DeLeo: TPD officer Vincent Crump terminated for allegedly sexual assaulting motorist

A Tallahassee police officer was fired after a motorist accused him of sexual assault during a traffic stop Saturday night.

In a rare Sunday morning news conference, Tallahassee Police Chief Michael DeLeo made a brief announcement.

"We immediately sent an investigative team to meet with the victim, for an interview, to collect evidence, and coordinate victim services," DeLeo said.

Investigators said the traffic stop took place in the area of Thomasville Road and Hermitage Boulevard.

The officer, Vincent Crump, was hired by TPD in January 2017 after spending nearly 12 years as a captain with Gadsden County Sheriff's Office, most recently working at Gadsden Correctional Facility. Prior to entering law enforcement, Crump spent eight years in the Navy.

Crump is not under arrest and there has been no determination on criminal charges, TPD public information officer Damon Miller said Sunday morning.

State Attorney Jack Campbell said he was notified about the case early Sunday morning prior to the news conference.

Campbell could not say much about TPD's firing of Crump before the investigation is concluded, saying that's "their side of the ball."

"Our office is working with (TPD) to determine if there's evidence of a crime and if so, what crime," Campbell said. "I think that (investigators) are moving with all deliberate speed, and I'd rather get it right than get it fast."

Campbell said it is rare a case gets to his office nearly 12 hours after it is reported.

"The fact that it was in my office within 24 hours is incredibly fast," Campbell said. "There are a lot of crimes that are investigated for weeks, months or years before my office is involved."

Campbell could not give a timeline on when he expects the investigation to wrap up, but said he "can't imagine it taking more than a month."

Because Crump was in his first probationary status period with TPD, he did not yet have any performance evaluations on file.

Miller said department protocol is generally to place an officer on administrative leave during an open investigation but that "all situations are different."

"Based on the evidence so far, Officer Crump has betrayed the values of our agency, and the public's trust," DeLeo said.

Maj. Robert Barkley of Gadsden Correctional Facility said Crump left work at the jail simply for a "better paying job," and had never heard complaints about his job performance or behavior while the two worked together.

"He was always a hard worker, he followed instructions well, and to my knowledge did his job very well," Barkley said.

DeLeo urged anyone with information about the case to contact TPD at 891-4200.