A woman whose truck crossed the center turn-lane on 15^th Street and struck a sedan head-on, killing the driver, was found guilty of DUI Manslaughter Thursday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Kourtney Sage Hofheinz, 33, of Bristol, was found guilty as charged in the July 5, 2024, 4 a.m. wreck that claimed the life of Damian Donniel Kerr, 39. The victim was on his way to work from the beach in his Ford Fusion. The defendant was on her way to the beach. Circuit Court Judge Dustin Stephenson set sentencing for April 27.

The charge is a 2^nd-Degree Felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison and with a minimum-mandatory 4-years by Statute.

Lead Prosecutor Peter Overstreet and Prosecutor Rachel Gause called 14 witnesses and presented evidence, including bodycam and surveillance video of the crash, proving Hofheinz was impaired at the time of the wreck.

Blood drawn at the hospital as doctors treated the defendant showed her blood-alcohol level was .124. The defendant’s westbound Chevrolet truck crossed the center median of 15^th Street near Beck Avenue, hitting Damian Donniel Kerr’s eastbound sedan head-on in what was described as a “horrific” collision. Kerr died at the scene.

This truly was a horrific and violent collision that resulted in the death of a man trying to get to work, all because this defendant made the choice to drive impaired,” Overstreet said. “The defendant made some bad choices in the hours preceding the victim’s death. Choices have consequences and the jury took 45 minutes to decide this defendant should be held accountable.”

The evidence showed Hofheinz was traveling west on 15^th Street in a GMC Sierra truck approaching Beck Avenue on her way to the beach. The victim was eastbound on 15^th Street from the beach headed to his job.

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The defendant’s truck crossed the center turn-lane and hit the eastbound victim head-on, destroying both vehicles. The victim died at the scene. The defendant had a laceration and minor injuries.

Bodycam from Panama City Police Department officers show the defendant at first stuck in the truck, before officers escort her to the curb. As bodycam shows officers trying to help the victim, the defendant can be heard in the background.

“I’m not falling out, I’m trying to get out,” she said. “Did he hit me? What happened?”

The defendant repeatedly asked what had happened and showed signs of impairment.

“You can hear the slurring of her words, you can see her mannerisms,” Overstreet told jurors. “She’s sitting on the curb, she literally can see the wrecked vehicles, and she didn’t know what was going on because she was so impaired by alcohol. She didn’t even realize she’s the one who drifted into the other lane and struck Damian Kerr.”

In his closing argument, Overstreet told jurors to look at the facts, use their common sense, and hold the defendant accountable.

“Damian Kerr on July 5, 2024, had no idea that as he drove back down into Panama City that early morning that he would die,” Overstreet said. “Nobody on the roadway … had any idea of the horrific crash that was about to happen.

“And just like that, a life was over, lives were changed, because of one  person and the choices they had made … and Kourtney Hofheinz made a lot of bad decisions. Today you are here to hold her accountable for those decisions.”

Basford thanked the Panama City Police Department for its thorough investigation that helped lead to a guilty verdict.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

A man who grabbed a Panama City police officer by the wrist and tried to hold on while fleeing a traffic stop is set to be sentenced on four charges April 6 following his bench trial Tuesday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Travis Waylon Franks, 42, who listed a Mississippi address, chose a bench trial rather than a jury trial, meaning Circuit Court Judge Dustin Stephenson heard and decided the case. Prior to the start of the trial, Franks entered pleas of no contest to three related charges – Fleeing or Attempting to Elude, Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer, and Driving Under the Influence.

That left the Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer charge – a second-degree felony that carries a minimum-mandatory 3-year sentence. Judge Stephenson heard from two Panama City police officers and the defendant before finding the defendant guilty.

“People like this defendant who put officers’ lives in danger and subsequently put every other driver on the road in danger will face consequences,” Walters said. “This officer was just doing his job and our office will continue to assist them in doing it safely.”

