Asher Martin was sentenced to life in prison Friday for second-degree murder and principal to arson in the 2020 stabbing death of Christopher Whaley, whose body was left in a burning van after he was killed, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Circuit Court Judge Dustin Stephenson agreed with Prosecutor Devin Collier’s assessment that while the 22-year-old defendant may have been a good kid at one time, what he did as an adult April 27, 2020, when he killed Whaley with a sword demanded a harsh sentence.

Although family members and friends testified at Martin’s sentencing Friday that he was a kind person growing up, and Martin himself read a letter to the court and family of the victim apologizing for taking a life, Collier said it amounted to an attempt by the defendant to “hoodwink” the court into a lighter sentence.

 

“He may have been a nice kid, but that’s not who’s sitting in the courtroom before the court,” Collier told Stephenson. “Sitting at the defense table is an admitted murderer. What we heard today was not the defendant on that day, because immediately after he committed this murder in cold blood, he was smiling from ear to ear.”

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Collier detailed the severity of Whaley’s injuries and asked for a life sentence.

“He is dangerous, and he is the very definition of a menace to society, and there is a place for someone like that, and it’s in the Florida Department of Corrections,” Collier told Stephenson.

Stephenson, in handing down his sentence, agreed that whatever Martin might have been before, the evidence presented by prosecutors Collier and Frank Sullivan showed the need for a severe punishment.

“At the end of the day, the Legislature has given us a directive, and that is to punish, it is called the Criminal Punishment Code for a reason,” Stephenson said. “And the crime and the circumstances of the crime here call out for a significant punishment.”

Stephenson then sentenced Martin to serve a life sentence for the murder and 15 years for the arson.

A jury deliberated only 13 minutes last month before finding Martin, 22, guilty. Co-defendant Raven Gladin was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her part in the crime.

Basford attributed the fast verdict to the strong case put together by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office’s Criminal Investigation’s Division and presented by prosecutors. Sheriff’s Office Capt. Jason Daffin attended Friday’s sentencing.

Basford thanked the Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Fire, Arson and Explosives, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for their efforts.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov.

 

Career lawman Frank McKeithen, who came out of retirement to assist with the transition for the man he supported for State Attorney during the 2020 election, accomplished that and more and is now retiring as Chief Investigator for the 14^th Judicial Circuit.

McKeithen, Bay County’s Sheriff for 13 years until his 2016 retirement, said there wasn’t much that could have pulled him back into fulltime work. But being there for his longtime friend and peer Larry Basford as he transitioned from Chief Assistant State Attorney to the top job as State Attorney was enough.

“The plan was not a long-term plan to begin with, we both knew that and talked about that,” McKeithen said. “I felt the same passion in me that I saw in him, and I’ve been in charge before and I know how difficult that can be sometimes when you’re first taking over, and I thought maybe I could help.”

“What I got to see, the really, really good thing, is to see him go from an elected State Attorney to what I consider The State Attorney, he has earned that job,” McKeithen continued. “It really didn’t take me long to see that he had it, he had control of it, and it was very, very impressive.”

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McKeithen’s law enforcement career spanned 43 years before his Aug. 1, 2016, retirement from the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, and included serving as sheriff in both Bay and Gulf counties.

“Frank McKeithen is a living legend,” Basford said. “His passion to seek justice in every situation is evident and has been an inspiration for all of us at the State Attorney’s Office. Frank’s positive outlook, his way of showing people he cares, and his wisdom will be truly missed.”
“I am forever grateful for the advice and the help Frank has given me during my career and this transition period,” Basford continued. “I wish him, Diane and their family the very best.”

McKeithen started at the Panama City Police Department in 1973 and worked as a patrolman in Gulf County before joining the Bay County Sheriff’s Office in 1976 for what would be a 19-year tenure and lead him to the rank of Captain of the Criminal Investigations Division.

In 1995 he was appointed Gulf County Sheriff, a position he held until he returned to Bay County as Sheriff in 2003. He retired in 2016.

McKeithen and Basford have worked together for over 40 years, developing a mutual respect and friendship.

And that’s what brought McKeithen out of retirement in January, he said.

“When Larry took over, to be very honest, that’s what prompted it,” McKeithen said. “I thought he was going to be a great State Attorney and my premonition was absolutely correct: he is a great state attorney.”

“My exit was like the entrance, the only thing I had on my mind was working for him and trying to help where I could.”

McKeithen’s last day was Monday.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

 

A Chipley man found guilty in September of sexually battering a 6-year-old will spend the rest of his life in prison, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Circuit Court Judge Timothy Register sentenced Christopher Duffy, 36, to life in prison without the possibility of parole Monday for Sexual Battery on a Child under the age of 12.

Prosecutor Megan Ford, Chief of the State Attorney’s Washington County office, presented evidence through a series of witnesses that the defendant sexually assaulted the child on multiple occasions.

