A convicted killer who shot a fellow Mosley High student more than a dozen times in 1994 has lost his request for a reduced sentence, State Attorney Larry Basford announced Friday.

Circuit Court Judge Ana Maria Garcia ordered that Thomas Robert McGill, 46, will continue to serve a 50-year sentence from his 1996 conviction for Murder in the First Degree and Armed Robbery in the 1994 shooting death of Torrey King. The defendant planned to rob King of steroids and shot him at least 13 times with two different pistols after his truck became stuck in the mud.

The defendant hid the body in the woods, found friends to help get his truck freed, then later  returned and took the body to another location where he set it on fire. The defendant was 17 ½ at the time, King was 18.

“This was a brutal murder of a teenager, Torrey King, by his classmate in 1994,” Basford said. “Words cannot adequately describe the devastation it caused his family. I have spoken to them and they were relieved to learn that Judge Garcia refused to reduce the 50 year sentence that was previously imposed at the Defendant’s resentencing hearing in 2017. I pray this will bring them some peace.”

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The defendant was convicted of killing the victim in a wooded area off North Bear Creek Road the day after Christmas, Dec. 26, 1994. King was a passenger in the truck when it got stuck in the mud. The defendant, who had planned to rob King, shot him multiple times with a.22-caliber pistol after they exited the vehicle. When that weapon jammed, the defendant grabbed a .380-caliber pistol and continued shooting the victim.

The defendant was tried, found guilty and sentenced to Life in prison in 1996.

Later U.S. Supreme Court rulings changed the law on how offenders who commit capital or life felonies while they are juveniles should be sentenced. In 2014 Florida instituted a new sentencing framework for such cases. McGill appealed his life sentence based on that and in 2017 it was reduced to 50 years.

The same changes in Florida law state that a juvenile who commits a homicide and is convicted of murder is entitled to a review of his or her sentence after 25 years. The purpose is to determine if the juvenile offender “has been rehabilitated and is reasonably believed to be fit to reenter society.”

McGill’s Sentence Review Hearing was held Dec. 15, 2021, and he was seeking a reduction in sentence.

Judge Garcia, in rejecting that request, wrote, “The evidence in the present case suggests that Thomas McGill was not the juvenile offender the nation’s highest judicial officers had in mind when rendering their decisions” on sentencing juveniles.

Garcia noted the defendant was not influenced negatively by his surroundings or upbringing, did not commit the murder in an impulsive manner but rather did it in a “thoughtful, calculated and premeditated” manner, was not remorseful when caught, and was only 6 months from turning 18.

Garcia also had “significant concerns about the convenient timing of the Defendant’s demonstration of remorse.” McGill for decades maintained he acted in self-defense, only accepting responsibility shortly before his 2017 resentencing – 23 years after the murder.

“First, it remains unclear when – or, candidly, whether – the Defendant began to experience true remorse,” Garcia wrote, adding, “As the Court noted in its June 2017 sentencing order, the timing of the Defendant’s acknowledgement was – and remains – suspect.”

Basford thanked the victim’s parents and brother, who testified at the hearing, along with all involved with the lengthy process.

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

MARIANNA – A jury took 15 minutes to find a Marianna man guilty of possession of methamphetamine Thursday and the judge imposed the maximum 5-year prison sentence, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Robert O’Neil Cloud, 49, was found guilty of Possession of Methamphetamine and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia at the end of a 1-day trial prosecuted by Lawrence Gill. At sentencing, Gill provided the court with records showing the defendant had previous convictions for a number of felonies ranging from being a felon in possession of a firearm to multiple cases of Aggravated Battery and Felony Battery.

Circuit Court Judge Ana Maria Garcia sentenced Cloud to 5 years in prison, the maximum for a third-degree felony.

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“The defendant’s actions once again caught up with him,” Gill said after the sentencing. “This case is evidence that bad decisions add up and can lead to the longer sentences. We will continue to fully prosecute these drug cases our law enforcement partners make, and seek appropriate sentences in an effort to keep our community safe.”

Gill, assisted by Prosecutor Kara Bremer, called three witnesses. They included the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office K9 handler whose dog alerted on the defendant’s car, and presented evidence showing the defendant was in possession of about 2.5 grams of methamphetamine on March 1, 2023.

The defendant had an active warrant out for his arrest when Sgt. J. Merrit spotted him in his vehicle in a parking lot near Highway 71. He was joined by Deputy J. Rafferty and his K9 Dutch, and they approached the vehicle.

The defendant was placed under arrest for the active warrant and Dutch conducted a “free air sniff” and “alerted” on the vehicle, indicating the odor or presence of narcotics. The ensuing search turned up methamphetamine inside different packages of cigarettes.

