The State Attorney Sidebar

V O L U M E

SPECIAL
POINTS OF
INTEREST:

A message
from the
State Attorney

Third Response to
questions
regarding
the Zimmerman case

1 ,

I S S U E

signs that a relationship is God Bless. ~Angela

on a downward spiral

The Rebuttal

B.A.C.A. Or-

Featured
SAO employee

Domestic
Violence
warning
signs

2 0 1 3

The month of October and action can be taken

is Domestic Violence
before it is too late.
Awareness Month.
In the safety tips secThis is a crime that not tion of The SAO Sidebar,
only affects women, but we have listed warning
also men. The good
signs of domestic vionews is you dont have to lence and some tips on
be a victim.
how one can avoid beMany times, there are coming a victim.

Recent SAO

ganization

O C T O B E R

A Message From the State Attorney

trial victories

The third in a series of responses to questions about the Zimmerman case

In the last two SAO Sidebar issues, we covered why
we did not use a Grand Jury
in the George Zimmerman
case. We also addressed
how an overcharge is virtually impossible in the State
of Florida. Now, we will
address another hot button
topic - Stand Your Ground.
This law has sparked a lot
of conversation, which is
good. However, many times
the concept of Stand Your
Ground is misunderstood.
While the defense of Justifiable Use of Deadly Force

(JUDF) has been around for

years, it wasnt until the shooting
of Trayvon Martin that people
really started to talk about it.
While we expected Zimmerman
to avail himself of a SYG hearing,
he chose not to. We always believed the issue in the Zimmerman case was that he was the
initial aggressor and the force
used against Trayvon Martin was
excessive. We handle cases
weekly where Stand Your
Ground is asserted and hearings
are conducted. While any defendant can claim the defense, a

judge decides if the immunity

is warranted.
Many citizens, including law
enforcement officers, are
protected by this law. However, we have seen numerous instances where individuals use deadly force to end a
fist fight and are able to take
advantage of this law.
JUDF is a complicated law,
but inures to the benefit of
law abiding citizens who are
truly using justifiable force in
defense of themselves or
others.

VOLUME 1, ISSUE 3

PAGE 2

Justice Promised, Justice Delivered

guilty of Schemes to Defraud,

False Insurance Claims and
Knowingly Participating in an Intentional Motor Vehicle Crash.
~ASAs Joe Licandro and Michael
Kennedy

Anthony R. Christopher was

convicted of Armed Robbery.
~ASAs Sandra Rosendale and
Yiolanta Jones
Zaynus C. Crawford was convicted of Aggravated Assault
(Domestic). ~ASAs Gary Bryant
and Rachel Demers
Alexander J. Silvers was found
guilty of three counts of Battery
and two counts of Unlawful Sexual Activity with Certain Minors.
~ASAs Catherine Licandro and
Chris Bracken
Eric L. Myrick was convicted
of Armed Robbery with a Firearm and False Imprisonment.
~ASAs Ryan Healy and Lewis
Price
David R. Lopez was found

Kim Jackson was sentenced to

death for First Degree Murder.
~ASAs Alan Mizrahi and Theresa
Simak

Maurice J. Jackson was convicted of Attempted Murder in

the Second Degree and PFCF.
~ASAs David Thompson and
Katie Deal

Alfred L. George was convicted of Burglary (Occupied Dwelling). ~ASAs Ashley Young and
Mai Tran

John A. Ramos was found guilty

of Aggravated Battery. ~ASAs

Rebecca Emert and Avery Sander

Rodney L. Long Jr. was convicted of two counts of Burglary

(Dwelling). ~ASAs Sandra Rosendale and Mark Hulsey

George P. Landgraff was found

guilty of Murder in the First Degree and Armed Burglary with
Assault or Battery. ~ASA Jeff
Moody

Norman J. Thompson was

convicted of Sexual Battery.
~ASAs Alan Mizrahi and Theresa
Simak

Luis E. Amador-Carbajal was

found guilty of Attempted Murder
in the First Degree and PFCF.
~ASAs Garrett Hill and Matt Polimeni

Hearings and Cheerings

On October 1st, the SAO welcomed eleven new Assistant State Attorneys to the Fourth Judicial
Circuit. They were sworn in by the Honorable Adrian Soud and State Attorney Angela Corey.
This group of men and women studied law at various universities, including the University of Florida, Florida State University, Valparaiso University, Stetson and Florida Coastal School of Law. Most
of them recently passed the Florida Bar Exam. One of our new ASAs was a former prosecutor for
the Eighth Judicial Circuit.
Congratulations to the
newest Assistant State Attorneys of the Fourth Judicial
Circuit!

PAGE 3

Special Acknowledgement Opportunity

Keith Jordan has been
part of the SAO since October 2012.
Last year, Ms. Corey met
Keith while in line at Solomons store. He shared with
her his interest in the criminal justice system and his
desire to one day be in law

enforcement. Ms. Corey

was impressed with Keiths
enthusiasm and suggested
that he apply for a job with
our office, which he did.
In addition to being a
student at Trinity Baptist
College, Keith worked as an
OPS Clerk and is now a fulltime employee in File Con-

trol.
Keith says that he looks
forward to coming to work
every morning and is grateful for all of the opportunities that have come his way
since working at the SAO.

