PANAMA CITY BEACH -- Community contributions have helped the Beach Police Department attain a mobile command center after needing one for well over a decade, officials said Tuesday.

PCBPD announced the addition of a Mobile Command Center, a 2005 Coachman Cross Country Motor Coach, which is stationed at 17110 Firenzo Ave., to its fleet Tuesday. A former FEMA disaster response vehicle, the Mobile Command Center was damaged and placed on the U.S. General Services Administration website in Massachusetts before local businesses helped police acquire it through free labor and donated funds, police said.

Beach RV donated free labor to fix it up and the Hilton Corporation/Holiday Inn Resort donated funds to attain the Mobile Command Center.
 

PANAMA CITY — Two West Virginia women wanted for parts they played in an armed robbery and shooting in their home state have been arrested after being found in a Panama City motel.

Police had been looking for Telisa McCauley, 22, and Alisyn Proctor, 19, in connection with an Aug. 14 armed robbery of the Kanawha City Foodland in West Virginia. A 44-year-old female clerk was shot in the exchange, and the two women were believed to be in the getaway car that helped the suspected gunmen flee the scene.
At the time of their arrest, McCauley and Proctor had a large amount of cash on them, suspected to be part of the take from the robbery, police said.

McCauley and Proctor were staying in room 16 of the Star Motel at 836 Harrison Ave. where U.S. Marshals arrested them at about 8 p.m. Tuesday on charges of being fugitives from justice. Panama City Police, who assisted in the arrests, said the two were apprehended without incident.

Police said they believe the two women were in the getaway car that took John Proctor III and others from a grocery store after Proctor and a 17-year-old boy held up the West Virgina store. John Proctor, brother of Alisyn Proctor, also is charged with malicious wounding after allegedly shooting the female clerk. A criminal complaint said Alisyn Proctor and McCauley were promised $3,000 for their part in the crime.

West Virginia authorities already have arrested four suspects for a role in the crime, including two juveniles.

Police reported the clerk still was recovering from her injuries Wednesday.

McCauley and Proctor were being held in the Bay County Jail on Wednesday. According to arrest records, the state of West Virginia will extradite the two.
 

PANAMA CITY — Police have arrested a 13-year-old and charged him with multiple burglaries, including a home break-in in which firearms were stolen, officials announced Wednesday.

The Panama City Police Department took 13-year-old Dontaye Lamar White, of Panama City, to the Department of Juvenile Justice Center on Sunday at about 10 p.m. on three counts of felony burglary.

Police arrested the juvenile after receiving calls about two boys on bicycles pulling on car door handles at Glenn Cove Nursing Pavilion, 1027 E. U.S. Business 98, but the young White — identified by the sombrero he was wearing —previously was wanted for a string of school burglaries.

White had a pickup order out on him for his alleged involvement in several school burglaries, police said. At the time of his arrest, White had several stolen items on him that he told officers he found in a backpack on the side of the road, police reported.

“At that point, we didn’t know about the vehicle burglaries because this call was about two kids pulling on handles,” said Richard Thore, PCPD spokesman. “So the items were placed in evidence until the owner could be identified.”

Police found a black and gold Bugatti cigar case with one cigar, a black and gold cutter and butane lighter on White, along with several other tools of the cigar aficionado trade.

The following day, officers got a call about a theft from a vehicle on East Fifth Street. The victim stated both of her vehicles had been broken into and multiple items were taken. The items matched those found on White the night before, Thore said.

White initially was arrested because he had a juvenile pickup order for his arrest, due to his alleged involvement in multiple school burglaries in Panama City and Springfield. Several juveniles were arrested for a string of break-ins at several schools, including the Margaret K. Lewis school for the mentally disabled. Police estimated the total cost of damage and property taken from the schools to be about $50,000.

White, 12 at the time, was among the eight arrested in May for the burglaries.

