A woman who claims she was made to write an apology letter to her rapist has filed a lawsuit against a Florida sheriff’s department.
Taylor Cadle, 22, is suing the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, including Sheriff Grady Judd and investigator Melissa Turnage, after she was accused of lying to investigators and forced to apologize to her adoptive father, who had been raping her for years.
Henry Cadle was convicted of sexual battery of a child between the ages of 12 and 18, according to online court records obtained by Peoplemagazine .
Cadle filed the lawsuit on Oct. 10, alleging that Henry’s sexual abuse began when she was nine years old and continuing until she was 13, the outlet reported.
The abuse began in 2012, according to the court documents, after the girl was transferred from foster care into the custody of Henry and his wife.
Taylor claims she didn’t report Henry sooner for fear that she would be placed back into the foster-care system.
The initial investigation
A probe was launched in July 2016, when Taylor confided in a church member, who reported the allegations to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
Taylor’s lawsuit contains graphic details of the allegations, including things Henry would say to Taylor during the assaults and what she was forced to do as a child, according to People.
The suit alleges that during an interview between Henry and investigators, Turnage said to the accused, “Basically, Taylor [Plaintiff], I guess, has made up these allegations, okay? That you have been sexually abusing her.”
Henry declined to take a polygraph test, allegedly telling investigators he “had sex with a lot of people in the shower with my eyes closed,” according to the lawsuit.
A police report obtained by the publication shows that Turnage claimed there was no evidence Henry abused the child, and accused her of lying during a criminal investigation.
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The letters
Taylor alleges she was then pressured by Henry’s wife into pleading guilty to the charge and write apologies to Henry and police as part of her probation.
The lawsuit includes two handwritten letters dated back to June 29, 2017, when Taylor was just 13 or 14.
“I’m sorry for what I did,” read part of her letter to “Dad,” adding, “I didn’t stop and think of my consequences of these actions.”
Another note to an unnamed “officer,” starts with an apology for her actions.
“I know what I did wasn’t right therefore I face my consequences.”
Both letters note: “This will never happen again.”
The fallout
A month after Taylor was returned to Henry’s custody, she secretly recorded his abuse, and submitted the photographic evidence to authorities.
Henry was arrested and convicted, according to the outlet.
Taylor is seeking “compensatory damages and special damages, punitive damages, cost disbursements, pre- and post-judgment interest and attorney’s fees.”
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office issued a statement to People about the lawsuit, calling it a publicity stunt, adding, “our deputies did an extensive investigation and made deliberate and rational decisions based upon the information and evidence we had at the time.”