The victim reported the abuse to a trusted adult in June 2019 and the adult contacted the Bay County Sheriff’s Office. Investigators there asked for assistance from the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center, and it was determined the offenses had occurred in Washington County. The case was turned over to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and Investigator Daryl White.

White, who testified at trial and who is now an investigator with the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, interviewed the defendant and others, worked with the GCCAC and a warrant was issued June 25, 2019.

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Duffy was found guilty at trial Sept. 29.

State Attorney Basford wants to thank all the agencies involved for their work across county lines to present a solid case for prosecution. The GCCAC was crucial in this case, particularly the testimony of Victoria Hamilton who interviewed the victim.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

 

A woman seeking leniency after being found guilty of hitting her victim in the back of the head with a cinder block, was instead sentenced to 7 years in prison Tuesday after the judge said the state’s case and jury’s verdict showed the assault could have been avoided, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Rachel Dianne Ladner, 34, who had been living in Marianna prior to the July 2017 attack, was found guilty of Attempted Second-Degree Murder after a one-day trial Sept. 30.

The defendant was found guilty of hitting the victim in the back of the head with a cinder block outside his home, leaving him there, and returning inside to spend the night in his bed.

At Tuesday’s sentencing before Circuit Court Judge Chris Patterson, Prosecutor Elizabeth Magee, who presented the case at trial, asked for a sentence of between 6 ½ and 10 years.

“Sitting here today, it struck me as somewhat frustrating Ms. Ladner’s lack of remorse and refusal to accept the jury’s verdict,” Magee said. She noted the blow was severe enough that in addition to the physical injuries – a large cut on the back of the victim’s head behind his right ear, which was split open, a swollen eye and bruises – it knocked out and broke the victim’s dentures.

The defendant’s father and two friends spoke on her behalf, asking for leniency. The defendant also addressed the court, seeking a lesser sentence.

Defense attorney Dana Morris and the defendant contended she was trying to get away from the victim because he had become aggressive.

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But Judge Patterson found the state’s case was clear, as were Ladner’s actions that night.

Patterson said the defendant, who worked at a club in Panama City while living in Marianna, essentially invited herself into the victim’s home on a night she was not working.

“Now, whatever happened inside, the jury does not believe your version of events,” Judge Patterson said. “But the crux of it is this: that you were leaving that house and the testimony that you gave was that the victim fell down and you struck him once with the cinder block.

“And instead of dropping that cinder block and running away, you struck him a second time while he was down and unable to defend himself,” Judge Patterson continued, noting the defendant went back inside after the attack and slept in the victim’s bed.

“I recognize that most people who come before this court have had a real bad day,” Patterson said. “But that real bad day has a consequence.”

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

A defendant found guilty of trafficking in more than 200 grams of Methamphetamine was sentenced to 25 years in prison Tuesday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Reggie Gathers, 40, will also have to pay a $250,000 fine as part of the sentence handed down Tuesday by Circuit Court Judge Dedee Costello.

Prosecutor Peter Overstreet presented evidence at trial Oct. 28 that the defendant was a passenger in a vehicle pulled over for a traffic violation on Oct. 5, 2018, by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office. The driver had a revoked driver’s license and BCSO Sgt. Raymond Scott said there was the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle. The State, through Sgt. Scott, also introduced a video from a convenience store that captured the driver and Gathers attempting to conceal the methamphetamine.

Deputies searched the vehicle and found the defendant in possession of more than 200 grams of methamphetamine.

Prosecutor Overstreet called Scott from the Special Investigative Division of the BCSO and a chemist from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to testify.

A jury deliberated for only 5 minutes before returning the guilty verdict.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

A Callaway man found guilty of Lewd and Lascivious Exhibition following his September trial was sentenced to 7 years in prison and designated as a sexual offender Thursday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Anthony Charles Chancellor, 49, was found guilty Sept. 21 after about four hours of deliberation by the jury. Circuit Judge Ana Maria Garcia sentenced him Thursday, and as a designated sexual offender he will not be allowed any unsupervised contact with children upon his release from prison.

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Prosecutor Barbara Beasley presented evidence at trial that in 2019 the defendant exposed himself to the teenaged victim and then ejaculated. The case was worked by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office and Cpl. Jacob McGowin, who also testified.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

An inmate found guilty last week of attacking a Gulf Correctional Institution officer during a 2017 riot was deemed a habitual felony offender Tuesday and sentenced to 20 years in prison,
State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Jose Moreira, 30, was found guilty by a jury of aggravated battery and battery on a law enforcement officer Oct. 28. He was one of several prisoners charged in the attack that resulted
in a corrections officer suffering several stab wounds with a shank-type weapon. One co-defendant entered a plea and a third is awaiting trial.