Police also connected White with an Aug. 13 burglary of a residence on West 21st Court, where seven firearms were stolen. Another juvenile, 17-year-old Jordan A. King, was arrested and six of the seven guns had been accounted for after a Drake Avenue resident reported a group of juveniles running through his backyard dropped a bag of firearms.

Detectives attempted to make contact with White the next day for questioning in that burglary, but he fled on a bicycle. Police said they saw him throw a bag down during the pursuit, but lost sight of him, when he abandoned the bike and fled on foot. In the bag detectives discovered the seventh and final firearm taken in the West 21st Court burglary.

White’s bicycle and sombrero were confiscated.

Attempts by The News Herald to contact White’s mother were unsuccessful Wednesday.
Police said they also could not reach his mother because White said he did not know a contact number.
 

PANAMA CITY BEACH — Police are investigating the death of a Kentucky man after officers pulled him from the Gulf of Mexico, officials reported Wednesday.

The incident is the first water-related death in an unusually tame summer season for Panama City Beach, and investigations into the death have been turned over to the criminal division.

Eyewitnesses saw 59-year-old Thomas Jerry Bickett, of Elizabeth Town, Ky., paddle out about 50 yards into the Gulf behind Gulf Highlands, 10997 Front beach Road, Tuesday at about 7:40 p.m. Bickett disappeared into the water and eyewitnesses gathered on the beach called authorities. When police arrived a short time later, Bickett was floating face down near the shoreline behind Casa Blanca Motel, 11115 Front Beach Road, according to police reports.

Efforts to resuscitate Bickett were unsuccessful. He was pronounced dead at the scene 32 minutes later.

Police said Bickett was seen entering the water with a noodle float. He paddled out about 50 yards into the water before eyewitnesses looked away for a moment, and then he was gone, according to police reports.

The crowd of Panama City Beach residents and visitors from Arkansas spotted the noodle in the Gulf but could not see Bickett from the shore. The noodle floated up onto the beach, but Bickett was nowhere to be seen.

Police arrived a short time later and immediately noticed a man floating face down near the shoreline west of the eyewitnesses. Officers rushed into the water, pulled Bickett onto land and began CPR compressions until EMS arrived. When EMS arrived, Bickett was pulled further onto the shore but was pronounced dead at 8:12 p.m., police reported.

The incident comes a week before the unofficial close to the summer season for Panama City Beach. Chief Drew Whitman said it’s the first water-related death in waters along the city limits.

“We had a couple pulled out at the beginning of summer when the water was a little more rough,” Whitman said. “But this is the first time we’ve lost someone.”

The medical examiner’s office will be investigating the exact cause of Bickett’s death. The contents of his room at Bikini Beach Motel, 11001 Front Beach Road, were turned over to criminal investigators under suspicion his death might have been suicide, Whitman said.

The officer who pulled Bickett from the Gulf and tried to revive him had trespassed Bickett from a Holiday Inn earlier Tuesday. Whitman said Bickett had been drinking alcohol and told the officer he “planned on checking out,” which Whitman said could have been a veiled reference to suicide rather than checking out of the motel room.

Investigators compiled video of surf conditions and photos of the yellow flags on display, police reported.
 

PANAMA CITY — The local branch of the Social Security office was evacuated after an irate caller prompted concerns of an attack on the building, police confirmed Wednesday.

Police arrested Johnathon Mathew Garrett, 36, of Panama City, and the case has been turned over to the FBI, police said.

The Panama City Police Department evacuated the local Social Security Administration Office, 97 Oak Ave., at about 9 a.m. Wednesday after information of a bomb threat or threat of attack was relayed from the Tallahassee office, officials said.

Garrett allegedly had an issue with the amount of his Social Security check and became irate with the operator. At some point the caller indicated he would undertake action against the Panama City branch. The operator became concerned and relayed the message for employees to evacuate the building, officials said.

PCPD secured the perimeter of the building and Garrett was later taken into custody at his home at 2417 E. 34th Place. Garrett grabbed the two detectives and attempted to strike them several times. At one point, Garrett reached around one of the detectives in an attempt to grab his weapon, police said. He was charged with two counts of resisting officers with violence. To receive Social Security, address information is often submitted to authorities.

