The State Attorney Sidebar

V O L U M E

SPECIAL
POINTS OF
INTEREST:
A message
from the
State Attorney
Recent SAO
trial victories
Tips on how

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I S S U E

Victim Advocates and the

SAO

D E C E M B E R

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A Message From the State Attorney

The holiday season is
upon us! And with the
hustle and bustle around
this time of year, you need
to make sure you are doing all you can to keep
yourself and your loved
ones safe.
During the holidays, we
see more car burglaries
and robberies of individuals. In the safety zone
section, the SAO investi-

to stay safe
while shopping this holiday season

gators have some tips on

how not to be a victim.
There are things you can
do while you are out shopping. There are also small
steps you can take so as
to not tempt someone to
break into your car. Always remember to be
mindful of your surroundings and enjoy this time of
year! God Bless ~ Angela

The Rebuttal
It always appears as if
there is only bad news
being reported by the media, but the truth is there
is a lot of good news out
there too the media just
chooses not to report on
it! The media seems to
focus only on cases
where they can create a
negative twist. For example, the local newspaper
has highlighted a couple
of our cases which have
been reversed on appeal.
What you may not realize
is that many times these
cases are reversed on
legal technicalities which
range from jury instructions to specific testimony
at trial. The reversal often
times does not involve an

error by the State Attorneys Office.

An interesting point is
that the jury instructions,
which are the basis of some
reversals, are the instructions written by Floridas
Supreme Court. The instructions are often amended and convictions are
overturned based on the
new instruction on the law.
When a case is reversed
for this reason, it is dealt
with appropriately by the
State Attorneys Office.
Many times, the SAO and
Floridas Attorney General
will ask for a rehearing on
the matter. The outcome of
the rehearing will determine
the next step in the case. If
the conviction is ultimately

reversed, it means the defendant will get another

day in court and will be
retried for the crime.
While the headlines are
often about the cases that
get reversed, the media
rarely reports all of the
SAOs convictions which
are AFFIRMED on appeal.
In 2012, defendants filed
504 appeal notices in Duval County felony cases.
Out of that number, the
court affirmed 293 appeals
and reversed seven. The
remaining cases are pending. We are proud of the
good work this office is
doing and thought you
should know about it too!

VOLUME 1, ISSUE 6

PAGE 2

Justice Promised, Justice Delivered

Terry Marshall III was found
guilty of Armed Robbery. ~ASAs
Sandra Rosendale and Yiolanta
Jones

James R. Cox Jr. was convicted

of Lewd or Lascivious Molestation. ~ASAs Rachel Algee and
Erin Perry

Charles J. Lenton Jr. was found

guilty of Possession of a Firearm
by a Convicted Felon. ~ASAs
Brittany ONeil and Joel Cooper

cie French

John B. Swearingen was found

guilty of Murder in the Second Degree with a Weapon. ~ASAs Garrett Hill and Janeen Mira

William Holmes was sentenced

to 26 years in prison for charges of
Second Degree Murder and Armed
Robbery. ~ASA Jeff Moody

Gabriel Wright was convicted of

tion. ~ASA Jeff Moody

Jessie C. Roberts was convicted

of Att. Murder in the Second Degree, Sale or Poss. With Intent to
Sell Cannabis while Armed and
Failure of Defendant to Appear on
Bail. ~ASAs Alexis Anum and Katie
Deal

Elliott D. Barnett was found

guilty of Murder in the First Degree and Attempted Armed Robbery. ~ASAs Garrett Hill and John
Kalinowski

