Jasper — A recently-filed lawsuit alleges that the handgun found near a Jennings man shot and killed by a Hamilton sheriff’s deputy in 2005 had been in the possession of the deputy before it was found next to the man’s body.

The lawsuit, filed against Sheriff Harrell Reid and Hamilton County by the man’s mother, Sandra Gandy, claims that Antonio Whetstone was unarmed when Deputy Bobby Boatwright tazed and then shot him several times — and that the .22-caliber Walther P22 that officers said they found at the scene was placed there after the shooting, according to Gandy’s attorney, Reginald Luster.

Gandy recently settled a lawsuit against the insurance company American General for damages in excess of $75,000 that had been denied Whetstone’s family, because the Insured’s death was originally ruled “the result of committing or trying to commit an assault or felony”, according American General reports.

Luster said America General’s investigation into the case and decision to settle "creates doubt about whether the incident took place the way Boatwright and the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office said it did.”

The shooting by Boatwright was cleared in 2006 by a Hamilton County Grand Jury and described as heroic by Reid.

“Deputy Boatwright was totally within the line of duty, and above that heroic in his actions,” Reid said in a recent interview.

Reid denied any conspiracy in the police department to plant a gun or alter evidence, and called the lawsuit ridiculous and the allegation unfounded.

POLICE CALL SHOOTING JUSTIFIED

The death of Antonio J. Whetstone, 27, of Jennings was a topic of concern among locals, but authorities said their own investigation showed the shooting was justified. Whetstone’s mother filed suit against Sheriff Reid December 10, 2009 claiming the shooting was unjustified.

On December 11, 2005, authorities say Boatwright responded in the early morning hours to a 9-1-1 call at the North Florida Inn in Jennings where he found Whetstone arguing with his girlfriend Lavita Daniels in the bathroom of room 115. Reid told Jasper News in 2006 that Whetstone came from behind the bathroom door with a handgun and grabbed Daniels in a chokehold while she held their one-year-old child in her arms.

“He warned Antonio several times by yelling out ‘Drop the gun! Drop the gun!’” Reid said recently. When Whetstone did not do so, Deputy Boatwright shot him with a Tazer. Whetstone continued to hold Daniels, pulled a gun and fired at the deputy over Daniels’ shoulder, according to Reid’s 2006 account.

Boatwright pulled Daniels and the child away from Whetstone, and then fired several times at him, the sheriff said. Both mother and child were unharmed.

A Hamilton County grand jury commended Deputy Boatwright for the restraint he exercised before resorting to deadly force. The report notes that Boatwright attempted to de-escalate the situation by resorting to the use of non-deadly force first and did not resort to deadly force until Whetstone did so.

Grand jury documents also show that Whetstone was under the influence of alcohol and cocaine to the extent that his normal facilities were impaired and, thereby, was more than 50 percent at fault for his own harm as provided by Florida Statute.

LAWSUIT ALLEGES SHOOTING UNJUSTIFIED

The lawsuit by Gandy raises new questions about the handgun recovered from the scene and what took place the night Whetstone was shot. According to court filings, an unarmed Whetstone called 911 from the bathroom of room 115 at the North Florida Inn to report an intruder.

“At the time of the unlawful police shooting and wrongful use of deadly force, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office employed law enforcement officers who were issued handguns and ammunition owned by the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office,” the suit alleges. Court documents further allege that “Officer Bobby Boatwright went to his patrol car, removed a handgun from the trunk of his patrol car, returned to the bathroom and placed it next to the lifeless body of Antonio J. Whetstone.”

The lawsuit also accuses officers of the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office of participating “in a widespread custom and practice or had an unofficial policy of giving false statements to investigators of police shooting incidents to justify using deadly force….”

However, according to authorities, there had not been a fatal shooting by a deputy in Hamilton County within at least 15 years preceding the death of Whetstone.

The suit also alleges that no fingerprints or gun powder residue were found on the weapon police say was handled by Whetstone. Luster said he plans to prove that proper ballistics testing was not done at the scene and on the gun said to have been carried by Whetstone.

Luster declined to discuss details of the case, but said the evidence he has collected and interviews with witnesses so far makes the Sheriff Office’s claims appear "questionable."

He feels the outcome of the suit will show that the grand jury was not supplied with proper evidence to make a decision.

Reid disagreed.

“Deputy Boatwright acted bravely in retrieving the child, and saving both his life and the life of his mother,” Reid said. “Defending himself and the victims was his right and responsibility.”