Orlando Police Lt. Debra Clayton had just finished the two-year process of writing a book on her life’s work about a month before she was killed in the line of duty Jan. 9, her publisher and friend Ty Young said.
“Bridging the Gap Between Law Enforcement and the Community” was supposed to teach Clayton’s police peers how to better connect with the communities they serve, the way she’d been able to do over her 17-year career with the Orlando Police Department.
“Her death is evidence of the gap,” Young said. “She probably would still be alive if the world was the way she saw it.”
Clayton was fatally shot while approaching a man wanted for the death of his pregnant ex-girlfriend. The man, 41-year-old Markeith Loyd, had been on the run for about a month before Clayton’s death, evading capture with the help of others who knew where he was, police claim.
“Obviously people knew about [Loyd’s location],” Young said. “There are people behind bars who could have helped … they could have saved several lives.”
Ironically, Clayton understood this issue was a problem well before Markeith Loyd entered the picture. She wrote for her book’s blurb that a lack of confidence and trust in law enforcement “can adversely impact cooperation for reporting crimes and proving information vital to solving crimes.”
With the author gone, Young is now left with a conundrum — does she scratch the project or publish the life’s work of her late friend?
“It’s not about the book — it’s about her mission, her legacy,” Young said.
Young said she fears publishing the book without Clayton’s direction, but feels she must advocate for her friend’s mission.
“So many people want a piece of her, and that book was her intellectual property,” Young said. “I’m waiting on the estate to tell me where they want the proceeds to go.”
Clayton’s family would also like to move forward with publishing the book, her sister, Nikki Anita Huey, said. They are working with Young, but there is currently no release date.
The book is designed to help law enforcement professionals work with diverse communities by using three key elements Clayton learned from research and personal background — humility, empathy and experience, Young said.
“She rose through the ranks through love and understanding who she was engaging with,” Young said. “She was a celebrity in the community … and Supergirl because of her heart.”
Clayton wanted to “heal” her community and the book, along with a non-profit organization of the same name, were her next ideas on how to tackle that goal, Young said.
“There was something driven in her to get this project done,” Young said. “She couldn’t solve it on her own, and I had shared that with her.”
The project was largely secret, Young said, with just the two of them working on it together. Clayton loved her law enforcement brethren and community equally, and knew tensions between the two needed to be relaxed.
“The climate was so thick, people weren’t sure of her approach to this conversation,” Young said. “She didn’t want perceptions of ‘what side she was on.’ She was directly in the middle.”
Young and Clayton’s family are considering options on how to publish and distribute the book. Young is expecting to see first proof of the book Friday.
“I wish I would be handing that book to [Clayton] and seeing her jump up and down with her huge smile,” Young said.
Huey said the family would like the book to be available “as soon as possible.”
In the meantime, the book is up for presale online for $20 at http://leocunity.org.
cdoornbos@orlandosentinel.com or 407-650-6931
A violent attack near the Four Corners area in Lake County early Thursday ended with a woman stabbing a man who allegedly tried to rape her.
A violent attack near the Four Corners area in Lake County early Thursday ended with a woman stabbing a man who allegedly tried to rape her.
A violent attack near the Four Corners area in Lake County early Thursday ended with a woman stabbing a man who allegedly tried to rape her.
A violent attack near the Four Corners area in Lake County early Thursday ended with a woman stabbing a man who allegedly tried to rape her.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office released 911 calls for an attempted sexual battery case in Clermont.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office released 911 calls for an attempted sexual battery case in Clermont.
A 33-year-old deputy resigned from the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office Monday after allegedly stealing money from motorists during DUI arrests.
A 33-year-old deputy resigned from the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office Monday after allegedly stealing money from motorists during DUI arrests.
On 01/31/2017, approximately 11:30 pm, Security cameras captured two unknown black male suspects commit an armed robbery at the 7-Eleven at 5300 Radabaugh Way. The two clerks were working inside with two customers shopping, when two males entered the business armed with handguns wearing masks. The suspects ordered the clerks to empty the registers. The suspects then fled on foot into the Northbridge Apartment complex. The suspects were between the ages of nineteen to twenty three. Please note that one of the suspects had bright red sneakers and a distinct wristband or watch on his left wrist.
If you have any information as to the identity of the suspects please contact the Orlando Police Department or CRIMELINE at I-1800-423-TIPS.
On 01/31/2017, approximately 11:30 pm, Security cameras captured two unknown black male suspects commit an armed robbery at the 7-Eleven at 5300 Radabaugh Way. The two clerks were working inside with two customers shopping, when two males entered the business armed with handguns wearing masks. The suspects ordered the clerks to empty the registers. The suspects then fled on foot into the Northbridge Apartment complex. The suspects were between the ages of nineteen to twenty three. Please note that one of the suspects had bright red sneakers and a distinct wristband or watch on his left wrist.
If you have any information as to the identity of the suspects please contact the Orlando Police Department or CRIMELINE at I-1800-423-TIPS.
Noor Salman, wife of Pulse nightclub shooter Omar Mateen, stands accused of facilitating the attack. Her lawyer requested a judge set bail.
Noor Salman, wife of Pulse nightclub shooter Omar Mateen, stands accused of facilitating the attack. Her lawyer requested a judge set bail.
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