Arrested three times in six months, Daniel Catalan, 41, had threatened an employee he’d just fired, pointed a gun at a minor and battered a family member. He had faced up to 20 years in prison.
Circuit & County Court
As Jury Trials Are Set To Finally Resume for Good in Flagler, Judge Perkins Sends Reassurances to the Covid Leery
Potential jurors being are being reassured by Circuit Judge Terence Perkins, the senior and administrative judge in the county, that “every court process and procedure” has been reviewed “to ensure that your jury service is safe.”
Matanzas Student Who Wrote Song Threatening Dean’s Life Pleads to Deal That May Erase the Charge
Joseph Washington, 18, was arrested in January after Matanzas High faculty learned of a song he’d uploaded, threatening Tom Wooleyhan, a dean, by name. He was sentenced to 18 months’ probation on a third-degree felony charge, a plea deal the judge found surprising for its leniency. The charge will be dropped if Washington fulfills its terms over the next 18 months.
Judge Rules Against Excluding Key Interview with Detectives in Larry Cavallaro Rape Case as Details Emerge
Cavallaro, a former gallery owner in Flagler Beach who divided his time between Winter Park and the beach town, was arrested on June 12, 2019, on a first-degree felony rape charge stemming from an allegation that he drugged and raped 40-year-old woman who had gone to visit him there with a friend. He’s been free on $100,000 bond.
Ex Palm Coast Gang Leader Brandon Washington Gets Another Chance to Contest 4 Life Sentences
The Fifth District Court of Appeal today ruled in favor of Brandon Washington’s appeal on three grounds, among them that his attorney did not present evidence or a witness who could have provided an alibi, undermining the state’s claim that Washington was at the scene of the 2007 home invasion and murder that led to his trial and conviction.
Jury Summonses Fail to Go Out In Time, Again Delaying In-Person Jury Trials in Flagler
Contrary to the court system’s announcement last week that in-person trials could resume in Flagler this week, a vendor snafu with jury summonses caused the trials to be delayed yet again, to mid-April.
In-Person Trials Will Resume in Flagler, With High-Profile Murder Cases On Deck
The cases of Keith Johansen, who faces a first-degree murder charge in the death of Brandi Celenza, and Benjamin Allen, who was 16 when he was charged as an adult in the first-degree murder of 17-year-old Elijah Rizvan in Palm Coast, will see trial dates later this year.
In Spite: DeSantis Denies Pardon for World-Acclaimed Voting Rights Leader Desmond Mead
Meade said he is a victim of political infighting between DeSantis and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, a Democrat who, as a member of the state Board of Executive Clemency, put forward Meade’s application for a pardon in September and again on Wednesday.
‘This Is Wrong,’ Attorney Says of Matanzas Student’s Arrest Over Rap Song Threat, Citing 1st Amendment
Matanzas High student Joseph Washington, 18, has yet to be charged almost seven weeks after his arrest on an accusation that he threatened a dean in a rap song posted to SoundCloud. On Monday, his attorney called his whole case “wrong” on First Amendment grounds.
County Attorney Raises Prospect of Jail for Dennis McDonald Over Protracted Contempt of Court
County Attorney Al Hadeed on Monday raised the prospect of jail for Dennis McDonald, the former candidate for various offices, if McDonald remains in contempt of court over a charge of $80,000 plus interest in legal fees he owes Flagler County government.