pictured: A cell in the Escambia County Jail. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Comments
14 Responses to “Alleged Battery Of Escambia County Jail Inmate Leads To Arrest Of Two Corrections Officers”
If the CO’s “FAILED TO NOTIFY THEIR SUPERVISOR THAT THEY WERE ENTERING THE CELL”, they violated orders. The inmate is harmed. BOTH CO’s should not only be charged but they should be terminated from having any type of security or law enforcement position. Big mistake guys. You should have listened in the Academy.
@Steve you have to be kidding me. This is a job/ career that these two chose to do. Unless you have gone thru this you have No idea the bad crap some of these corrections officers due. I’m not saying all of them but a lot of them probably got picked on in school, never fit in and NOW they hold a badge. They think they can do whatever they want and get away with which most do. Yes in the county you are going to deal with the mentally ill, some drug users and sellers and some smart butts. And some people that just made a very bad decision and ended up there. Bottom line they are still people. Maybe they should think about their career choice if they can’t handle someone talking smack they most likely should not be doing this job!
Lock them both up, if they want to act like thugs and not follow laws put them in with the inmates
If you had to babysit the nerve busting victim for an eight hour shift you might want to knock his tooth out or chip his moar also !
I read this and I thought to myself if it was me or a common person that had committed these crimes either there would be no bail or more than likely it would a lot higher than $50,000 and 5,000. Police and prison guards also government employees including politicians should and always be held to a higher standard, And when they do break the law they should be made an example of. Not let off the hook so easily when the common citizen would face the full ramifications of the law. It really is a shame how we the citizens have given so many of (our) rights away and let things like this continue to happen nation wide.
@Rodney
When government is 100% clean, they can expect 100% clean from us.
There is no ‘rules for thee but not for me’.
Walk the walk, or get off the track.
@Sedition, no one in the world is “perfect”, government employees included. Could it be said that to group government as a whole, for the actions of a few is stereotypical and immature?
The most effective solution to avoid interaction with law is to obey the law. If the occasion arises when the interaction is unavoidable,it is probably a better choice to show respect, due to the fact that you may be speaking with an honorable officer of the law.
I am not and would never justify these types of actions and I am not a government employee but if we all try to do what is right we will be better, as society.
“Steve”…They ARE part of the government. If we cleaned house of all the corruption in Federal, State, and Local governments, there would be a LOT more trust in the government. Until then, always question authority. They’re obviously not perfect.
It’s easy to give the government a pass when it’s not your neck their boot is applied to.
Abusive god complex because you have a badge. This abuse has been happening for years. I’m glad those 2 got caught.
“Sedition “……………… The GOVERNMENT had nothing to do with what happened. What happened was a person that was CAUGHT took his anger out on another guy and the other one didnt want to be a snitch…..THe prisoner more than likely was difficult to deal with….. GOVERNMENT is the one that will prosecute this case. SO you aint gov thoughts are just not valid here.
Correction officers should now be required to have body warn cameras
Normally, there’s no bond on a battery charge ???? and this seems like it was a pretty severe crime
How odd that there are laws that they expect us to follow, but gvt feels that they don’t have to follow laws placed upon them.
Odd.
You have ended your own careers, besmirched fellow LEO, and saddled Escambia County taxpayers with the cost of medical bills and probably a civil settlement of a few hundred thousand dollars. All because an inmate “talked smack”.