MEMORANDUM

TO:                  Tom Berger, Director of Real Estate Development and Management

Eric Aden, Sheriff, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office

Mel Ponder, Chairman, Okaloosa County Commissioners

JB Whitten, Mayor, City of Crestview

FROM:            Governor Ron DeSantis

DATE:             Thursday, December 29, 2022

RE:                  Flags at Half-Staff in Honor of Corporal Ray Hamilton

On Saturday, December 24, 2022, Corporal Ray Hamilton passed away from critical injuries sustained in the line of duty when responding to a domestic violence incident.  He served the community as a Deputy for the last five-and-a-half years in Okaloosa County. Hamilton had just become a member of the office’s Special Response Team. Prior to that, he served as a field training officer and a crime scene investigator. In his time working with the Okaloosa County Sherriff’s Office, he had received two Life Saving Awards. Corporal Hamilton will be remembered for his selfless courage to protect the lives of others at the cost of his own.

To honor the memory of Corporal Ray Hamilton and his service to our state, I hereby direct the flags of the United States and the State of Florida to be flown at half-staff at the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office in Crestview, Florida, the Okaloosa County Courthouse in Crestview, Florida, and the City Hall of Crestview, Florida, from sunrise to sunset on Saturday, December 31, 2022.