A Death in St. Augustine Documentary

Documentary Response: “A Death in St. Augustine”
The nationwide and then global calls for racial justice erupted following the murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020 by Minneapolis police officers underscore the public’s overwhelmingly negative reaction when law enforcement authorities, long held in high esteem and respect, are suspected of committing violent crimes themselves. Although
The purpose of this paper is to provide a systematic review of the PBS documentary video,” A Death in St. Augustine” to identify and describe the major issue addressed by this documentary and the primary individuals and groups that were involved. In addition, a description of the several biases identified in the documentary, what was liked and disliked about it and what was learned from watching it are followed by a discussion concerning issues in the film that were unconvincing and anomalous. Finally, a discussion concerning whether the documentary changed this writer’s mind about any aspect of the subject addressed and if this documentary would be recommended to others is followed by a summary of the research and key findings concerning the documentary, “A Death in St. Augustine” in the conclusion.
Review and Discussion
Identify and describe in detail the major issue addressed by the documentary
The major issue that is addressed by the documentary concerns the special treatment afforded to members of the law enforcement community by their peers when they become involved in the criminal justice system following the death of Michelle O’Connell on September 2, 2010. Although O’Connell was a single mother, her family emphasized that she loved her daughter, Alexis, and even worked up to three jobs to support her. The point is made repeatedly by family members and friends that O’Connell was “planning for her future not her end” despite her death being ruled a suicide by the medical examiner. For instance, her employer, Teresa Woodward, stated outright that, “Michelle’s life was not spiraling down. She was happy with the changes she was making.”
One of the most important changes O’Connell was trying to make in her life was seeking an end to her stormy relationship with Deputy Banks, but there are numerous signs that she was contemplating suicide as evinced by a stream of cryptic messages that indicated she was planning on taking her own life (i.e., the several texts to her sister stating, in part, “Promise me one thing. Lexi will be happy and always have a good life [and] that no matter what, Lexi will always be safe and loved.” Conversely, there were also significant indications that O’Connell was murdered by her physically abusive and controlling boyfriend, Deputy Banks.
Identify the primary individuals/groups involved in the documentary
The two primary individuals involved in the documentary were Michelle O’Connell, the deceased, a full-time daycare worker who had recently been promoted and Sheriff Deputy Jeremy Banks, the main suspect in her death. The key group that was involved in the documentary was Deputy Banks’ employer, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office in St. Augustine, Florida.
Identify the biases on the part of the filmmaker that you were able to identify in the documentary
Like other Frontline presentations, this documentary is prefaced with selected excerpts from the video. In this case, the excerpts were mostly from O’Connell’s relatives and friends that served to create a sense that O’Connell did not commit suicide but was rather the victim of a cold-blooded murder by her boyfriend, Deputy Banks. The points are made that Banks had a propensity for violence, especially after he had been drinking, and that the couple constantly argued and that Banks had attacked O’Connell physically in the past. Indeed, numerous not-too-subtle references to the “what if’s” that were involved in this “troubling” case made it clear that the producers considered the potential that Michelle had been murdered by her physically abusive deputy sheriff boyfriend a hot topic that would garner a sizeable audience.
This grisly attraction to a potential murder was based in large part on the fact that a law enforcement authority was involved, that the case was investigated by his employers and that a “code of silence” in this law enforcement agency may have prevented all of the facts in the case -- and the guilty party -- from being discovered. Moreover, the producers also highlight numerous examples of circumstantial evidence that point to her murder rather than suicide including the fact that O’Connell died on the night the couple broke up, Deputy Banks’ service revolver was found next to O’Connell’s body with his holster together with the series of cryptic text messages the night of her death. More troubling still, perhaps, investigators failed to contact any of O’Connell’s family members or friends for statements concerning her state of mind leading up to the day of her death, and only Lieutenant Charles Bradley eventually met with them weeks later but still did not collect any statements.
Taken together, all of these signs indicated that Deputy Banks was responsible for O’Connell’s death, but there was no hard evidence in support of this conclusion and he returning to duty after a period of time. In addition, although O’Connell’s brother, who worked with Banks, initially thought Banks was the murdered and lost his job with the sheriff’s office as a result, later recanted his story and insisted the original investigation was accurate and that his sister had in fact committed suicide. Deputy O’Connell was reinstated to his former job thereafter.
What did you like about the documentary?
Over the years, Frontline has consistently placed a high priority on top-notch production values and the show’s producers are good at what they do. In addition, the use of first-hand accounts of eyewitnesses including co-workers, family members, and friends was an interesting addition to the documentary. Further and notwithstanding the several biases that were described above, the documentary did eventually succeed in communicating both sides of the story to underscore just how mysterious the circumstances were and why the medical examiner reached the conclusion that O’Connell had committ4ed suicide rather than being murdered by her boyfriend.
What didn’t you like about the documentary?
The nebulosity of the ending was especially disappointing.
What did you learn after watching the documentary that you did not know before watching it?
Although I am aware of the so-called “code of silence” that exists in law enforcement agencies across the country and probably around the world, I learned that the can be used as a weapon against police officers when they become involved with the criminal justice system. In addition, the fact that O’Connell’s death was still ruled a suicide after all this time was news to me.
Was there anything that you saw or heard in the film that was unconvincing or which seemed out of place?
It seems highly unlikely that the comparatively large dark bruise over McConnell’s right eye was caused by an expended cartridge from the service revolver. Indeed, many people across the country would be walking around with bruised faces and two black eyes all the time if expended shell casings could cause this type of injury.
Did the film change your mind about any aspect of the subject that it presents? What information, argument or persuasive technique caused you to change your mind?
While the producers did provide some evidence that indicated O’Connell took her own life, the multiple claims that Deputy Banks was responsible for her death were piled on to the point where members of the audience likely concluded he was the murderer without looking any further and I was nearly, but not completely, drawn into this perspective myself.
If the filmmakers were to ask how the film could be improved, what would you tell them?
The producers should recruited Deputy Banks to comment on the case, just as they did with the other stakeholders in this case, rather than just use his prerecorded telephone calls and testimony.
If someone asked you whether you would recommend this film, how would you respond?
If people were interested in learning more about law enforcement’s unwritten but powerful code of silence, I would recommend this documentary; however, if they were just looking for some solid entertainment, I would recommend an alternative.
Conclusion
The untimely death of Michelle O’Connell on September 2, 2010 that resulted in an investigation by the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office in St. Augustine, Florida officially determined that she died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The research showed that there was abundant circumstantial evidence that implicated O’Connell’s boyfriend, Deputy Sheriff Jeremy Banks, but this evidence was disregarded throughout the investigation. The several instances of wrongdoing and errors made by investigators did nothing to change the outcome of the investigation, though, and the official cause of O’Connell’s death remains a suicide a decade later.