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Walters was prepared to call witnesses and present evidence that on May 10, 2025, the defendant fled from a traffic stop that had turned into a DUI investigation and grabbed the officer who was trying to get him out of his car as he fled. The defendant fled onto 23^rd Street and onto U.S. 231, where Bay County sheriff’s deputies and Florida Highway Patrol troopers took turns continuing the pursuit. It ended off Star Avenue when the defendant was trapped on a dead-end road.

Because of his pleas to three of the charges, the trial focused on what happened at the initial stop.

Panama City Police Officer Matthew Cosme testified he was on patrol and saw the defendant driving the wrong way, without his lights on, near Bayview Avenue and 12^th Street. He made a traffic stop and bodycam showed him asking the defendant, who appeared to be under the influence, for his driver’s license and registration.

Cosme twice asked the defendant to get out of the car, but he refused and kept his door locked. Cosme reached in to try and unlock the door and the defendant grabbed him by the wrist, revved the engine and pulled him toward the vehicle.

Cosme drew his taser and was able to pull free as the defendant sped away.

The defendant testified he was not trying to hurt anyone, wasn’t under the influence, didn’t hit the police officer and stopped on his own at the end of the chase.

On cross-examination, Walters questioned that.

“About an hour ago you pled no contest to that charge, so I’m a little confused,” Walters said of the defendant’s claim he didn’t hit the officer trying to unlock his door.

“Oh, I see where you’re going with this,” the defendant replied.

He then agreed he had admitted to hitting the officer, being under the influence and fleeing.

Basford thanked the Panama City Police Department for its proactive patrolling and the Bay County Sheriff’s Office and Florida Highway Patrol for their quick response to assist.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

Forty-three years after he fired two shots into an unarmed clerk’s chest, killing her, Roosevelt Kirk’s request for a sentence modification has been denied, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Kirk was 15 when he murdered Mildred Hendrix during a 1983 robbery. The robbery was over and Kirk’s co-defendant was leaving the store when Kirk fired 2 shots in the victim’s chest. He pled guilty in 1984 with the agreement that he would testify against his co-defendant in return for a Life sentence with eligibility for parole after serving 25 years. Two parole hearings did not result in his release.

“I believe there are people who deserve a second chance,” said Debra Needham, the victim’s granddaughter. “He was young when he made that decision, but the decision he made was not to shoot her one time, but to then shoot her again. With the judge’s ruling and (Assistant Chief 14^th Judicial Circuit Prosecutor Mark Graham’s) continued work for our family, we finally feel better, that there is justice in our system.”

Changes in the law and appeals resulted in a 2017 order for a resentencing hearing because of the defendant’s age at the time of the crime. Judge Michael Overstreet presided over the 2020 resentencing and, after hearing the evidence, resentenced Kirk to Life with the possibility of parole after 25 years.

However, Overstreet also noted the defendant, based on changes in sentencing laws regarding juveniles, was entitled to a Review Hearing. The latest laws in Florida order that juveniles sentenced to Life are entitled to a Review Hearing after 25 years. It is focused on what has happened since the crime and whether the defendant is rehabilitated to the point of no longer posing a threat to society.

That hearing was held Dec. 11 with Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay presiding and Graham representing the State.

“… the Court cannot find that Defendant has demonstrated by a preponderance of the evidence that he has been rehabilitated and is fit to reenter society,” Gay wrote in her order. “Based on review of the record in the present case, this Court believes the sentence of life imprisonment imposed at the Defendant’s December 2020 resentencing remains the most appropriate sentence.”

Graham said the appeals and resentencings in this case were caused by the evolution of the judicial system since the time of the crime that brought about retroactive changes to sentencings in certain cases involving juveniles.

“It has been almost 43 years since the defendant made a cold and calculated decision to kill an innocent and defenseless woman,” Graham said. “And for 43 years the victim’s family has had to live with this – the appeals, the court appearances, the uncertainty. They deserve some resolution and we hope this can finally bring them some sense of relief.”

Court files show Kirk was with an 18-year-old friend on March 25, 1983, when the friend suggested they rob a Junior Food Store. Both defendants were armed and Kirk drew his gun and demanded the money from the victim.