FBI investigators are looking into the bomb threat charges.
 

PANAMA CITY — The Florida Supreme Court rejected an appeal from a man on death row who killed a Panama City Beach officer during Spring Break nine years ago.

Robert J. Bailey, of Wisconsin, was indicted for first-degree murder in the March 2005 shooting death of Sgt. Kevin Scott Kight. Bailey was sentenced to lethal injection after jurors found him guilty and has challenged the decision up to the Florida Supreme Court before the court’s finding Thursday.

Bailey said his counsel did not prevent juror bias, violated his constitutional rights and failed to highlight his mental deficiencies.

But the state court upheld district appeal courts’ conclusions and threw out the appeal.
“We reject Bailey’s three claims raised in this appeal in which he alleges ineffective assistance of trial counsel,” the court found.

Bailey also challenged his defense attorney’s choice of an expert witness to testify he had mental retardation issues, but the court also shot down that complaint.

“There is competent, substantial support within the post conviction evidentiary record for the circuit court’s conclusion that Bailey’s trial lawyers’ actions were part of reasonable trial strategy, and the circuit court did not err in reaching this conclusion,” the ruling stated.

By a vote of 11-1, the jury recommended the death penalty.

Bailey also argued the state’s lethal injection procedure was unconstitutional, which was rejected.

The crime
“Panama Beach, I been shot,” were Kight’s last communication over police radios on March 27, 2005.
The day before, Bailey — 22 years old at the time — and two other men started out on an alcohol and marijuana-filled trek from Chicago to Florida to look for women at Spring Break. The three drove through the night to Pensacola, but once they arrived, they learned Hurricane Ivan had damaged the beaches in Pensacola significantly. After eating lunch at a restaurant, they drove to Panama City Beach and checked into the Sugar Sands Motel on Front Beach Road. They met a few men from Kentucky, drank some more, and went with them to a nearby bar.

After some time had passed, Bailey and D’Tori Crawford, one of his passengers, left the bar to pick up girls. Traffic was bumper-to-bumper and slow moving before Bailey stopped completely to talk to some girls. He did not notice that traffic had begun to move until Kight pulled them over.

Kight requested Bailey’s driver’s license and left to run his information. At that point, Bailey started to panic and told Crawford that he did not have a valid license and had a parole violation. Bailey then reached under the driver’s seat to retrieve a handgun, placing it under his right leg. Bailey’s face was red, and he had tears in his eyes.

Kight walked back to Bailey’s truck, removing his handcuffs from his belt. Bailey stuck his gun out of the window and fired it three times. Two of the bullets hit the officer, and the other bullet hit a passing van and lodged in the door of the van. Bailey sped off in his vehicle, while Kight radioed dispatch.

He died en route to the hospital.

Bailey was found nearly nine hours later in a row of bushes near Sugar Sands.

PANAMA CITY — A Chipley woman who fatally stabbed her boyfriend in an American Legion parking lot pleaded no contest to manslaughter on Thursday.

Earnestine “Tina” Canuet, 65, pleaded no contest to an October 2013 stabbing incident at the Southport American Legion Post 375 at 6937 State 77, where Richard Lielasus, 68, suffered a 6-inch gash to the left side of his stomach. Lielasus died from his wounds about a month later.

The charges against Canuet were upgraded from aggravated battery with a deadly weapon to manslaughter before a doctor deemed her incompetent to proceed in February due to depression.

One witness told investigators Canuet came into the Legion’s bar Oct. 21 waving the bloodied 12-inch blade in the air, stating, “I did it; I killed him,” according to arrest records.

Circuit Court Judge Elijah Smiley ruled Canuet was competent to continue court proceedings Aug. 18, setting up Thursday’s plea to manslaughter.

State prosecutors said she was not made a plea offer.

