40-Year Sentence in Stabbing Death

Posted on October 23, 2026October 23, 2026 by Admin SA

A 47-year-old man Apopka man who broke into his victim’s home and stabbed him to death pled no contest to two charges Thursday and was sentenced to 40 years in prison, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Joseph Michael Lynch was adjudicated guilty of Second-Degree Murder and Burglary with Assault or Battery by Circuit Court Judge Brantley Clark and sentenced to 40 years on each charge, to be served concurrently. The burglary and stabbing took place at the victim’s home on Ormond Avenue in Springfield on July 3, 2026.

“This was a senseless and violent attack, and for the family members of the victim we are glad that justice was quickly served,” said Prosecutor Peter Overstreet. “The family agreed with the plea and the 40-years in prison which essentially is a Life sentence for this defendant.”

Damage where victim’s door was forced open.

At sentencing the victim’s wife, who was home with the couple’s young daughter and who witnessed the killing, said the loss of her husband is a void that can never be filled.

“This loss has shattered this family completely; we have no sense of safety anymore, not even in our own home,” she told Juge Clark. “The quiet hours of the night are filled with painful memories and recurring trauma. I relive that night all day every day. Kenny didn’t die once, he dies every day 100 times a day for each of us.”

She no longer feels safe in her home, suffers from PTSD, and said the murder forever changed the lives of the families of all involved.

“I go to sleep and wake up without my husband, the person I was supposed to grow old with, have a life with which we had so many plans,” she said. “Our house is no longer a home, and we no longer live we just exist.”

Overstreet was prepared to call witnesses and present evidence proving Lynch went to the victim’s home late on the evening of July 3, 2026. Lynch and the victim, Kenny Ashbey, 33, had a disagreement days earlier over the title to a vehicle.

Armed with two knives, Lynch broke in the victim’s door and attacked him, stabbing him multiple times. The victim’s wife, young daughter and three other adults were in the home. The defendant took their cell phones before fleeing.

The defendant left on foot, telling several bystanders outside to call 911. When Springfield police arrived, witnesses told them the defendant was laying in the driveway a few houses down.

When officers approached Lynch, he said, “I did it,” as he was taken into custody.

Investigators recovered one knife inside the home near where the victim collapsed, and another outside.

Basford thanked the Springfield Police Department for its investigation that helped lead to a successful outcome. For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.

Porter Sentenced to 30 Years for Shooting, Killing Friend During Argument

Posted on October 6, 2026October 6, 2026 by Admin SA

CHIPLEY – Kyle Michael Porter was sentenced to 30 years in prison Tuesday for killing a friend with a shot to the head as they argued following an unsuccessful fishing trip in 2024.

Chief Circuit Court Judge Christopher Patterson presided over the Sept. 23 trial that found the defendant guilty of Manslaughter with a Firearm and ordered the sentence. Chief Washington County Prosecutor Megan presented the case that led to the verdict after 35 minutes of deliberation.

Testimony and evidence at trial proved the defendant, victim Randy Joseph Lynn, and a third man went fishing at Joiner Lake off Teardrop Trail on April 27, 2024. The three men worked together.

There was arguing between the defendant and the victim during the trip, but when they returned to the dock, the victim was too intoxicated to get out of the boat on his own.

The victim was helped out of the boat and resumed his argument with the defendant.

A witness said the victim was unarmed during the argument when the defendant pulled his pistol and fired one shot into his head. The victim, whose blood-alcohol level was .257 – more than three times the legal driving limit – fell backward into the water and died.

The defendant claimed self-defense, but the witness, along with the victim’s level of intoxication proved he was unarmed and not a threat.

“This case is about 15 seconds on a dock and a decision that cannot be taken back,” Ford said at trial. “Randy Lynn did not have a weapon, he did not reach for Kyle’s gun, he did not touch him. Then Kyle introduced a loaded gun into the argument, and approximately 15 seconds passed before Kyle pulled the trigger.”

Basford thanked the Washington County Sheriff’s Office for its thorough investigation that helped lead to a successful outcome.

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

Man Guilty of Shooting Friend in Head During Alcohol-Fueled Argument

Posted on September 25, 2026 by Admin SA

CHIPLEY – A 6-person jury took 35 minutes Wednesday to find Kyle Michael Porter guilty as charged of Manslaughter with a Firearm for shooting a friend in the head as they argued following an unsuccessful fishing trip in 2024.

Chief Circuit Court Judge Christopher Patterson set Porter’s sentencing date for Oct. 6. He faces up to 30 years in prison.