She gave him the money, and the co-defendant moved toward the exit. Kirk shot the 57-year-old mother and grandmother unprovoked, hitting her twice in the chest.

The two were arrested months later. Kirk’s co-defendant pled guilty to Second Degree Murder and Robbery and was sentenced to 17 years in prison.

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At the 2025 Sentence Review Hearing the victim’s daughter, Shelia Adkins, asked Judge Gay to deny any kind of early release.

“I can’t forgive this man,” Adkins said. “I’m sorry, I can’t. I want him to stay where he is.”

Needham said the void left by her grandmother cannot be filled.

“She was the best grandmother that ever lived,” she said. “She made great contributions to all of our families, and I just feel like we have missed those opportunities. She was still young and had a lot to live for and I feel like he took that away.”

Gay’s order essentially found the defendant had not shown rehabilitation, not shown that he accepts responsibility for the s

hooting, not shown “sincere and sustained remorse,” not shown that he is a lower risk to society, and that the victim’s next-of-kin were strongly against his release.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

The 19-year-old who tried to shoot one person but missed and killed another young man in a beach Waffle House parking lot last summer was sentenced to 50 years in prison Thursday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

JaZai Mitchell, 19, of Panama City, was sentenced to a mandatory-minimum 20 years in prison for Attempted Second-Degree Murder to be followed by 30 years for Manslaughter with a Firearm. Circuit Court Judge Timothy Register ordered the sentences served consecutively. Under Florida’s 10-20-Life law the defendant will not be eligible for any gain time during the mandatory 20-year sentence. Mitchell was given 5 years each for Grand Theft of a Firearm and Tampering with Evidence, to be served concurrently with the 30-year sentence.

Mitchell was found guilty last month of killing 19-year-old JaDion Hughes. The evidence showed Mitchell robbed Hughes’ friend – Hughes was not armed – of a gun behind the Waffle House on June 3, 2025. The gun owner followed Mitchell back to his car and tussled with him trying to get his gun back. Hughes leaned in the car to calm things down. Mitchell fired a shot at the gun owner, but the bullet went through his jacket and into Hughes’ chest.

“JaZai Mitchell set everything in motion that evening. Because of his choices,” Prosecutor Peter Overstreet said in asking for a long sentence. “And even after he shot and killed JaDion Hughes, who was doing nothing but trying to stop the disagreement at that car … the defendant literally turned and looked to see (the victim) facedown in the parking lot and doesn’t even care. Doesn’t even care.

“There’s no rehabilitating someone like that.”

The victim’s father made an impassioned statement to the court, saying he had dedicated himself to raising his son properly.

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John Hughes said the reality and pain of knowing he will never see his son again, the pain he and his family have endured since the death, outweighed any thoughts of leniency for the defendant.

“I don’t get to judge somebody, even though it’s my son and I miss my son terribly,” he said. “And it’s tragic what’s happened on both sides … because you have two young men whose lives are over.

“My son can never come back. For him there’s no return,” he continued. “Mr. Mitchell has to live through this, and sometimes that’s even worse, you understand that?”

Basford thanked the Panama City Beach Police Department for its rapid identification and detention of the suspect and its thorough investigation of a complicated crime scene.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

A Beach man was found guilty Wednesday of traveling to meet what he thought was a 15-year-old girl he met on a “pickup” app for a sexual encounter, State Attorney Larry Basford said.

James Robert Stahl, 57, was found guilty of Traveling to Meet a Minor to Commit an Unlawful Sex Act.

Circuit Court Judge Brantley Clark set sentencing for March 23.

The jury only needed 15 minutes of deliberation to return its verdicts after Prosecutor Frank Sullivan’s closing argument.

“This is another example that there are people out there preying on our children online and through these apps,” Sullivan said. “They need to know that our law enforcement agencies are proactive, and just like we tell our children, you never know who you are talking to online.”