En route to the jail after the stabbing charge, Canuet was in hysterics, making several outbursts, according to arrest records.

“He broke my heart,” she said. “He told me to suck it up and get over it; I don’t know why I did it but I just did, and I’ve never hurt anyone before.”

Court records indicate Canuet does not have a history of violence, which could effect the penalty she receives. She was released on bond and scheduled for sentencing in October.

PANAMA CITY — A Panama City man faces new charges after authorities say he threatened to blow up federal offices located in the Panhandle city.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the new charges Friday against Johnathon Mathew Garrett, 38.

He allegedly called the Social Security Administration offices angrily several times Wednesday and used profanity. Officials said he told an employee during one call that he was going to “come down there” and “blow” the building up. The call triggered the evacuation of the office, and a bomb detection and disposal team responded and searched the area.

Garrett eventually was arrested at his home after a struggle with law enforcement, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office news release. He originally was charged with two counts of resisting arrest with violence, but now faces a federal charge of giving false information to the Social Security Administration.

He could face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine if he is convicted of the charges.

The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Panama City Police Department and Bay County Sheriff’s Office.

PANAMA CITY — The headlines sounded far-fetched, but it happened.

A 39-year-old firing range instructor died last week when a 9-year-old girl fired an Uzi and the recoil caused fatal fire to hit the instructor in the head.

Reports said the instructor was standing beside the girl when she squeezed the trigger, highlighting a questionable procedure with deadly consequences in this case.

“We have several kids that come in and shoot the machine gun,” said Bill Lake, shooting instructor at Jay’s Guns & Accessories in Panama City. “We actually have the machine gun tethered where it can’t flip up like it did with the girl.”

The incident in Arizona garnered a national reaction from people angry and bewildered by the idea of a young child handling a submachine gun. For others, it did little to shake the notion that children should be allowed to handle guns for the purpose of teaching gun safety.

“What happened was tragic,” Lake said, adding that he can’t speak for what the instructor was doing at the time of the accident.

Jay’s Guns no longer has an Uzi in use. Their most popular machine gun is the HK MP5.

Lake said their policy is children must be 12 or older to fire a machine gun in the range. Although machine guns are secured to prevent unwanted movement while firing, he said their instructors always have a hand on the gun as children shoot.

“Even with older adults we will actually have our hands on their gun to make sure nothing happens,” he said.

Lake said age restrictions on shooting other types of firearms are made at the parent’s discretion.

“That’s the parent’s choice to decide if it’s safe for their child to use a firearm. As long as they’re being safe about it, we have no objections,” he said.

Lake said a lot of parents bring their children in to learn how to shoot for hunting or how to be safe around firearms in the home.

“From the tragedy that’s happened, I think the best thing I can do is point parents to tools to be safe,” said Bill Cline, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission’s section leader for hunter safety and public shooting ranges. The FWC has information parents can use to discuss basic gun safety with children available on its website.

Junior shooters soon will have a new place to practice gun safety as the first phase of construction on the Bay County Shooting Park winds down. The park was designed to practice shooting for sport and personal protection.

Cline said fully automatic firearms will not be allowed on the county’s new range, and the County Commission plans to implement a policy requiring a 2-second delay between shots.

With over 90 million guns in the U.S., Cline said the chances of a child encountering one at some point are pretty fair. He said parents can help their child prepare for that moment by telling them “to stop, don’t touch and tell an adult” if they see a firearm.

Lake started training his son and three daughters how to handle guns at age 5. He feels strongly children should have a basic understanding of gun safety to prevent deadly accidents.

“Even if you don’t have guns around the house, you never know what’s in the neighbor’s house,” he said. “If a child finds a firearm that’s unattended” and has been educated in gun safety, “you know they’ll be safe because they know what it’s capable of.” 

PANAMA CITY BEACH -- A Panama City Beach mobile home was destroyed after a fire broke out Sunday night.

Bay County Fire officials responded to the home on Big Daddy Drive in the unincorporated area of Panama City Beach around 11 p.m. after neighbors reported the blaze.

