Case reduced to low level felony with county jail and probation
REDUCED TO ACCESSORY AFTER THE FACT TO AGGRAVATED ASSAULT
Date: October 2019
Court: Okaloosa County Circuit Court
Details:
Client was charged with Third Degree Felony Murder, which although confusing, is a Second Degree Felony carrying a mandatory-minimum sentence of 10.3 years, and punishable by up to 15 years incarceration in the Florida Department of Corrections.
The Court had denied bond for the client and his six of his seven co-defendants who were all charged with the same offense. The case began unraveling for the State early on in the proceedings. My assessment was that the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office had a reckless disregard for the truth. This was not only unfair to the defendants arrested but also unfair to the family of the victim.
The holes in the case were wide enough for a Mack truck to drive through and this was brought to the attention of the prosecution almost immediately. While typically homicide cases will take over a year to eighteen months to conclude, this case wrapped up in a matter of four months.
Outcome: My client’s charge was reduced from Third Degree Murder to Accessory After the Fact to Aggravated Assault. The client will serve one year in the Okaloosa County Jail with credit for time served