In closing arguments Sullivan emphasized that the defendant’s claims that he was entrapped and that he was simply worried about the minor’s welfare were untrue and contradicted by the content of the text messages between himself and the undercover Panama City Beach Police Department investigator.

 “Hey, do you still want to meet up?” the defendant texted the morning of his arrest On Nov. 8, 2024.

“That’s not law enforcement reaching out and saying hey, let’s keep meeting up,” Sullivan told jurors. “That’s not law enforcement inducing him, he’s the one saying are you still interested in meeting.

“The (undercover officer’s) response?” Sullivan continued. “If you want to. Did you ever decide what you wanna do? And the defendant’s response? ‘You.’”

“A crime was committed when the defendant traveled to that gas station because he intended to have sex with a 15-year-old,” Sullivan said. “It didn’t go farther than that because of the proactive actions of law enforcement.”

Sullivan called two witnesses – both Panama City Beach Police Department investigators. Detective Jonathan Young testified he set up the fake profile of the minor on an app known to be used by men looking for young girls and sexual hookups. Inv. Kyle Finnell testified he was playing the part of the 15-year-old minor in the chat exchanges after the defendant made contact.

Evidence and testimony presented by Sullivan showed the ad the defendant responded to was placed by police and showed pictures of a young female whose age was listed as “99.” It said she wanted to have “fun.”

The defendant responded to the ad and began texting with the female. She asked the defendant how old he was and then told him she was younger – 15 and nearing her 16^th birthday. His response was that 15 was young, but he continued the messaging.

On Nov. 8, 2024, after two days of texting that included him asking for a “price list,” they agreed the defendant would pick her up at a nearby convenience store.

He was arrested while sitting in his car in the parking lot. He had deleted texts from his phone’s main text app, but police found remaining texts on a different phone app.

In his statement the defendant made various excuses, all of which revolved around his claim that he did not plan to have sex with the minor, that he wanted to talk her out of her bad life choices. He described himself as a “concerned single dad” who was worried she might be a runaway, or that she might be in some kind of danger at home. He could not explain why, if he had concerns, he did not simply contact the police.

“I was going to take her to lunch frankly,” he said in the statement. He said he was “playing along to have the opportunity to have a conversation with her” about the dangers of prostituting herself via online apps.

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But Sullivan and the testimony pointed out that there was no hint in the texts that the minor was in danger or a runaway, and that it was clear she lived at home and was willing to have sex for money. The defendant asked her for a price list, was on an app that catered to prostitution, and when asked if condoms would be needed said he would prepared “either way.” It was also noted that nowhere in the texts did the two discuss going to lunch.

Basford thanked the Panama City Beach Police Department for its proactive work on the case to prevent another child from being victimized.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

A man found guilty last month of sexually battering a woman who was unconscious from her prescribed medication was sentenced to 12 years in prison Tuesday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Circuit Court Judge Dustin Stephenson rejected Ray Aaron Linder’s request for a downward departure sentence, agreeing with Prosecutor Ryan Phillips that the sentence should be on the upper end of the 15-year maximum.

“I hope that you understand that decision have consequences,” Stephenson told the defendant. “Sexual battery is among those crimes that will have a lasting impact on the victim. There will be echoes of that night for the victim for perhaps the rest of her life.”

Prosecutor Ryan Phillips, with Prosecutor Christopher Walters assisting, called three witnesses at the Feb. 12 trial to prove the defendant engaged in sexual intercourse with the victim while she was “knocked out” from Ambien that had just been prescribed to her. He also took pictures, which the victim testified he later showed her when she confronted him about his actions.

“This defendant took advantage of a woman who he knew was heavily medicated from a medication prescribed to her for difficulty sleeping,” Phillips said after sentencing. “He admitted his actions to the victim but denied them in court and has not accepted responsibility for his actions or expressed remorse. Prison is the appropriate punishment for Mr. Linder.”

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In addition to the testimony from the victim and the Panama City Police Department officers on the case, Phillips introduced pictures and a short video pulled from the defendant’s phone that showed the victim partially undressed and sprawled in bed, and a picture depicting intercourse.

