Man convicted of DUI manslaughter, faces 30 years

JURY VERDICT: Man convicted of DUI manslaughter, faces 30 years

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James Marcelin had been partying all day when he made the decision to drive three of his friends to Haines City.

James Marcelin, 27.

While traveling at least 20 MPH over the speed limit, Marcelin veered off the roadway and crashed head-on into a tree. The collision killed 19-year-old Andrew Valdez and critically injured Jose Almanzar and James Richards.

After about an hour and 20 minutes of deliberation, a jury convicted 27-year-old Marcelin Thursday of DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide, two counts of DUI with serious bodily injury, two counts of reckless driving resulting in serious bodily injury, three counts of driving while license suspended or revoked, and one count each of grand theft of a motor vehicle and burglary of a conveyance.

Marcelin is facing a maximum of 30 years in prison for the DUI manslaughter. His sentencing has not yet been scheduled.

Assistant State Attorney Amy Smith walked jurors through the events of that led up to the fatal crash on April 26, 2015.

Eleven days prior to the incident, Marcelin stole a 2007 Mazda minivan from Orlando. Marcelin drove the van to a party in Winter Haven at about 4 p.m. on April, 26, where he and the victims drank alcohol, smoked marijuana and did drugs.

They went to a second party in Orlando, where they continued to drink and smoke. When they ran out of marijuana, Marcelin got behind the wheel of the van and attempted to drive Valdez, Almanzar, and Richards to another party in Haines City.

About 11:15 p.m., Marcelin was driving on Lake Marion Creek Road in Haines City, which has multiple 90 degree turns. As he came out of a turn, Marcelin drifted off the road way and lost control, braking for 88 feet before colliding with the tree at 65 MPH.

Valdez was thrown from the front passenger seat and into the windshield, where he was entrapped. He lost consciousness and never regained it.

Valdez died on May 14, 2015.

Almanzar had a broken spine and a brain bleed. Richards had a cracked skull, which required 22 staples.

Both men were unconscious after the collision.

Marcelin had his right leg broken in two spots and a broken left arm, broken pelvis, sternum, and ribs. Multiple witnesses saw him in the driver’s seat and said he was the only occupant still conscious.

While witnesses called 911, Marcelin pulled himself out of the vehicle and to the ground, where he stayed until paramedics and law enforcement arrived.

In court, Marcelin took the stand and admitted he drank alcohol and did drugs before getting in the minivan. He said he could not remember if he was the one who drove it.

Assistant State Attorney Amy Smith addresses jurors during closing arguments Thursday. Marcelin was found guilty as charged and faces 30 years in prison.

The defense claimed that Almanzar was the driver and that Marcelin’s injuries were consistent with being in the passenger seat, arguing that Almanzar got away with homicide.

But Smith reminded jurors that witnesses on scene testified that the driver of the minivan clearly had a broken arm and broken leg – he also pulled himself out of the seat he was trapped in. None of the other victims had those injuries, and all but Marcelin were unconscious.

She said the argument that Almanzar got away with homicide is not supported by any of the facts in this case.

“Just because an attorney says it doesn’t make it so,” Smith said in her closing arguments. “It has to be supported by the evidence.”

She added that Almanzar could not have been the driver because he has hundreds of pages of medical records that say he had a broken spine, was in a coma, and was unable to speak from the moment of impact.

“The defense is asking you to disregard all of the evidence and somehow believe these men got switched. To speculate that Almanzar was the driver is not a part of this case. It is not supported by the facts,” Smith said.

“This is not complicated. All of the testimony is consistent,” she said. “When you step back and apply some common sense, it’s very clear there’s not some crazy oddity or mix-up. It’s that the defendant is guilty.”

Auburndale man found guilty in fatal hit-and-run, faces 60 years in prison

JURY VERDICT: Auburndale man found guilty in fatal hit-and-run, faces 60 years in prison

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Paul Marx consumed numerous alcoholic drinks and drifted off the roadway while driving home, striking and instantly killing a pedestrian.

Paul Marx, 45, of Auburndale.

After three hours of deliberation, Marx, 45, was convicted Friday of vehicular homicide with failure to render aid and leaving the scene of a crash involving death. He is facing up to 60 years in prison.

Marx will be sentenced May 3.

Assistant State Attorneys Mattie Tondreault and Courtney Durden tried the case and took jurors back to the night of Sept. 27, 2014, when 52-year-old John Haney was killed.

