Sheriff Nienhuis Accused of Exploiting Another Family's Grief for Political Gain

HERNANDO – Last Saturday, Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis drew criticism when he used the murder of a Lake County Deputy to solicit votes for his reelection campaign. There are now complaints pouring in from citizens who say Nienhuis is exploiting the search for a missing Brooksville man for the very same reason.

On Tuesday, a massive search ensued for 70-year-old David Lamar Brown, who was last seen in the area of Batten Road. Since Tuesday, Nienhuis published 7 videos of him talking about the case, 7 separate written posts, and 38 photos, all on the agency's Facebook page. Unfortunately, Mr. Brown is still missing, and the search continues.

The overwhelming effort to search for Mr. Brown and the unprecedented amount of face-time Nienhuis has personally displayed has many asking why other cases are virtually ignored. Nienhuis is up for reelection this Tuesday and residents say he's using the Brown family's grief as a campaign ad to pander votes.

Kimberly and Terry Braddy believe Nienhuis only cares about cases that help his political career, unlike the disappearance of their son Timothy Braddy in 2022 who received little attention at all. Braddy's pickup truck was discovered abandoned in front of Weeki Wachee High School on December 14, 2022, but Braddy was nowhere to be found.

HCSO did conduct a brief search for Braddy in the days following his disappearance, but the Sheriff's Office only published one written announcement two days after they found his truck. A media release was published on December 21st, but detectives had already closed the case. Nienhuis never published a single Facebook video and he refused to speak with the family. "I think they botched the case from the beginning. Vargas is an arrogant jackass and Ellis is egotistical and never returned calls," says Kimberly Braddy. Vargas and Ellis were the detectives assigned to the Braddy case.

The volunteer search organization We Are the Essentials spent weeks investigating and conducting searches, but Kimberly says that because HCSO did not process Timothy's truck or transfer it to the HCSO impound yard, valuable evidence could not be used to develop leads. Sadly, there have been no new leads since his disappearance.

47-year-old Tina Everhart disappeared from her Brooksville home on January 10, 2023, under mysterious conditions. Like the Braddy case, HCSO did not launch a large-scale search; in fact, there was no organized search conducted at all, despite Everhart leaving her phone, purse, and car at the residence. We Are the Essentials responded to the area and quickly located Everhart's body in a wood line directly in front of her home. Officials say she was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver while she was getting her mail. Sheriff Nienhuis never published a video or statement regarding her disappearance.

Deputy John Mecklenburg was killed during a high-speed pursuit with a suspect in July 2011. John's wife Penny Mecklenburg was devasted and the community grieved alongside her, but she didn't take kindly to Nienhuis trying to use her as a prop to help him win his first election bid in 2012. In response to his pandering, Penny refused to attend a Bill signing in Tallahassee with Nienhuis.

Sheriff Nienhuis is up against Joe Puglia who promises to separate politics from the Office of Sheriff, bring back transparency, and implement body-worn cameras. Puglia has been critical of Nienhuis' leadership and says he will be reviewing questionable cases if he is elected.

The race for Sheriff will be decided in the Primary Election this Tuesday, August 20th.