The “alert” and interactions were preserved on bodycam as well.

Basford thanked the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office for its proactive efforts to locate the defendant for the warrant which led to the seizure of the methamphetamine.

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

BONIFAY – A familiar face is returning to the 14^th Judicial Circuit to become the new face of its Bonifay office serving Holmes County residents, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Jacob “Jake” Cook, who previously worked in the Office of State Attorney, 14^th Judicial Circuit’s main branch in Panama City, is now Chief Prosecutor in charge of the Holmes County office.

“It is an honor to be prosecuting again under Larry Basford,” Cook said. “I am fortunate to be able to work for an administration that values doing the right thing, whether that is seeking the maximum penalty under law for criminals who are true threats to the citizens of our circuit or giving that kid who made a mistake a chance to turn his life around.”

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During his earlier tenure with the SAO, Cook successfully handled thousands of cases ranging from homicide, sexual abuse, and contractor fraud in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael, to a fentanyl trafficker with enough of the drug to kill 23,000 people (25 years in prison).

“Fentanyl is deadly in such small amounts that it has created an epidemic in terms of overdoses and deaths both locally, statewide and across our country,” Cook said at the time. “We want drug traffickers to know that if you bring fentanyl to Bay County that our office will do our very best to make sure they go to prison for a long, long time.”

It was the excitement of the courtroom and the chance to again put his energy into directly helping others by prosecuting those who victimize them, while helping keep the community safe that brought Cook back to prosecution.

“I am one of the lucky ones who gets to do a job they love, and make a positive impact on our community at the same time,” he said.

Cook grew up in Cedartown, GA, but he has lived in Florida for almost 20 years.

Cook graduated from the University of Florida, Fredric G. Levin College of Law in 2015, and his previous experience includes working in private practice at Dunlap & Shipman in Panama City. Cook, along with his wife and son, live in Southport.

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

 

 

 

 

PORT ST. JOE – A Gulf County man found guilty of sexually molesting a child under the age of 12 has been
sentenced to Life in prison.

Joseph Weldon Davis, 48, of Wewahitchka, was sentenced Friday after being found guilty Nov. 30 of Lewd or
Lascivious Molestation. Circuit Court Judge Devin Collier ordered the maximum sentence and designated the
defendant as a Sexual Predator.

“This sentence sends a strong message that crimes against children will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Gulf County Chief Prosecutor Tracy Smith.

 

Smith called witnesses and presented evidence proving the defendant sexually molested a child during a 5-
month period in 2020 and 2021. The investigation that led to the defendant’s arrest March 9, 2021, was
conducted by the Gulf County Sheriff’s Office.

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Smith called 10 witnesses to the stand, including the victim. Smith also successfully argued that jurors should
hear the testimony of two other females who said they were victims of similar acts by the defendant when they
were juveniles.

The six-person jury took about 90 minutes to find the defendant guilty of the Lewd and Lascivious Molestation charge. The verdict carried a minimum-mandatory 25-year sentence but the defendant received the maximum Life sentence.

Basford thanked the Gulf County Sheriff’s Office and the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center for their
work on the case and helping gathering the evidence needed for a conviction.

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

 

A man found guilty Thursday of striking and killing a child with his truck in a Beach parking lot and fleeing the scene faces up to 30 years in prison at his February sentencing, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

A jury took 20 minutes to find Kenneth Ray Martinez, 64, of Panama City Beach, guilty of Leaving the Scene of a Crash Involving Death after a 3-day trial. Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay set sentencing for Feb. 18. He faces up to 30 years in prison.

Prosecutor Peter Overstreet called about two dozen witnesses and presented evidence proving the defendant fled the scene knowing he had hit a child March 29, 2022, in the Publix parking lot on Panama City Beach Parkway. He was arrested later that day at his nearby apartment, the truck parked outside.

The 4-year-old victim was vacationing here with her family. She was killed instantly when the truck struck her, dragged her, and then ran over her.

“This was a 4-year-old little girl with her whole life ahead of her and it was taken away from her in an instant,” Overstreet told jurors in his closing argument. “We would not be here today if the defendant had simply stopped his truck. Whether driven by fear, cowardice, or an indifference to that child’s life, the defendant chose not to stop.

Florida law makes it a first-degree felony to leave the scene of an accident involving injury or death.

The three days of testimony included numerous witnesses who saw the truck strike the child and leave without slowing down. Numerous Panama City Beach Police Department officers and investigators testified about evidence they gathered from witnesses and data from the vehicle showing it was going about 18 mph while the defendant talked to a woman on the phone. Surveillance video showed the truck running stop signs in the parking lot before the crash.