Marx started drinking at about 4 p.m. that day with his neighbor, consuming drinks with double shots of alcohol. He took his neighbor home about two hours later and went back out to drink, visiting at least three different establishments, until he left the XYZ Lounge about 11:15 p.m.

Haney walked up to the Circle K on U.S. 92 and was headed back home. He was walking in the grassy area on the eastbound side of the road, which is about three feet from where the pavement ends.

Marx was travelling about 55 miles per hour down U.S. 92 in his 2004 Ford F-150 when he veered off the roadway. He drove on the side of the road for 224 feet, and he struck Haney with the front right section of his truck.

Haney’s back hit the hood of Marx’s truck before his body was thrown 141 feet from the point of impact. Marx continued driving on the side of the roadway for over 150 feet before he re-entered it.

There were clear tire tracks left at the scene, which showed that Marx did not swerve or attempt to hit the brakes.

When Marx got home, his neighbor noticed that the truck was parked funny and saw Marx drunkenly leaning on the vehicle. The two men found blood spots on the hood of the truck, and Marx admitted he heard a thud while driving home but thought it was road debris.

The neighbor drove Marx back to the bar in an attempt to find the scene of the incident, but they were unable to. Marx went back home and waited another two hours before calling police to report the crash.

Haney’s body was found about 3 a.m.

The defense argued that Marx didn’t see the victim or know what he hit, so he kept driving. They claimed it was just an accident.

But Tondreault told jurors that at least two feet of Haney’s body would have been visible above the hood of the truck at the point of impact. She also reminded the jury that Marx had his headlights and fog lights on, illuminating the grass in the 224 feet leading up to the victim.

Henry’s life goal leads to law career

SAO SPOTLIGHT: Henry’s life goal leads to law career

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One of Aaron Henry’s life goals is to help others.

Aaron Henry

And he felt the way he could help people best was by becoming a lawyer.

“I always knew that was what I wanted to do,” Henry said, adding that he took a longer route by going in to the Air Force after High School.

Henry, 27, grew up in Jacksonville and went to college at Ashford University. He went into the Air Force in 2009 and worked in airfield management as a supervisor of airfield safety.

After finishing his undergraduate degree in the military, Henry went to Florida Coastal in 2015. He graduated with his juris doctor in only two years.

“I knew I wanted to help people, and being any kind of lawyer means you can help a lot of people,” Henry said.

But Henry said he felt particularly drawn to criminal law because of the importance it plays in our society.

“You can win or lose a lawsuit, and that’s just money,” he said. “But criminal law is someone’s life, and you have to have a certain level of maturity to handle that.”

Henry said he believes his time with the Air Force helped shape him into a person who is well-equipped to reasonably accept the challenges and responsibilities that come with criminal law.

Since he joined the State Attorney’s Office, Henry said, his enthusiasm for prosecution has been reinforced.

“I love being a prosecutor,” Henry said, smiling.

But when he’s not prosecuting, Henry loves spending time with his wife and two daughters.

He also enjoys watching television. He and his wife are currently watching are Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, and Grey’s Anatomy.

“I also love Law and Order,” Henry said, laughing.

Sports are also important to his family, as they have an in-house rivalry.

“I’m a huge FSU fan, and my wife is a UF fan,” he said.

As he looks ahead to his future with the SAO, Henry said, he has a couple career goals.

Since he has a background as a supervisor in the military, he hopes he’ll get the opportunity to prosecute in a leadership position.

But ultimately, he would like to work in special prosecutions.

“With my personality, it’s easy to get motivated for all crimes,” Henry said, “but I think you walk into work with a little more motivation when you’re dealing with those specific crimes.”

Lakeland man guilty of attempted murder, facing mandatory life

JURY VERDICT: Lakeland man guilty of attempted murder, facing mandatory life

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Derek Maude glanced over his shoulder and looked his shooter in the eyes.

Kaheem Bennett, 24, of Lakeland.

“I saw his eyes lined up with the gun sight,” Maude said as he testified from his wheelchair. “I was sure a shot was coming soon … Next thing I know, my head is ringing. I looked down and told myself to get up, and I couldn’t.”

Kaheem Bennett fired a single shot at 27-year-old Maude that hit his spinal cord and left him paralyzed from the waist down.

A jury convicted Bennett Feb. 22 of attempted first-degree murder, robbery with a firearm, and armed kidnapping. He is facing a mandatory life sentence, which will be imposed on April 5.