Burglary with Assault or Battery,

Sexual Battery and Aggravated Stalking. ~ASAs Joel Cooper and Rich
Johnny Ellison was convicted of
Dredrik J. Simpson was convictGiglio
Burglary. ~ASA Mark Hulsey
ed of Armed Robbery, Grand
Alvin L. Griffin was found guilty of
Antoni Knight was sentenced
Theft Auto, Agg. Fleeing or Att. To
Robbery. ~ASAs Peter Overstreet
to 46 years in prison for Murder
Elude an Officer, Carrying a Conand Matt Polimeni
in the Second Degree and Armed
cealed Firearm, Resisting an Officer
Robbery. ~ASA Jeff Moody
George P. Landgraff was senwithout Violence and Leaving the
Scene of an Accident. ~ASAs Alexis
tenced to life in prison for a Murder
William Fisher was convicted
Anum and Peter Overstreet
in
the
First
Degree
and
Armed
Burof Lewd or Lascivious Molestaglary with Assault or Battery conviction. ~ASAs Anna Hixon and Sta-

Hearings and Cheerings

StateA orneyAngelaCoreyandASAsBerniedelaRiondaandJohnGuyrecently
spokeattheFloridaHomicideInves gatorsAssocia on
(FHIA)ConferenceinLakeMary,Florida.Agroupof
aboutonehundredprosecutors,lawenforcementoc
ersandinves ga veprofessionalsa endedthisannual
trainingconferencetodiscussavarietyoftopics,suchas
homicidecasemanagementandinves ga vestrategies.
ThemissionoftheFHIAistoprovideinves ga vesup
port,training,andnetworkingopportuni estothose
workinginthehomicideinves ga onfieldthroughout ASAJohnGuy,StateAttorney
AngelaCoreyandASABerniedela
theStateofFlorida.
Rionda

PAGE 3

Special Acknowledgement Opportunity

Ma Polimenihas
beenpartoftheSAO
since2011.
Priortojoiningour
oce,Ma workedasa
JacksonvilleSheris
Ocerforsevenyears.
Duringthat me,he

AssistantStateAttorney
MattPolimeni

Eventhough
mostofan
Advocates
workisdone
behindthe
scenes,their
eortsdonot
gounno ced.

a endedFloridaCoastal
SchoolofLaw,gradua ngin
2010.
InMarch2011,Ma was
hiredasanA orneyTrainee
assignedtotheCountyCourt
Division.Amonthlater,he
wassworninasanAssistant

StateA orney.Ma was

promotedtoCircuitCourtin
September2011.
InAugustofthisyear,Ma
waspromotedtotheRepeat
OenderCourt(ROC)Divi
sion.

Victims Voice
Asourprosecutorsworkto
seekjus ceforvic msinthe
courtroom,ourteamofVic m
Advocatesworkbehindthe
scenestohelprestorelifeand
hopetothosewhoarevic msof
acrime.
TheSAOhasadozenVic m
Advocatesonstathatarededi
catedtohelpingvic msofall
typesofcrimes.EachSAOAdvo
cateisassignedtoadivisionand
canhandledozensofcasesatany
merangingfromhomicide,
domes cviolenceorsexcrimes.
OneofourAdvocateveterans,
GinaVought,overseesallofour
Vic mAdvocateshereattheSAO.
Shegotherstarthelpingvic ms
asaninternwhilelivinginBal
more,Maryland.Onea ernoon,
Voughttookacallfromadomes
cviolencevic mathome.My
momheardmeandshesaid,You
aresogoodatthat.Thatiswhat

youneedtodowithyourlife.
Sincethen,Voughthasnt
lookedback.
Vic mAdvocatesarethere
everystepofthewaywhile
jus ceisbeingsoughtinacase.
Theya endcourt,gotodepo
si onsandhelpvic msprepare
fortrial.Some mesallavic m
needsisanadvocatetohelp
explainalegalterm,other
mestheyneedmoreassis
tance.Weassesswhattheir
needsare,andwetrytomeet
thoseneeds,saidVought.
Someofthoseneedsinvolve
ge ngavic mintouchwitha
counselororhelpingadomes c
violencevic mfindasafeha
ven.Vic mAdvocatesarealso
responsibleforhelpingvic ms
receiveanyfundsthatmaybe
availabletothemthroughFlori
dasVic mCompensa on

Fund.Thesefundshelpvic ms
ortheirfamiliesrecovercosts
forfuneralexpenses,medical
costsorlostwages.
EventhoughmostofanAd
vocatesworkisdonebehind
thescenes,theireortsdonot
gounno ced.Ginasaysthat
shehasremainedincontact
withvic msevena ertheir
caseswereover.Sherecalls
onepar cularvic mwhocalls
eachyearonherbirthdayand
atChristmas me.Thevic m
tellsherhowshehasmade
posi veimprovementsinher
lifeandhowthankfulsheisfor
Ginassupport.
Vic mAdvocatessaythatits
thosemomentsthatletthem
knowthatevenwhenthey
dontthinktheyaremakinga
dierenceinsomeoneslife,
theyreallyare.

