‘I hope he ain't killing her': Sanford cops under review after viral video shows delayed response to knife attack

Yahoo

05-03-2025

Early the morning of June 1, Sanford Police were called to the RaceTrac gas station on South Orlando Drive while an employee was held at knifepoint inside one of the restrooms.
Two officers arrived and could immediately hear her begging for her life. 'Please just let me go,' she said. 'Please, stay calm. Please let me go.'
A customer and store clerk urged the officers to help her, telling them her neck had already been sliced by her attacker — later identified as 63-year-old Randal Lawton.
But instead of rushing to save her they waited for backup. For several minutes they stood at the entrance of a hallway leading to the restrooms.
'I hope he ain't killing her in there,' the customer said as he watched the cops. But rather than go in, one officer shouted: 'Sir, can you come out with your hands up?'
Seconds later the officer uttered, 'Oof.' The cops' initial interaction with Lawton was unreported until snippets of body-worn camera footage was posted to YouTube on Sunday by an account called EWU Bodycam. That account describes itself as a news agency that posts videos 'delivering factual information about police procedures and local news events.'
Video of the incident, which received more than 1.4 million views as of Wednesday morning, prompted an announcement by Sanford police Chief Cecil Smith that a review is underway of the officers' response. Smith said he was unaware of how officers handled the situation nor did he know they spoke to supervisors who told them they could have gone in to help the victim without waiting for backup.
Trial on hold for now: Family matriarch charged with Lake deputy's murder ruled incompetent
In a video posted to social media Tuesday morning, Smith said: 'Unfortunately, this was the first time I too had viewed this footage. I agree that the videos prompt a need for a thorough review of the incident and the officers' response. In gathering information today, I was made aware that after the incident, a debrief was held by the immediate supervisors, in which the response was analyzed and discussed. However, a formal internal notification to my office regarding the incident did not occur, leaving myself unaware of the incident and any concerns surrounding it. This was a failure which has been corrected.'
The RaceTrac employee — who the Orlando Sentinel isn't naming because she's a victim of a crime — survived with lacerations on her left hand and beneath her chin. On video and according to the affidavit, Lawton repeatedly referred to her as 'Eve' and accused her of killing him and his family. That's not her name, however, and she told police she'd never met Lawton before that morning.
Records show Lawton remains in the John E. Polk Correctional Facility with a $50,500 bond on charges of kidnapping and aggravated battery.
The officers' response to Lawton's ongoing attack was left out the arrest affidavit. According to court filings, SPD's version of how the arrest went down described the officers going in to rescue the victim when they heard her cries for help.
'At this time, officers determined there was an exigent circumstance to enter the bathroom to preserve life,' the affidavit said. That's contrary to what was shown on video — with one officer describing the narrow hall as a possible 'set up.'
'What you wanna do? You wanna wait?' the second officer asked. He replied, 'I mean, I say we wait for more units. Is there another way to get through that door? 'Cause I only hear her.'
The video showed that they finally moved toward the restroom where she was being held once backup arrived — with Lawton standing over the woman with his hand on a box cutter as she clutched the blade while laying on the toilet. Lawton surrendered once police entered with guns drawn.
The supervisors spoke to the officers outside the gas station, where they again said they didn't go in because they were waiting for other officers to arrive.
'Y'all would have been fine. Because everybody was standing outside, I thought everybody was out,' one supervisor said. '… You don't have to wait for a third person.'
The agency has not identified the two officers, who have been placed on administrative leave. Smith added that supervisors who spoke to them are also under review, but an SPD spokesperson did not immediately respond to a message seeking their names.