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from the
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Recent SAO
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I S S U E

M A Y

2 0 1 4

A Message From the State Attorney

I am so proud to tell you that
our troops at the State Attorneys Office have stepped up
to the plate to help others in
our community. Recently, the
SAO teamed with the Clerk of
the Court to collect food and
other supplies for the less fortunate in the Northeast Florida
region. The drive was a huge
success!
Our teams heart for helping
others did not stop there.
Several SAO employees recently sat through rain and

slushed through mud to help

in the fight against cancer.
The Relay for Life event honored those who have lost the
battle to cancer and collected
funds to help those who are
now fighting for their lives.
You can read more about
the SAOs involvement in
these great causes in the
Hearings and Cheerings and
Off The Record sections. God
Bless.
~ Angela

Pulled From The Headlines

Its been a long, tough
road to justice for the family of Michael McCue. But
justice has finally been
served! A jury found
Charles Edward Pearce,
33, guilty as charged of
Murder in the First Degree
and Attempted Murder in
the First Degree.
In February 2011, Michael McCue, 42, was
working in the front yard
of his Jacksonville Beach
home when Pearce approached him. McCue,
who was a beloved former
firefighter with the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue
Department, was shot and
killed by Pearce for an
unknown reason.

Investigators pieced
together a puzzle that
showed minutes after
McCue was shot, Pearce
went about a block from
McCues home and met
up with his step-father, 58
-year-old Michael Otis.
Otis was riding his motor
scooter along 5th Avenue
North in Jacksonville
Beach when he saw
Pearce standing in the
middle of the road. As he
approached, Pearce
raised his gun and shot at
Otis, barely missing him.
Pearce then fled the scene, and the hunt for the
defendant took police
across the country. Days
after the murder, Pearce

was found in his vehicle

in Yuma, Arizona.
Pearce now faces life in
prison and will be sentenced next month.
Assistant State Attorneys Janeen Kirch and
John Guy prosecuted the
case. The McCue family
is now sharing their
thoughts on the long road
to justice and how
Janeen Kirch and John
Guy helped them find
some closure. You can
read more from the family
in the Victims Voice section on page three of the
newsletter.

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 5

PAGE 2

Justice Promised, Justice Delivered

Armed Robbery, two

counts of Agg. Assault, and
Possession Of a Firearm by
a Juvenile Delinquent
Found to Have Committed
a Felony Act. ~ASAs Peter
Overstreet and Collins
Cooper

Leon Bullard was sentenced to 65 years in prison for Attempted Murder

in the Second Degree,
Aggravated Battery and
PFCF. ~ASAs Peter Overstreet and Mai Tran
Charles E. Pearce was
convicted of Murder in
the First Degree and Attempted Murder in the
First Degree. ~ASAs
Janeen Kirch and John
Guy
Eric Muturi was sentenced to 100 years in
prison for Armed Burglary, Agg. Battery, Att.

George Williams, IV
was sentenced to life in
prison for Murder in the
First Degree and Armed
Burglary. ~ASAs Alexis
Anum and Brittany Mauerberger
Ray Mon H. Wright was
convicted of PFCF, Aggravated Assault, and Burglary

(Dwelling). ~ASA Leah

Daza

Kyle J. Walker was

found guilty of Attempted
Murder in the Second Degree and Possession of a
Firearm by a Juvenile Delinquent Found to have
Committed a Felony Act.
~ASAs Peter Overstreet
and Collins Cooper

Edwin G. Schonfeld
was convicted as charged
of two counts of Sexual
Battery and two counts of
Lewd or Lascivious Molestation. ~ASAs Anna Hixon
and Leah Daza

Hearings and Cheerings

The SAO recently joined forces with several local entities to help collect food and supplies for the Duval County Courthouses Neighbor 2 Neighbor Supply Drive. The purpose of
the drive was to help support Courthouse community neighbors by donating supplies to
nonprofits located in proximity to the Courthouse that assist those in need.
Court Administration, the Jacksonville Sheriffs Offices Courthouse Security Unit, Public
Defenders Office, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, Regional Conflict Council, and
the Florida Guardian ad Litem Program joined the SAO in the two-week supply drive organized by the Duval County Clerk of Courts.
The Neighbor 2 Neighbor supply drive succeeded in collecting
approximately 1,000 pounds of food, 400 articles of clothing and a
generous number of toys and hygiene products. These supplies
were then donated to the Clara White Mission, Nourishment Network, City Rescue Mission, Trinity Rescue Mission, Salvation Army, and the MaliVai Washington Youth Foundation.
Atruckloadoffoodtakento
theClaraWhiteMission

Special Acknowledgement Opportunity

PAGE 3

BerniedelaRiondahasbeen
partoftheSAOforover30years!
In1983,BerniejoinedtheSAO
asatrialattorneyaftergraduating
fromFloridaStateUniversityCol
legeofLaw.InMay1987,he
transferredtotheHomicideDivi
sion.

