Suspected misconduct by former Jackson County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Zachary Wester, fired from his job on Sept. 10, has led State Attorney Glenn Hess to file for the vacating of pleas and subsequent sentencing in six criminal cases, and dismissal of at least 41 pending cases in which Wester was a primary witness.

Other dismissals could follow — there are 263 cases in which Wester was involved this year, at varying levels, and all of those are being reviewed. At least one of those in which he was involved has already been through court, with the defendant’s plea and sentence set aside by a judge this Wednesday.

Hess said he’s called for the dismissal of charges and of pleas/sentencing in some cases because of information provided to him by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in a preliminary investigative report and a video/photo he saw as part of that report.

FDLE is conducting an internal investigation into Wester’s activities on behalf of Jackson County Sheriff Lou Roberts. That probe was triggered after allegations against Wester came to light. Hess said people in his office as well as defense attorneys had come to him with concerns.