Keith Jordan

Victims Voice
Every BACA
member is
dedicated to
lending their
physical and
emotional
support to each
child abuse
victim.

The SAO works closely with

different organizations that provide support for victims in our
community.
Bikers Against Child Abuse
(BACA), is a non-profit organization that strives to create a safer
environment for young, abused
children by empowering and supporting them. It was founded in
1995 by John Paul Chief Lilly, a
Licensed Clinical Social Worker,
who spent a majority of his twenty plus years working with abused
children. He found that although
the system helped children,
there was still a lack of security.
Each volunteer member of
BACA must go through an extensive process that includes federal
and state background checks and
a one year internship program.
The organization consists of

male and female bikers from

a variety of backgrounds who
also work full-time jobs.
When BACA is chosen to
work with a child, and the
childs parent is present, they
deploy a group to ride in their
biker gear to meet with the
child. They introduce themselves by their biker name
and conduct a ceremony in
which the child is given a teddy bear for comfort and their
own biker nameadopting
them into the BACA family.
Two BACA members are then
assigned as primary contacts
for the child 24-hours a day.
The victim can call their biker
brother or sister to come with
them to therapy, court or
even stand outside of their
house if they are feeling

Off The Record

Inv. Adam Kline and his
dance partner Ruhiyyih
McKinley

On September 21st, the

Beaches Fine Arts Series
hosted their annual First
Coast Dancing with the
Stars event. SAO Investigator Adam Kline was
chosen, along with ten
other local celebrities, to

partner with professional

dancers from our area and
take part in the dance
competition. Each couple
performed an original
piece for the audience and
the judges.

scared. This type of physical presence provides the child with the
security they need to regain their
confidence.
Every BACA member is dedicated to lending their physical and
emotional support to each child
abuse victim. These individuals
stand ready to shield the child
from any further abuse while at
the same time, encouraging them
to not feel afraid of the world in
which they live.
For more information about
BACA, go to their site at:
www.bacaworld.org

BACA Bike Pack

The event raised a total
of $60,000. Every ticket
purchased helped benefit
the Beaches Fine Arts Series, which provides local
children with free concerts and art workshops.

PAGE 4

Safety Zone
Warning signs of domestic violence
Many actions that are interpreted as caring, attentive and romantic are actually early warning signs
for future abuse. Some examples include:

INTRUSION Your partner constantly asks what you are doing, who you are with, etc. Your partner also
regularly checks your cell phone or e-mail without permission.
ISOLATION Insists that you spend all or most of your time together, cutting you off from your friends and
family.
POSSESSION & JEALOUSY Your partner accuses you of flirting or having sexual relationships with others
and monitors what you wear or who you talk to.
NEED FOR CONTROL Displays extreme anger or fits of rage when things do not go their way and
attempts to make all decisions for you.
UNKNOWN PAST Your partner is secretive about their past relationships, but feels the need to know
every detail about yours.
DISRESPECTFUL Is constantly putting you down or refers to members of the opposite sex in a derogatory
manner.

Remember to contact authorities if you see or hear any evidence of domestic violence. For more information
and helpful links to domestic violence agencies, please visit our website!

www.sao4th.com

Setting the Record Straight

Recently, there have been several
death penalty cases highlighted by
the media. In order to set the record
straight, we want to inform you how
the decision is made to seek death in
a case.
The decision to seek death is based
on the facts of the case and the law.
In other words, we look at the way
the murder was committed what
the defendant did; and we rely on
Florida Statutes which clearly detail
the aggravating and mitigating factors that determine whether the
death penalty is appropriate.
Experienced Homicide Assistant
State Attorneys thoroughly review
each case that is considered to be
death qualified and the State Attorney makes the final decision.

The decision is based solely on the

facts and the death penalty aggravators and mitigators involved in the
case. What many may not realize is
that in order to seek death in a case,
the facts and circumstances must
meet a set of statutory aggravators
which must outweigh the statutory
and non-statutory mitigation factors.
In Florida, there are sixteen aggravators. Some of which are: prior violent
felony convictions, great risk of harm
to many people, heightened premeditation, felony murder and heinous,
atrocious and cruel.
Just because the State seeks a death
sentence does not mean the defendant will go to death row upon conviction. Both the jury and judge are a

part of the decision making process.

Once the jury reaches a verdict of
guilty in the trial phase, that same jury
then returns for the penalty phase.
The jury hears evidence of the aggravating and mitigating circumstances in
the case. The jury is given detailed
instructions on how to weigh those
factors. The jury then deliberates and
makes an advisory recommendation,
which the court must give great
weight. If the jury votes by a majority
that the defendant be sentenced to
death, the recommendation then goes
to the judge. It is up to the trial judge
to make the final decision on whether
a death or a mandatory life sentence
will be imposed.