ASABerniedela
Rionda

Looking back at
this entire
experience,
Mitch says he
has a new
respect for our
office and
believes there is
a big
misconception
about the work
we do.

In1999,Berniewaspromotedto
DirectorofCircuitCourtbefore
laterbecomingtheDirectorofthe
HomicideGunUnitin2006.
BernieisnowtheSAOsSenior
ManagingDirector.

Victims Voice
Its the phone call that
nobody wants, said Mitch
McCue after learning that
his twin brother Michael had
been killed. Unfortunately,
that was also the same day
that he lost his father, who
suffered a heart attack after
receiving the devastating
news of his sons death.
From that moment forward,
life would never be the
same for the McCue family
as they began their journey
down the long road to justice.
At first, Mitch says there
were times when he questioned what was going on
with the case. He couldnt
comprehend why things
were going the way they
were and why the process
seemed to drag on so long.
But after opening statements on the first day of

trial, Mitch says everything

began to make sense to him.
As ASAs John Guy and
Janeen Kirch presented the
case, Mitch was able to see
the entire picture, and realized that there was a purpose
for the way the case progressed. Its similar to a
chess game - you dont know
what the person across the
table is doing for you. Youve
watched them move several
times but you dont comprehend why they move that
way... But in the end you understand it and why.
Finally, the trial came to an
end and Mitch and his mother
watched as Charles Edward
Pearce was convicted for the
First Degree Murder of his
brother Michael.
Although the process isnt
entirely over, gaining this
conviction has provided the

Off The Record

TeamSAOatRelayforLifeof
Riverside

Berniehastriedover250jurytrials
throughouthiscareerandhasbeen
therecipientofmanyprestigious
awards,includingtheAGACLTrial
AwardforOutstandingAdvocacyin
CapitalCases.

Recently, team SAO

participated in the American Cancer Societys
Relay for Life event. Despite the unfortunate
weather conditions, this
group of dedicated employees, along with their
family and friends, spent

the day and night walking

to help raise money for the
American Cancer Society.
Team SAO exceeded their
goal, raising $2,162!
The purpose of this
event was not only to raise
funds to help fight cancer,

McCue family with some

closure. Looking back at
this entire experience,
Mitch says he has a new
respect for our office and
believes there is a big misconception about the work
we do. He points to those
who have no idea of what it
is like to be a part of the
club - those who have lost
a loved one to murder.
They arent in our shoes
[as victims] and seeing
what work John, Janeen,
Angela and all you guys are
truly doing. Part of that
work includes a team of
people, from prosecutors to
clerical staff, who are dedicated to seeking justice for
all victims of crime!

but to also take the time

to honor those who have
survived and remember
those who have lost their
battle with cancer. The
SAO sends out a big
thank you to those who
helped in this project!

PAGE 4

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Setting the Record Straight

The duties of a prosecutor are
not simply a 9 to 5 job. These individuals work around the clock and
are dedicated to helping victims in
this community. Theres a big
misconception out there that a
prosecutors work is limited to
what happens in a courtroom. We
hope to set the record straight by
spotlighting one of the SAOs finest prosecutors - Cole Sullivan.
After interning with a civil litigation firm, Cole knew exactly what
he wanted to do he wanted to be
a prosecutor. Fresh out of law
school, Cole joined the SAO as an
Assistant State Attorney in the
County Court division.
On day one, Cole immediately began working on cases and learning the ins and outs of the office.
It was challenging at first having
to jump right in and learn everything so quickly, but our directors
and division chiefs were there to

help us and offer guidance along

the way.
Each day, Cole spends hours
meeting with victims and witnesses, doing depositions, gathering
evidence and preparing for upcoming trials. He will tell you his
job is a tough one, but he does it
because he wants to help others.
Cole says the other attorneys
that began the same time he did
have all become like family to
him. Our office really encourages
everyone to work together as a
team. We all started together from
day one. Weve learned, grown
and experienced things together
and have come to understand just
how important it is to support one
another.
Now that Cole has some experience under his belt, he has
learned how much hard work really pays off. As a new attorney,
Cole says it can be a little intimi-

www.sao4th.com

dating to try a case against an

attorney with years of trial experience. But to succeed in gaining
justice for the victim is what pushes him to continue to work hard
and do the best job he can do.
This job is better than what I
could have ever imagined.
Coles advice to anyone considering becoming a prosecutor is to
come in ready to work hard and
learn a lot. He says that while it
may be stressful at times, it is
important to remember to stay
focused and keep working hard.
As a prosecutor, it is our job to
fight for the victims of this community and knowing that the work
we do can have a positive impact
on their lives is what makes this
job so rewarding.