Off The Record

ASAJohnGuyandkidsfromJack
andJillofAmerica,Inc.

AssistantStateA orney
JohnGuyrecentlyleda
groupofyoungstersona
journeydownthepathto
seekingjus ce.Thisgroupof
boysandgirlsfromtheJack
andJillofAmerica,Inc.pro
gramspentana ernoonat

theSAOlearningali le
abouthowthecriminaljus
cesystemworksbypar ci
pa nginamocktrial.
Mr.Guydirectedthegroup
aseachchildactedasapros
ecutor,defensea orney,
defendant,judge,juroror

witness.Thechildrengotto
experiencefirsthandjust
whattakesplaceinacourt
roomastheypresented
theirarguments,listenedto
witnesstes monyandul
matelyrenderedaverdictof
guilty.

PAGE 4

SafetyZone
HolidayShoppingSafetyTips

Shopduringdaylighthourswheneverpossible.Ifyoumustshopatnight,gowithafriendorfamily
memberandparkinawelllitarea.

Avoidoverloadingyourselfwithpackages.Itisimportanttohaveclearvisibilityandfreedomofmo
ontoavoidmishaps.

Stayawareofyoursurroundings.This meofyear,conar stsmayusevariousmethodsofdistrac

onwiththeintenttotakeyourmoneyorbelongings.

Parkasclosetoyourdes na onaspossibleandtakeno ceofwhereyouparked.Rememberto

avoidparkingnexttovans,truckswithcampershellsandcarswithheavily ntedwindows.

Donotleavepackagesorvaluablesontheseatofyourcar.Thiscreatestempta onforthieves.Do
yourbesttolockitemsinthetrunkorplaceoutofsight.

Donotapproachyourcaraloneiftherearesuspiciouspeopleinthearea.Ifyoufeelnecessary,ask
storesecurityforanescort.

www.sao4th.com

Setting the Record Straight

We are so excited about the
progress being made on the new
State Attorneys Office building,
which is located next door to the
new Duval County Courthouse.
We are on target to move into the
new office space in December
2014.
Recently, a local newspaper
focused on the project and blatantly misinformed the public regarding the origin of the bridge.
We hope to clear up the misinformation and set the record straight
with this article.
The newspaper article claimed
that Ms. Corey was sucking up
taxpayer cash with an unnecessary bridge which connects the
SAO to the new courthouse.
What the paper chose not to print
was the fact that the elevated
walkway was a fundamental part

of the design from the very beginning, in 2001. The obvious

purpose of the walkway, according to the experts who designed
it, was for the efficiency and
safety of the hundreds of people
who go back and forth in those
buildings daily.
Ms. Corey and her staff firmly
believe the walkway is a necessity. It provides a secure and efficient avenue for prosecutors and
police to travel from our office to
the courtroom. With regard to
safety, there have been numerous headlines from around the
country which detail the threats
and danger prosecutors face daily. Safety, efficiency, and the
fact that physical evidence needs
to be transported securely, from
the SAO to the courtroom, make
the bridge essential. Numerous

Jacksonville businesses have

elevated walkways which connect buildings for safety and efficiency. A bridge connecting the
SAO and the courthouse just
makes good, common sense.
The SAO has worked with the
City of Jacksonville and the construction team to trim project
costs. The original cost of the
bridge was $1.7 million. Corey
and her staff cut that amount to
around $800,000. The errors
show the newspaper staffer did
not fact check his article before it
went to print.