Assistant State Attorney Bonde Johnson told jurors that on Jan. 25, 2015 – Super Bowl Sunday – Maude and his friends pooled their money in order to buy an ounce of marijuana for their super bowl party. He agreed to locate and purchase the marijuana. That choice is one Maude would later refer to as the “stupidest decision he’s ever made,” as it cost him the use of his legs.

While Maude was looking for a place to buy marijuana on 5th Street in Lakeland, he ran into an old friend from high school named Deshaundre Roseboro. The two went back to Roseboro’s house to catch up when a silver Dodge Charger pulled up to the curb.

In court, Maude testified that he approached the car because he thought they were going to sell him the marijuana he had been looking for earlier. He didn’t know he was about to robbed at gun point.

He got into the rear driver’s door of the vehicle occupied by three black males but left the door open with his foot out. When Maude sat down, the car swiftly left the driveway and sped down the road, forcing Maude to shut the car door.

The front seat passenger asked if Maude “wanted to see what it looked like.” When Maude said yes, a bag was thrown into the back seat, which he assumed was marijuana.

But when Maude looked up, a Tech-9 pistol was pointed at his stomach.

He reached to open the door, but it was locked. Maude immediately began to fight the rear passenger – he grabbed the barrel of the gun and head-butted the rear passenger, causing him to loosen his grip on the weapon.

Maude aimed the firearm at the floorboard with the intent of discharging the rounds, but the front passenger began to fight him. Maude continued to throw punches at the two passengers until he had possession of the gun again.

He pulled the trigger, but the weapon did not shoot. Maude, who grew up in a military family and has experience handling firearms, disengaged the safety and ejected the magazine.

It fell to the floorboard of the car.

The passengers continued fighting Maude and took the nearly $1,000 in cash that was in his possession. With Maude outnumbered, they soon regained control of the gun.

One of the men told Maude to get out of the car and run. As soon as the door unlocked, the front passenger told the driver to “bust that cracker.”

“I knew what was coming next,” Maude said in court, adding that he began to run in a zigzag pattern. “I looked back and made eye contact with the driver. All I see is a firearm pointed at me … his eyes lined up with the gun sights.”

Maude said he did not remember hearing a shot – just that he hit the ground and could not feel his legs.

“One moment I was running and the next I was laying on the ground,” he said. “There was blood everywhere … and it felt like everything fell asleep and was tingling.”

He was able to call 911 with his cell phone, but Maude testified that he began losing consciousness and said his memories of talking to police were hazy.

Officers who responded found a single 9 millimeter casing on the ground and got a description of the shooter and vehicle from Maude.

He was able to identify the front seat passenger from a photo pack as Gregory Dickens, who is a known associate of Bennett.

Maude chose two people from a photo pack to identify the driver. His first choice was Bennett, and his second was someone who looked like Bennett but was incarcerated at the time of the shooting.

Five days after the incident, police saw Bennett driving the silver Dodge Maude described, and he was arrested.

In interviews with law enforcement, Bennett said he was in Leesburg at the time of the shooting. His phone records refuted that statement and placed him in Lakeland days leading up to and during the shooting.

Bennett did not leave for Leesburg until after the shooting took place.

Further examination of the cell phone uncovered text messages linking Bennett to the crime. He texted friends and told them that the only witnesses from the shooting were Roseboro and Maude.

In court, the defense argued Bennet could not have been the shooter and that Maude’s photo pack identifications were unreliable. Bennett’s attorney said that two people did not shoot Maude, which meant he failed to make a proper identification and could not be trusted.

“Kaheem Bennett wasn’t there,” the defense said. “He didn’t do the shooting, and he wasn’t involved in the robbery.”

But Dickens – the person Maude did correctly identify – was called as a defense witness and admitted to being in the car with Maude before he was shot.

Assistant State Attorney Bonde Johnson addresses jurors during closing statements Feb. 22. Johnson held up his right arm to demonstrate how Kaheem Bennet pointed the gun at Derek Maude.

“Their own witness admitted to what happened in the car,” Johnson said, “and that supports Maude’s testimony.”

Johnson told jurors all of the evidence leads back to Bennett, meaning it was not a coincidence Maude chose his photo.

“How would Kaheem Bennett know who the only two witnesses were unless he was he driver of the car that pulled up to rob Derek Maude?” Johnson asked jurors.

“All the circumstantial evidence locks in Kaheem Bennett as the person who did this,” Johnson told jurors in his closing arguments. “His phone put him at the location. He attempted to fabricate an alibi, and his conversations show that he had info he could only know if he was there.”

“There is no reasonable doubt,” he said.