Press Release

The Office of State Attorney Glenn Hess announces that a Washington County jury deliberated just twenty minutes before returning a verdict of guilty as charged against Jennifer Land, age 37, of Cottondale for Dealing in Stolen Property.  During the trial, Assistant State Attorney Shalla Jefcoat called four witnesses to prove that Land attempted to sell an aluminum dog box that had been stolen from her former employer six months earlier.  Land’s boyfriend is facing charges of Burglary and Grand Theft involving the same victim. The case was investigated by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office. After the jury’s guilty verdict, Judge Allen Register ordered that Land be taken into custody and scheduled her sentencing hearing for October 10, 2016.

Please contact Chief Assistant State Attorney Larry Basford at 850-819-6985 with any questions.

Press Release

           The Office of State Attorney Glenn Hess announces that on September 16, 2016, it took less than 30 minutes for a Bay County jury to find Jaterrance Goodman guilty as charged of Attempted Second Degree Murder with a Firearm, Shooting into an Occupied Vehicle, and Discharging a Firearm from a Vehicle.

          Assistant State Attorney Bob Sombathy showed that on November 24, 2015, Goodman was the passenger in a grey Toyota Tacoma and actively pursued the victim’s vehicle on Business 98 in the Millville area of Panama City. At approximately 2pm, Goodman opened fire on the victim’s vehicle in “drive by shooting” style firing multiple times with a .40 caliber handgun. He struck the victim’s vehicle at least two times and came close to striking innocent bystanders at a nearby business.

          Goodman’s motive was apparently revenge. The victim had cooperated with law enforcement in a prior case against Goodman, and Goodman called the victim on his cell phone just prior to the shooting to taunt him, telling him “I’ve got 30 bullets right here for you, I’m right behind you.” Goodman now faces up to 45 years in prison. His sentencing has been set for October 6, 2016, in front of the Honorable Michael C. Overstreet.

Please contact Chief Assistant Attorney Larry Basford at 850-832-5510 for any questions.

Press Release

The Office of State Attorney Glenn Hess announces that on September 15, 2016, Ryan Calhoun, 23, of Mobile, Alabama, and Delonte Martistee, 23, of Bainbridge, Georgia, were found guilty as charged by a jury of Sexual Battery by Multiple Perpetrators.  Assistant State Attorney Christa Diviney established that both defendants committed sexual battery upon the incapacitated female victim, in a crime that occurred on the beach during Spring Break 2015 and was captured on video.  Judge James Fensom scheduled sentencing for October 21, 2016.  Each defendant is facing up to 30 years in prison.

Press Release

The Office of the State Attorney Glenn Hess announced that a Circuit Court jury deliberated approximately 35 minutes before finding the defendant Keith McCray a/k/a K-Dog, guilty as charged of Robbery with a Firearm, Attempted Robbery with a Firearm, and Attempted Felony Murder with a Firearm.

Assistant State Attorneys Devin Collier and Bob Pell presented nine witnesses during the trial to establish that the victims, in response to a Craigslist ad for furniture, were robbed at gun point at the 13th Street apartments on Frankford Avenue.  The case was investigated by Tony Phinney with the Panama City Police Department.  Circuit Judge Michael Overstreet adjudged the defendant guilty and ordered a Presentence Sentencing Report, and scheduled sentencing for October 6, 2016.  Since the jury found the defendant used a firearm during the commission of these felonies, he will be subject to sentencing under the 10-20 Life law.

Prior to trial, the three co-defendants pled guilty as charged and are serving sentences ranging from eight to 20 years.

Press Release

The Office of State Attorney Glenn Hess announces that on September 8, 2016, Jason Cantrell entered a plea to the charge of Accessory After the Fact to Second Degree Murder.

The Honorable Michael C. Overstreet sentenced Cantrell to 9 years in prison. Mr. Cantrell’s charges stemmed from his role in events that followed the October 19, 2015 murder of Mr. Clifford Lewis by Melissa Kennedy. Assistant State Attorney Bob Sombathy was prepared to prove that a few days after acquiring the handgun from Cantrell, Kennedy shot and killed her boyfriend, Clifford Lewis, in his home.  Evidence showed that Kennedy was upset that Lewis was preparing to evict her out of his house.  After the murder, Jason Cantrell retrieved the handgun from Kennedy, partially disassembled it, and hid it in his storage shed.  Bay County Sheriff’s Office investigators Wade Boan and David Sullivan conducted an investigation which ultimately led to obtaining a search warrant for Cantrell’s storage shed where the handgun was recovered.  Ballistics testing confirmed that the handgun hidden by Cantrell was the same handgun used by Melissa Kennedy to murder Clifford Lewis.

On July 28, 2016, Melissa Kennedy was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the charge of Second Degree Murder with a Firearm.  Kennedy is 43 years old.

Aug. 24, 2016

For Immediate Release

The Office of State Attorney Glenn Hess announced that the First District Court of Appeals upheld the life sentence of a Fountain man convicted of molesting a child for more than three years.

Last October, a jury convicted Raymond Scott Beck as charged of three counts of sexual battery on a child younger than 12 and two counts of sexual battery of a child 12 years old or older and two counts of soliciting a child to engage in an act which would constitute sexual battery. On Nov. 5, Circuit Judge Hentz McClellan sentenced Beck to life in prison.

Beck had appealed Judge McClellan’s decision to allow other victims to testify about Beck’s abuse upon them. However, on Monday, Chief Judge L.Clayton Roberts, Judge T. Kent Wetherell II and Judge Ross L. Bilbrey affirmed Beck’s conviction and sentence without comment.