No one was in the structure when the fire occurred, and no one was injured in the incident. The investigation has been turned over to the State Fire Marshal’s Office. 

PANAMA CITY — A district court has dismissed an appeal from a man convicted of armed robbery and murder who argued the trial court violated his rights by playing a jailhouse phone conversation before jurors.

Markel Latrae Bass challenged his 2012 conviction for second-degree murder of a drug dealer because prosecutors played a jailhouse phone call for jurors in which he discussed with his mother accepting 15 years in prison rather than 20. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Bass said playing the recording was an abuse of discretion, but the state argued the comments implied consciousness of guilt and were not protected plea negotiations.

“If the conversation was with me or law enforcement, I’d agree with all of that,” prosecutor Bob Sombathy said. “But not with his mama at the jail on a phone call.”

Bass declined the offer of 20 years mandatory and eventually went to trial. Before playing the recording, defense attorneys argued the discussion was in connection with a plea offer and inadmissible in court. However, the court allowed the conversation to be played in trial and during Sombathy’s closing arguments.

The 1st District Court of Appeal agreed with the trial court’s decision to admit the recording and concluded it was not an abuse of discretion, according to the court’s published opinion.

Although an offer was pending, Bass was relating a conversation to his mother about the discussion he had with his attorney and “was simply responding to his mother’s query about how long a sentence he would be ‘willing to take,’ ” the court found, citing Bass’ rejection of the offer and forthcoming jury trial.

All jailhouse phone calls are recorded, and since the conversation was not with someone capable of negotiating the plea offer, the court dropped the appeal.

“At best, (Bass’) statements expressed what he hoped to get from the state, but no counteroffer had been communicated at that point; nor, it appears, was one forthcoming,” the court found. 

PANAMA CITY BEACH — The Bay County Sheriff’s Office has issued a scam alert after a man bilked a local convenience store out of nearly $3,000 in a phone scam involving a prepaid debit card.
A press release said deputies responded Tuesday morning to a store on Thomas Drive to document calls and interview clerks after receiving numerous complaints that a man had been calling Tom Thumb Stores around the city over the past week claiming to be a store or district manager.
The caller sometimes identified himself as “Richard” or didn’t give a name and hung up if clerks questioned him.
Over the weekend, one clerk didn’t realize the call was a scam and followed the man’s instructions to activate a Green Dot prepaid debit card. He defrauded the store out of about $3,000 in the incident.
The release said Green Dot cards are often used in phone scams, and anyone who receives a call requesting activation should question the caller thoroughly and verify the call to be legitimate.
 

PANAMA CITY BEACH — Panama City Beach firefighters were still at work managing small patches of fire on Wednesday afternoon in a smoke-filled wooded lot off Churchwell Drive and Middle Beach Road in the aftermath of a brush fire.

Panama City Beach Police and Fire Rescue responded to reports of the fire just after 11 p.m. on Tuesday. Reports said fire crews worked throughout the night to manage the steadily growing blaze with portable brush trucks that carry 300 gallons of water each.

Larry Couch of PCB Fire Rescue said the fire is under control and not expected to flare up again, but firefighters will remain at the scene to monitor hot spots at risk of reigniting in dry conditions.
The cause of the fire is still being investigated. A campsite was found on the property.
 

PANAMA CITY — Police have arrested a suspect in connection with the death of a man found in the trunk of a car last month.

Panama City Police charged Dontavis Terrell Thomas with accessory after the fact to homicide.

Thomas already had been charged with robbery on July 30 for his role in an alleged plot to rob Tavish Greene, whose body was discovered in the trunk of a car parked in the yard of a vacant home at 526 E. Eighth Court on July 24. An autopsy found he died of multiple gunshot wounds.

Darryl Mack, 22, and 20-year-old Tyricka Woullard, both of Panama City, also have been arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit armed robbery. They’re accused of working together to lure Greene to a residence to rob him of drugs and money. Mack also is charged with possession of a firearm by a felon.