Basford said the defendant faced the stiffer sentence after Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay agreed with Gulf County Chief Prosecutor Tracy Smith’s argument that Moreira qualified as
a habitual felony offender. Aggravated Battery carries a 15-year sentence, but as a habitual felony offender the defendant was facing up to 30 years.

Smith successfully argued that the defendant’s prior felony convictions – 2 for dealing in stolen property, 3 burglaries, 2 grand thefts, 1 possession of a controlled substance, and 1 felon in
possession of a firearm – qualified him as a habitual offender.

The defendant was in Gulf Correctional Institution in 2017 serving time for some of those charges when the attack on the correctional officer occurred.

Statements from the victim given during the investigation conducted by the Office of Inspector General, Department of Corrections, stated the victim became involved in the disturbance at the
facility and tried to create distance between himself and a group of inmates chasing him with weapons. Moreira was part of that group.

The victim was knocked to the ground and another correctional officer testified that he saw the defendant making a stabbing like motion at the victim with a weapon. Other officers came to the victim’s aid and deployed chemical agents on the inmates and the weapon used by the defendant was recovered and shown at trial.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

A traffic stop three years ago turned into a 5-minute guilty verdict Thursday for a man charged with Trafficking in more than 200 grams of Methamphetamine, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

A jury deliberated for only 5 minutes before returning the guilty verdict against Reggie Gathers, 40, who now faces a minimum-mandatory 15 years in prison but could receive up to 30 years, prosecutors said. Circuit Court Judge Dedee Costello set sentencing for Nov. 9.

Prosecutor Peter Overstreet presented evidence that Gathers was a passenger in a vehicle pulled over for a traffic violation on Oct. 5, 2018, by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office. The driver had a revoked driver’s license and BCSO Sgt. Raymond Scott said there was the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle.  Sgt Scott also introduced a video from a convenience store that captured the driver and Gathers attempting to conceal the methamphetamine.

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Deputies searched the vehicle and found Gathers in possession of more than 200 grams of methamphetamine.

Prosecutor Overstreet called Scott from the Special Investigative Division of the BCSO  and a chemist from the Florida Department to testify.

In addition to the prison sentence, Overstreet said the defendant faces a mandatory $250,000 fine due the large amount of methamphetamine involved.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

A former Gulf Correctional Institute Annex inmate charged with stabbing a correctional officer during a riot in 2017 was found guilty of aggravated battery and battery on a law enforcement Wednesday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Basford said Jose Moreira, 30, was one of several prisoners charged in the attack that resulted in a corrections officer suffering several stab wounds with a shank-type weapon. One co-defendant entered a plea and a third is awaiting trial.

Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay set sentencing for Nov. 2. Gulf County Chief Prosecutor Tracy Smith, who presented the case, has filed a motion seeking to have Moreira sentenced as a habitual offender, which could mean 30 years in prison if the motion is granted.

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Statements from the victim given during the investigation conducted by the Office of Inspector General, Department of Corrections, stated the victim became involved in the disturbance at the facility and tried to create distance between himself and a group of inmates chasing him with weapons. Moreira was part of that group.

The victim was knocked to the ground and another correctional officer testified that he saw Moreira making a stabbing like motion at the victim with a weapon.

Other officers came to the victim’s aid and deployed chemical agents on the inmates and the weapon used by Moreira was recovered and shown at trial.

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.

For the fourth time in two weeks, a jury returned a guilty verdict against a man charged with sexually battering a child, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

And for the third time in those two weeks, the defendant was sentenced to life in prison.

Nickolas Davison, 24, who has been in custody since his 2017 arrest, was found guilty of Sexual Battery on a Child under the Age of 12 and Lewd and Lascivious Molestation after less than an hour of deliberation on the case presented by prosecutors Peter Overstreet and Josh James.

Circuit Judge Dedee Costello gave Davison two life sentences and designated him as a sexual predator.

Testimony from the state’s three witnesses showed the victim, who was 6 at the time, reported the abuse to her mother, who then contacted Lynn Haven police. The victim, now 10, was interviewed by investigators at the Gulf Coast Child Advocacy Center and testified Wednesday, saying the defendant had used his fingers and his mouth on her vagina.

“She was just going on about her life like any child,” Overstreet told jurors, explaining the defendant often started the abuse with tickling. “But Mr. Davison, the defendant, did more than just tickle the victim.”

Retired Lynn Haven Police Department Lt. Tom Willoughby, who now lives in another state, interviewed the defendant before arresting him. He testified live via Zoom and his interview with the defendant was played for jurors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In it, while initially denying wrongdoing, Davison ultimately admitted to committing the acts over a period of 5-6 months.

“No child should have to endure that,” Overstreet told jurors in his closing statement. “The defendant needs to be held accountable; he is guilty as charged.”

For additional information contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov or (850) 381-7454.