The defendant fled to his nearby apartment and testified he drove straight to his parking spot. Overstreet produced data from the vehicle that showed it made a series of shifts from “Drive, neutral, reverse” after entering the apartment complex, evidence the defendant pulled into a spot set aside for washing vehicles to hose down his truck. Also, hard water spots and trace evidence of fibers that did not come from the victim were found. The medical Examiner testified the severity of the impact should have left evidence on the vehicle.

The woman on the phone with the defendant at the time of the crash testified he yelled, “Oh my God” repeatedly and said he had hit a dog.

On the stand, the defendant, who for over 30 minutes would not open his apartment door for the numerous officers gathered outside, testified he did not realize he had hit anything. He also said he didn’t notice the people trying to chase him down following the impact.

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Overstreet told jurors the defendant’s story simply did not make sense and defied logic.

“He would’ve felt it and heard that when he hit and dragged that child,” Overstreet said. “And he did, because he kept going on and on during the phone call, ‘Oh my God.’ He will lie about anything if it’s about him. This is not about him. It’s about this child because she lost her life.

“Nothing you can do today will bring her back,” he continued. “But what you will do today by your verdict is define what happened that day outside of Publix.”

Basford thanked the multiple agencies involved and the Panama City Beach Police Department for the tremendous amount of evidence it gathered during its investigation.

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The man who led the targeted attempt to kill a witness against him in a human trafficking case in an attack that left a teenager dead and three other people critically wounded was sentenced to death Friday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Michael Harrison Hunt, 58, was found guilty of First-Degree Murder and three counts of Attempted First-Degree Murder on Sept. 13. The jury voted 10-2 for the Death Penalty. Friday, Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay followed that recommendation and ordered Hunt incarcerated until the sentence can be carried out.

“Michael Hunt is very dangerous,” Basford said after the sentencing. “He was involved in the human trafficking of young women. The reason we are here today is because he attempted to kill one of the victims that was going to testify against him.

“In the process he ended up killing a totally different teenager who had nothing to do with the case, along with attempting to kill three other people in the home,” Basford continued. “We agree with the jury and the judge that in this case, the death penalty is appropriate.”

Hunt planned the break-in at a Cove home on April 4, 2019, where the victim in a human trafficking case who was going to testify against him was staying. The intended victim hid and escaped harm, but Alexandra “Lexie” Peck, 19, who resembled the victim, was shot to death. Her stepfather Danny Scoggins was shot in the throat but was able to crawl next door for help. He has endured more than 60 surgeries since. Two other people in the house were shot but survived.

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A collaborative investigation led by the Panama City Police Department with the Bay County Sheriff’s Office and State Attorney’s Office led to a manhunt for the defendant. He was arrested the following day.

Prosecutors Mark Graham and Peter Overstreet tried the case against Hunt and the jury reached a verdict in about an hour.

During sentencing, Judge Gay found that five aggravating factors had been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, and that they carried great weight. Gay found the defendant previously had been convicted of a crime involving violence, the murder occurred while committing a burglary, the murder was committed to disrupt or hinder a lawful investigation, the murder was especially heinous, atrocious or cruel, and that the murder was committed in a cold, calculated and premeditated manner.

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

PORT ST. JOE – A father and son who teamed up to burglarize a houseboat but were caught when their own boat had mechanical difficulties have been sentenced to 10 years each in prison, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Andy Hysmith, 63, and Anthony T. Hysmith, 41, who both listed Wewahitchka addresses, each pled guilty to Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Wearing a Mask While Committing a Burglary of a Dwelling, Possession of Burglary Tools, and Destruction or Tampering with Evidence.

 

Gulf County Circuit Court Judge Devin Collier sentenced both men to 10 years in prison Friday. The first three years are a minimum/mandatory under Florida’s enhanced laws involving Felon in Possession of a Firearm.

The arrests and investigation were conducted by the Gulf County Sheriff’s Office and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Chief Gulf County Prosecutor Tracy Smith was prepared to prove that on Jan. 31, 2023, the defendants broke into a houseboat near Bryant’s Landing and stole a number of items.

“Burglary is a serious crime and can be traumatic for the people whose private homes are violated,” Smith said. “We will continue to treat cases like this seriously, whether it’s a stand-alone home, a mobile home, or, as in this case, a houseboat.”

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The evidence would have shown the owners of the houseboat were out of town, but the vessel was equipped with surveillance equipment that alerted him there were people on his boat. They contacted a friend and sent him surveillance footage, and that friend contacted deputies.

A deputy went to Bryant’s landing and saw a boat approaching, but it left when it saw his vehicle. Other deputies and law enforcement officers joined the search. The vessel was again spotted on the Chipola River and fled until it encountered a mechanical issue.