Basford thanked the Panama City Police Department for its work on the case and the victim for her testimony.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

A man known as “The Jamaican” was found guilty of the highest level of Trafficking in Fentanyl Wednesday and faces up to 30 years in prison at sentencing, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Luchen Jerome Daley, 33, was arrested Feb. 7, 2025, by Bay County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Division investigators serving a search warrant on his apartment. A jury found him guilty as charged of Trafficking in Fentanyl (more than 28 grams) after 24 minutes of deliberation.

Under Florida’s enhanced drug trafficking statutes, the charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison with a 25-year minimum-mandatory that has to be served day-for-day with no gain time. Circuit Court Judge Timothy Register set sentencing for April 13.

“We rarely see fentanyl in this quantity – 485 grams, almost half a kilo,” Prosecutor Morgan Morrell said. “In its proper form it could have supplied a medical dosage to every person in the 14^th Judicial Circuit. On the street, it was enough to cause more than 200,000 overdoses.

“Thanks to the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, its work with our office and this jury, it never made it to the streets, and this defendant is facing a long time behind bars.”

Morrell called members of the BCSO Special Investigations Division, who testified Wednesday that they served a search warrant on the defendant’s apartment Feb. 7, 2025. When they approached the defendant in a parking garage below his apartment, he fled on foot.

Some deputies gave chase, others proceeded with the search warrant and said a woman who answered the door shut it in their faces and locked it, so they breached it to prevent any evidence from being destroyed.

In the defendant’s bedroom – which had an air mattress, mail addressed to him, and his passport – they found a black backpack. Inside the backpack they found a large “pressed brick” of fentanyl and numerous pill capsules containing fentanyl.

“Not a few pills, not residue, not trace amounts,” Morgan told jurors in her closing argument, “but a great amount of fentanyl. There’s a reason we don’t have it here in court with us today. This is a highly potent narcotic that requires special handling.”

The defendant was caught about two blocks away. He said it was the first time he had bought that amount of fentanyl and told a deputy he would do “anything you want,” including providing information on how and where he obtained the drugs, to get out of trouble.

Basford thanked the BCSO and its SID for its proactive work in making a case and preventing such a large quantity of potent drugs to make it onto the streets.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

 

A Texas man was found guilty Tuesday of sexually battering and molesting a 14-year-old girl here in 2012, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Orlin Antonio Garcia, 49, was found guilty Tuesday of Sexual Battery (No Physical Force) on a Victim Older than 12 but Younger than 18, and Lewd or Lascivious Molestation. Circuit Court Judge Timothy Register set sentencing for April 13.

Prosecutor Jeffrey Moore, assisted by Prosecutor Jack Lyons, called two witnesses – including the victim – to prove the defendant sexually battered and molested her here in 2012. The jury took just over an hour to reach its verdict.

“I’m happy for our victim that she was able to get some measure of justice,” Moore said. “She had a tough task here today, to take the witness stand in open court and speak bravely to people she’s never met about something that happened in 2012.

“It took years of counseling and more to get to this point and the jury believed her.”

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The victim, now 27, testified the sexual attacks took place during 2012 but she was too frightened to report them and did not think anyone would believe her. She said the defendant threatened to kill her and her family if she disclosed the assaults.

She did, however, start dating a teen she met at church and told him about the molestation, but also asked him to keep her secret.

“I just felt like I needed to share it with somebody, it had become a lot at that time for me,” she said in court. “I wanted to speak to someone who would make me feel safe, who would comfort me at the time.”

The former boyfriend also testified, confirming the victim’s disclosure to him.

In 2022 the victim said she finally found the courage to report the crimes.

“I have absolutely nothing to gain. I just want my truth to be heard,” she testified. “I have the courage now, I’m brave enough, I’m not scared anymore.”