Chief Washington County Prosecutor Megan Ford called six witnesses, including a third person on the fishing trip who witnessed the shooting on the defendant’s dock at Joiner Lake off Teardrop Trail. The witnesses and evidence proved the defendant pulled his gun during an argument on his dock after the trip and shot an unarmed Randy Joseph Lynn once in the head. Lynn fell backward into the lake and died quickly. All three men had been drinking.

“This case is about 15 seconds on a dock and a decision that cannot be taken back,” Ford told jurors. “Randy Lynn did not have a weapon, he did not reach for Kyle’s gun, he did not touch him. Then Kyle introduced a loaded gun into the argument … and approximately 15 seconds passed before Kyle pulled the trigger.

“The evidence will show this was a verbal confrontation with a heavily intoxicated 63-year-old man who moments before could not stand” to get out of the boat.

The victim’s blood-alcohol level was .257, more than three times the legal driving limit.

The evidence and testimony showed that Porter, the victim, and the third person on the fishing trip all worked together and planned a fishing trip on the lake for April 27, 2024. Porter and the third man drove to Southport that morning to pick up the victim, stopping for bait and beer on the way back.

The three were in a small dingy type boat.

The surviving witness said Porter was in back controlling the motor, the victim was in the center of the boat and he was in the front. All three were drinking beer and bourbon but they were not catching any fish.

As they headed back toward the defendant’s dock, they ran through a group of lily pads and the engine became clogged and quit working. In later statements to Washington County Sheriff’s Office investigators, Porter and the surviving witness said the victim became upset and started yelling and arguing with Porter about the engine problem.

The surviving witness said Porter was able to restart the motor and after a brief stop they headed back to the dock with the victim still upset and arguing most of the way. But by the time they reached the dock, the victim had reached a point of intoxication where he could not get out of the boat. The surviving witness tried to help pull him out and eventually he and Porter were able to pull the victim out.

“He started pushing (the third man) quite a bit,” Porter said in his statement. “He comes over to me because I told him to stop and he tells me that he will kill me and at that point man I felt threatened.” Porter claimed the victim charged him and he pulled the trigger.

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But the other man said while the victim was intoxicated and argumentative, he never tried to get Porter’s gun, never charged Porter, and never tried to touch him or the gun. He said the victim had his hands in the air and was offering to fight both men when Porter pulled the trigger.

“Randy’s hands were up in the air like, ‘Bring it on,’ and Kyle says, ‘I’m going to shoot you’ and a couple of seconds later Kyle pulled the trigger,” the man testified. “Kyle could’ve just walked away.”

After the victim fell in the water, Porter called his wife who was inside their home up a hill from the dock and told her to call 911.

Basford thanked the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and for its thorough investigation that led to the arrest.

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

Pittman sentenced to Life in stabbing death

Posted on September 11, 2026September 11, 2026 by Admin SA

Calvin Lovelle Pittman was sentenced to Life in prison Friday for stabbing and killing a man in a convenience store parking lot in 2023, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.

Six jurors found Pittman, 47, of Panama City, guilty of Second-Degree Murder and Destruction or Tampering with Physical Evidence in the July 18, 2023 stabbing death of Phillip S. Harvey, 20. Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay presided over the trial and sentencing.

At sentencing, Prosecutor Peter Overstreet outlined Pittman’s criminal history – which includes 12 prior felony convictions – and asked for the maximum sentence of Life.

“Mr. Pittman has shown over and over again that he has no respect for the law or the safety of others,” Overstreet said after sentencing. “He has now taken a young man from his family, his loved ones, his community, in a vicious manner. Our community is safer with him in prison, which is where he will die.”

At sentencing, Harvey’s godmother described him as an advanced student who graduated from a Tallahassee high school IB program and was pursuing a better life. He was “loving, intelligent, caring and worthy … and he deserved so much better than the fate that was forced on him.”

“What makes this even harder to accept is that he did absolutely nothing to deserve what happened to him,” she said to Judge Gay. “He deserved the chance to continue chasing his dreams. He deserved the chance to grow old … instead his family and everyone who loved him has been sentenced to a lifetime of grief.”

During the defendant’s 2-day trial that began July 21, Overstreet proved to jurors that Pittman stabbed the victim in the side while the two were arguing in the victim’s car July 18, 2023. The victim stumbled about 20 feet from the car before collapsing.

At the hospital, Harvey told two nurses that he was stabbed by Pittman during an argument.

Basford thanked @SpringfieldPoliceDepartment and @PanamaCityPoliceDepartment for their collaborative efforts that led to a successful outcome.

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