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Former St. Lucie County sheriff's deputy accused of sexual battery to stay behind bars without bond

Posted at 9:05 PM, Oct 23, 2017
and last updated 2017-10-23 21:05:29-04

The former St. Lucie County Sheriff’s deputy accused of sexual battery wants to be released pending trial.

However, a judge revoked Evan Cramer’s bond after deputies say he beat up another inmate while in custody .

Surveillance video from the jail shows the entire fight unfold.

The former deputy has been in jail since January on sexual battery charges, accused of negotiating sexual acts in exchange for not taking people in his custody to jail.

A judge originally set bond, and while Cramer was in the process of posting that bond, he got into the fight.

“The statute is very clear. If a person has been released, pre-trail. Release is a very clear and obvious term,” said Jason Wandner, one of Cramer’s defense attorney.

Monday, the defense asked the judge to set bond again, arguing it shouldn't have been revoked in the first place since Cramer was still in custody when the fight happened

“If a person has been given pre-trial release commits a new offense while on pretrial release, then the judge can do what the judge did in our case."

Ultimately, the judge said he was bound by another ruling that applied, meaning Cramer will stay behind bars for now. However, his lawyer say they are not giving up just yet.

“[The judge] made a very important legal point that we ar going to rely upon when we seek to appeal this decision very soon to the 4th District Court of Appeals  in West Palm Beach,” said Wandner.