Veteran St. Lucie County deputy faces battery, false statement charges

A St. Lucie County deputy was arrested Saturday on charges of battery and falsifying an official statement made by a public servant during an investigation, Sheriff Keith Pearson said.

Randy Walker, a deputy with the sheriff's office for eight years, was arrested on two warrants related to an arrest he was involved in on April 2 and his use of force during the incident, said Pearson in a video message Saturday.

“In this case, there was never a complaint of excessive force. This is the result of our internal review process, which includes reviewing body-worn camera videos,” Pearson said. “As all use of force incidents are reviewed internally in accordance with our policy. The supervisors and peers present concluded that his actions that day were excessive and did not meet the conduct we expect of our deputies.