Mack and Woullard allegedly planned to rob Greene on July 19, and they went to Georgia the following day. The last time anyone saw Greene alive was July 18.

Green had been expected to testify for the prosecution in the case against Khiry Ross and Marcus Mathis, who are charged with the shooting death of 19-year-old Jshun Smith outside a nightclub about a month before Greene’s body was discovered. Greene was driving Smith away from a gunfight when Smith was hit and tumbled from the car.

Greene, 24, had received death threats, but officials have said his killing is not related to witnessing Smith’s death.

Panama City Police spokesman Officer Richard Thore declined to reveal what police learned that led to the new charge against Thomas. No one has been charged with killing Greene, but police still are investigating and expect to level additional charges in the future.

PANAMA CITY — Police are investigating the death of an unidentified man found floating in the St. Andrews Bay Wednesday morning, but they don't suspect foul play.

Detectives and crime scene investigators with the Panama City Police Department were called to the southeast foot of the Hathaway Bridge around 8:20 a.m., where they saw a figure submerged about 30 feet from the seawall. Panama City Fire Department personnel assisted in bringing to body to shore.

Police said the body was that of a man in his 60s or 70s, and detectives were working to identify him. There are indications the man's death was the result of suicide, though police don't believe he threw himself off the bridge, said officer Richard Thore.

An earleir version of this story is posted below:

PANAMA CITY — Police are investigating after a man's body was pulled from the bay Wednesday morning.

The body was found behind No Name Lounge at the foot of the Hathaway Bridge off U.S. 98. The body was a white male, but police would not release any other information about the identification of the body, which has been taken to the Medical Examiner's Office.

Check back later for updates

PANAMA CITY — Panama City Police Thursday announced the arrest of a man suspected of beating his girlfriend with a metal rod.

Michael Tyson, 31, was arrested Wednesday on charges of domestic battery by strangulation and aggravated battery stemming from allegations he choked his girlfriend and hit her in the face with a metal rod.

The victim called police to a residence on the 3100 block of West 20th Court on Aug. 19. She was bleeding badly from a severe gash and damage to her nasal cartilage that resulted from the alleged beating.

She told police she and Tyson had been arguing when he threw her on a bed and choked her until she couldn't breathe. She escaped, but he pursued her into the living room where he smashed her face with a metal rod from the bathroom, according to PCPD.

Detectives called him later that day, and Tyson agreed to speak with them, but he didn't show up and police obtained warrants for his arrest.

Local, state and federal law enforcement agencies tracked Tyson down Wednesday at a home on the 1600 block of Fountain Avenue.

PANAMA CITY — Police arrested the man they believe pulled the trigger on a man found dead in the trunk of a car in July.

Panama City Police announced a second-degree murder charge against Darryl Mack and a principal to second-degree murder charge against Tyricka Woullard on Thursday, just a day after Dontavis Thomas was charged with accessory after fact to homicide in the July slaying of 24-year-old Tavish Greene.

Law enforcement had been investigating Greene’s suspicious disappearance when, on July 24, his body was found in the trunk of a car in the yard of a vacant house at 526 E. Eighth Court. He’d been shot several times.

Mack, Woullard and Thomas already had been arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit armed robbery for an alleged scheme to lure Greene to a residence and rob him of cash and drugs. Mack also was charged with possession of a firearm by a felon.

Panama City Police Department spokesman Officer Richard Thore would not disclose whether Mack’s gun was the one used to shoot Greene. The case still is being investigated, and releasing details of an ongoing investigation likely would complicate efforts to prosecute Mack, Woullard and Thomas, he said.

Although police continue to investigate Greene’s death, Thore said he believed all the people responsible for shooting him had been arrested and charged Thursday.

PARKER — Parker Police are searching for a shoplifting and burglary suspect.