Evidence showed Andy Hysmith was seen throwing a firearm into the water and that both he and his son were wearing the same clothes as the two men in the surveillance footage. They also had items from the houseboat that belonged to the victim, some of which they also threw overboard.

Basford thanked the investigating agencies for their coordinated work in apprehending the suspects and making the arrests.

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

PORT ST. JOE – A Gulf County man found guilty of sexually molesting a child under the age of 12 has been sentenced to Life in prison.

Joseph Weldon Davis, 48, of Wewahitchka, was sentenced Friday after being found guilty Nov. 30 of Lewd or Lascivious Molestation. Circuit Court Judge Devin Collier ordered the maximum sentence and designated the defendant as a Sexual Predator.

“This sentence sends a strong message that crimes against children will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Gulf County Chief Prosecutor Tracy Smith.

Smith called witnesses and presented evidence proving the defendant sexually molested a child during a 5-month period in 2020 and 2021. The investigation that led to the defendant’s arrest March 9, 2021, was conducted by the Gulf County Sheriff’s Office.

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Smith called 10 witnesses to the stand, including the victim. Smith also successfully argued that jurors should hear the testimony of two other females who said they were victims of similar acts by the defendant when they were juveniles.

The six-person jury took about 90 minutes to find the defendant guilty of the Lewd and Lascivious Molestation charge. The verdict carried a minimum-mandatory 25-year sentence but the defendant received the maximum Life sentence.

Basford thanked the Gulf County Sheriff’s Office and the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center for their work on the case and helping gathering the evidence needed for a conviction.

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

A drug dealer who sold what turned out to be a fatal dose of drugs to a 17-year-old was sentenced to 15 years in prison today after pleading guilty to Manslaughter, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Patrick Kelley Jones, 28, was given the maximum sentence by Circuit Judge Timothy Register for selling fentanyl-laced pills to a juvenile who died in 2021 after taking what he thought was the pain killer Roxicodone.

Prosecutor Peter Overstreet was prepared to call witnesses and produce evidence gathered by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office proving that Jones sold the pills that ended up killing the juvenile and tried to cover his tracks after he learned of the death.

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The evidence would have shown that on July 24, 2021, the victim was found dead in his bedroom with a plastic baggie containing pills – stamped “M” on one side and “30” on the other – on a nearby table. The markings indicated the pills were Roxicodone, but test results showed they contained fentanyl. Subsequent tests showed the cause of death as Fentanyl Toxicity.

“This case is a tragic example of the dangers of selling drugs in our community,” Overstreet said. “A young man lost his life due to the fentanyl epidemic that is infecting our community. We will continue to punish those who deal drugs in our community to the fullest extent of the law.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Information and witnesses gathered by the Sheriff’s Office showed the victim bought the pills from the defendant the day before his death. When the defendant found out about the overdose, the evidence showed he changed his residence and phone number but continued to sell the pills.

Basford thanked the Bay County Sheriff’s Office for its work in building a strong case that led to a guilty plea.

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

BONIFAY – A man found guilty of attempting to lure what he thought was a 15-year-old girl into sexual acts through social media was sentenced to 15 years in prison Thursday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

John Edward McGlaun, 61, of Westville, will face 15 years of Sexual Offender probation after Prosecutor Ben Keown successfully argued he should be sentenced as a Habitual Felony Offender. Circuit Court Judge Russell Roberts, who presided over the Sept. 28 trial, handed down the sentence.

“The defendant tried to conceal his true intentions, but the facts of the case showed that his real motive was to prey on what he believed to be a 15-year-old girl,” Keown said. “The Holmes County Sheriff’s Office was proactive in its work on this case. They do these types of investigations to protect the community and ensure people like this never get to a child victim. We will continue to prosecute them thoroughly and use the enhanced sentencing tools that are available.”

The defendant was arrested in June, 2022, and went to trial on Sept. 28. After Keown presented his case, a jury took only about 15 minutes to find the defendant guilty of Traveling to Meet a Minor to Commit an Unlawful Sexual Conduct.

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Keown called two witnesses: Holmes County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Bill Pate and Lt. Ricky Thompson.

Their testimony and evidence showed the defendant was in contact with who he believed to be a 15-year-old girl via Facebook Messenger and was attempting to talk her into meeting him for a sexual encounter. In fact, he was messaging with Inv. Pate, who was posing as a juvenile.

Through a series of messages the defendant arranged to meet the person for sex on June 21, 2022, at a Holmes County Park. McGlaun was arrested by deputies when he arrived at the park for the agreed-upon meeting.

Basford thanked the Holmes County Sheriff’s Office for its proactive work on the case and getting a sexual offender off the streets before he could victimize a child.

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