Basford thanked the Bay County Sheriff’s Office for its thorough investigation of the case, and the victim for her courage.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

BONIFAY – There was enough concrete evidence in the case against Dwight Adams that a Holmes County jury needed less than 3 minutes to find him guilty of Grand Theft of a Motor Vehicle Monday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Dwight Cedric Joshua Adams, 75, was found guilty of Grand Theft of a Motor Vehicle and sentenced to 83 months in prison. The charge is a third-degree felony usually punishable by up to 60 months in prison, but the defendant’s lengthy criminal history including Robbery with a Firearm, Felony Battery, and Indecent Exposure pushed the minimum sentence above the statutory maximum.

Adams was arrested in Alabama by the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office not far from where the stolen concrete truck was found wrecked in a ditch in July of 2024.

Holmes County Chief Assistant State Attorney Jacob Cook presented evidence that included video that showed the defendant stealing the concrete truck in Ponce de Leon. Alabama deputies found the truck and nearby they found the defendant. Surveillance video from inside the truck helped identify the defendant, but he gave a date of birth claiming he was 55, not 75. After further investigation they discovered his true date of birth and the accompanying criminal history.

“In Florida we have tough penalties for stealing motorized heavy equipment, especially when you have a prolific criminal history, now it is unlikely this defendant will ever have the chance to steal again,” Cook said.

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Basford thanked the Holmes County Sheriff’s Office for its fast and collaborative work with Alabama authorities, and thanked the victim for his cooperation.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

 

 

The man who opened fire on a car carrying four people, killing the driver, during a road rage incident last year was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison Friday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Jubal Simmons, 24, was given Life for Second Degree Murder, Life for Attempted Second Degree Murder with a Weapon, 30 years each on two counts of Attempted Second Degree Murder with a Weapon, 15 years each on two counts of Shooting into an Occupied Vehicle, and 15 years for Discharging a Firearm from a Vehicle. Circuit Court Judge Timothy Register ordered that the sentences be served consecutively, or one after the other.

Co-defendant Ivybella Encino, 22, was sentenced to 15 years each on Accessory After the Fact and Fleeing and Attempting to Elude, with those sentences running concurrently, or at the same time. Her prison time will be followed by 5 years’ probation.

The two were tried together by Prosecutors Frank Sullivan and Laurie Hughes in January for the Feb. 22, 2025 road rage shooting at U.S. 231 and Harrison Avenue that killed Georgeann Garner and critically injured her 19-year-old daughter. Two other passengers in the vehicle were not injured by any of the 11 shots.

“We hope these guilty verdicts and sentences send a message not only that gun violence will not be tolerated, but that brazen acts of violence that put innocent people in harm’s way deserve the toughest sentences,” Sullivan said. “While the man who pulled the trigger is set to die in prison, this affected so many families who will have to live with the consequences the rest of their lives – all because the defendants were upset over a traffic situation and resorted to violence.

“What happened in this case is a tragedy every way you look at it, and with Spring Break and the influx of visitors for summer vacations fast approaching, this case is a stark reminder that a little patience with traffic goes a long way, and nothing good ever comes from road rage.”

The surviving shooting victim spoke at sentencing about how instead of celebrating her mother’s birthday that day, she lay in the backseat with a gunshot wound as her mother died in front of her.

“You did not just pull a trigger, you destroyed lives,” she said. “You murdered my mother – the woman who gave me life, who loved fiercely, who was my safety and my home.

“Because of you, she is gone forever,” the surviving victim said. She will never laugh again, never hold my hand again, never hear me call her name. Her life ended violently because of your choice.”

She told Judge Register about the stroke she suffered after the shooting, and how she, her brother and their family were robbed of a lifetime of memories.

“Our mama mattered. Our lives mattered,” she said. “And the consequences of what you did will last forever.”

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The shooting took place after an altercation between a passenger in the car and Encino. The altercation had ended and everyone was back in their vehicles when Encino’s boyfriend Simmons opened fire. Encino was driving and fled the scene, but the two were captured about a mile north of where the shooting occurred after a police chase.

Basford thanked Panama City police for their work both on reacting to the shooting and its follow up investigation.

For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.