On Aug. 22, he Parker Police Department responded to a shoplifter call at the Dollar General store. Upon arrival, officers discovered the subject had fled the store and was not located. The following day, the man returned to the store and police made contact with the subject in the store. As the subject was led out by police he fled on foot from officers. The subject was able to elude police.

A short time later the unknown subject burglarized a home in a nearby neighborhood. The subject entered the home and was discovered by a 10-year-old child. The child was unharmed. The subject is still at large.

If anyone has any information on this subject, contact the Parker Police Department at 871-4100. Policed released a photo of the suspect that can be seen by clicking the link to the left of this article.

PANAMA CITY — David Ian Challender pleaded guilty Friday to the murder, robbery and burglary of an elderly Lynn Haven man and was sentenced to three consecutive life terms in prison.

Challender, 28, was the last of three people to resolve their case in the torture and murder of 90-year-old Wallace Scott the night of April 4, 2013.

Kevin Gene Jeffries and Challender killed Scott in his home while trying to get his ATM PIN. Scott was strangled to death and the two men, along with Ashley Nicole Griffin, 29, made off with guns, a clock and cash.

Challender’s plea spared him from a possible death sentence. He pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, burglary of a dwelling while armed and armed robbery. Circuit Judge Brantley Clark Jr. sentenced him to three life terms without the possibility of parole.

Challender was arrested at his father’s Caryville home in April of last year, bringing a close to a manhunt for the three suspects accused of Scott’s violent death.

Scott was bound and tortured in the trio’s effort to get the man’s PIN, but he refused to give up the information before being murdered and then robbed April 4, 2013 at his Lynn Haven home.

Jeffries, 29, was convicted at trial and a jury recommended he be executed for his part in the crime. His sentencing is scheduled for later this year. Griffin has pleaded guilty to second degree murder for her role in the slaying. She faces life in prison during her sentencing, scheduled for October.

APALACHICOLA — State Attorney Willie Meggs last week brought legal closure to the April 3 killing of Charles “Bubba’ Fasbenner, agreeing with Franklin County Sheriff Mike Mock that the homeowner had the right to use deadly force when the intoxicated 20-year-old walked into an Apalachicola front yard and advanced on the homeowner after being warned to leave.

In an Aug. 25 letter to Mock, Meggs said he believed “this homicide to be justified” after reviewing the sheriff’s investigative files, which included witness interviews and autopsy findings.

“Florida Statute … provides that a homeowner can defend his home, self, and others under this factual scenario,” Meggs wrote. “I commend your department for a detailed and thorough investigation.”

In a three-paragraph summation based on his review of an extensive case file prepared by Detective Brett Johnson, Meggs recounted that Fasbenner entered the front gate of a fenced yard at 277 Timothy Simmons Road, where he was confronted by 24-year-old Ronald Joseph “R.J.” Page, who lives there with his mother, Joanna Page.

Toxicology reports showed Fasbenner’s blood alcohol level was 0.31, about four times the legal limit for driving. The drug screen also found a presence of hydrocodone, acetaminophen and methadone.

“Apparently, due to Mr. Fasbenner’s high level of intoxication, (he) did not respond and moved towards the homeowner,” wrote Meggs. “The homeowner had fired a warning shot into the ground near Mr. Fasbenner and rather than leaving the yard, Mr. Fasbenner started climbing the steps as evidenced by his blood on the second step.”

The blood on the porch steps was significant, given that the law defines a dwelling as “including any attached porch.” The law says “a person who unlawfully and by force enters or attempts to enter a person’s dwelling, residence or occupied vehicle is presumed to be doing so with the intent to commit an unlawful act involving force or violence.”

But those findings do not sit well with Fasbenner’s family, which is led by Buddy Wayne and Carolyn Butler, who live in a Pine Drive home where their grandson, who they raised from infancy, was likely returning the night he was killed.

“This is a cold-blooded murder,” said Buddy Wayne Butler, never raising his voice. “That’s as cold-blooded as you can get. I don’t care what the conclusion was.

Page’s mother said neither she nor her son wanted to comment.

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