The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office John E. Goode Pre-Trial Detention Facility.

A judge on Tuesday reduced the bond of a Jacksonville man who was “seriously injured” after an “incident” at the Duval County jail so the man’s family could visit him while he was hospitalized, according to court documents obtained by The Tributary.

Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters requested the bond reduction and announced Tuesday he’d suspended nine of his jail staff in connection with the incident, though he declined to elaborate on any further details.

On Wednesday afternoon, after The Tributary and other Jacksonville media outlets obtained more information about the incident despite the sheriff’s silence, Waters said in a statement he had asked the FBI to “work cooperatively with our detectives concerning the incident that recently occurred in the Duval County Jail.”

Framing the move as one about transparency and the “public’s confidence in the integrity” of the investigation, Waters’ statement said he had nothing more to share. The Tributary received the sheriff’s statement from various third parties rather than JSO because his department routinely fails to include the nonprofit newsroom in its news releases.

Charles Faggart, 31, was arrested April 1 on charges of simple assault and criminal mischief, both misdemeanors. Faggart’s original bond, which was set at $5,003, was removed so he is no longer in JSO custody, The Tributary first reported. It was an apparent necessity so his family could visit him at the hospital.

Belkis Plata, an attorney for Faggart’s family, told The Tributary that they have yet to receive any answers about what happened in the jail.

“He is currently on a ventilator and the prognosis is grim,” she said.

Waters said during the press conference, which The Tributary was not invited to, that 8 correctional officers and a correctional sergeant were removed from their positions and stripped of all their correction authority.

Waters refused to release details about how or why Faggart was injured, citing an open investigation. He also refused to release the name of his officers who have been suspended. 

In a GoFundMe, Faggart’s family describe him as being a father and chef “known for his big heart, his flavorful food, and the joy he brought to others.”

“While the full details are still unfolding, one thing is clear — Charles was harmed while in a place where he should have been safe,” they wrote.

The Duval County jail has been no stranger to controversy over the last few years. The Tributary found that deaths at the jail tripled after JSO quietly privatized medical care in 2017. 

In April 2023, the National Commission on Correctional Health Care placed the jail on probation after the agency discovered a slew of defects, including a history of delays in getting inmates medications and general medical care, a high number of health care-related grievances from inmates, a pattern of delay in providing timely medical and dental care, a delay in verifying prescriptions, delays in ordering prescriptions and delays in completing required health assessments within 14 days. JSO’s review of jail deaths was also deemed inadequate by the NCCHC. 

The probation was lifted after a follow-up inspection in June. Waters also ended the agency’s contract with Armor Correctional Health Management after the probation was placed and signed a more expensive contract with another private company called NaphCare. 

Since then, JSO has added 14 medical staff members to the downtown jail, according documents obtained by The Tributary.

The Tributary found jail deaths decreased by 50% in the year after JSO inked the new NaphCare contract. The Tributary asked JSO in November what changes had been made within the facility to improve medical conditions there and did not receive a response. 

Though JSO has not announced any arrests in Tuesday’s incident, the department has arrested correctional officers before. Last year, Jordan Weiss, 23, was arrested on a third-degree felony charge of official misconduct and one count of misdemeanor battery after he pepper sprayed and hit an inmate several times despite the inmate not resisting, police said.

The inmate was seen by the medical team and then returned to his dorm. 

Also last year, correctional officer Kobe Collett and 16 other people were charged with bringing drugs into the jail. Collett was charged with money laundering, unlawful compensation for official behavior, introducing or possessing contraband in a county detention facility and three counts of criminal conspiracy, all of which are felonies. 

Nichole Manna is The Tributary’s senior investigative reporter. You can reach her at nichole.manna@floridatrib.org.

Nichole Manna is The Florida Trib's Senior Investigative Reporter. She has been with the organization since 2023 and has covered the criminal justice system for more than a decade.

Nichole has extensively covered conditions at the Duval County jail and in 2024 received first place from the Green Eyeshade Awards in online investigations for her reporting of medical neglect at the facility. That series of stories was recognized with awards at the local, regional and national level. She took home the first place prize for a feature story in a small newsroom from the Online Journalism Awards in 2025 for her series, ‘Cold-Blooded’, which dissected a 1993 death penalty case and questioned whether the defendant received a fair trial.

Prior to joining The Trib, Nichole was an investigative reporter at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in Texas where she was a Livingston Award finalist for a series of stories about a neighborhood with the lowest life expectancy in the state. Her work helped get residents access to free pop-up clinics and they continue to receive help with food disparities.

She is currently working with ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network to produce an investigative project.

You can reach her at nichole@floridatrib.org.