Clearwater Criminal Defense Law Blog

A St. Petersburg man was arrested without incident last week after a warrant was issued for him in the matter of the killing of another man in Jordan Park earlier this month.Police say they arrested Denzel Rashad Tarver four days after the warrant was issued against him. Authorities allege that Tarver shot Timothy Karl Davis, Jr. on May 15 near a housing complex at 11th Avenue South and 23rd Street.Although St. Petersburg police arrived at the scene around ninety seconds after the altercation, they say that Tarver had already departed by then. They began first aid upon Davis as they awaited...

A New Port Richey woman was mostly tight lipped after being arrested for an allegedly near-fatal domestic assault police say she committed last week - though they said that she did open her mouth long enough to spit at one of their number.Deputies from the Pasco County Sheriff's Office were called to a hotel on Green Key Road just west of US 19 late last Wednesday to investigate a disturbance reported in one of its rooms. They say that they encountered a man in the lobby who had been stabbed in the chest. Officers applied pressure to the wound until an ambulance arrived to stabilize the...

A former United States Air Force sergeant's death sentence for a pair of 2007 murders was overturned by the Florida Supreme Court last week thanks, in large part, to the work of Florida Board Certified Criminal Trial Attorney Bjorn Brunvand.Ralph Daniel "Ron" Wright, Jr., was stationed at MacDill Air Force Base in 2004 when he struck up a romantic relationship with Paula O'Connor of St. Petersburg. O'Connor and Wright had a child together the next year, but the child's paternity was unclear at the time due to relationships she had with other men at the time. In addition to the relationship...

A former Pinellas County sheriff's deputy went on trial last week on allegations that he stole prescription medication turned into the department for destruction and pawned his department-issued duty firearm.Steven Jared Smith is being charged with possession of hydrocodone, grand theft, and grand theft of law-enforcement equipment. The 32-year-old was arrested in mid-October immediately after his firing from the sheriff's department and released the next day after posting a $17,000 bond.According to attorneys from the state, Smith appropriated medicine brought to the department by the...

Three inmates of the Pinellas County Jail landed in the hospital after overdosing on drugs allegedly brought into the facility by one of their number.Robert Gilner was booked into jail early last week for driving under the influence and driving on a suspended or revoked license. Deputies say he acquired a white, powdery substance while in custody and shared portions of it with Jason Michael Kokotek and Jason Kyle Sandy.Kokotec, a 30-year-old from St. Petersburg, who was booked into jail on one count of felon in possession of a firearm and eight counts of drug possession, and Sandy, a...

An alleged suicidal comment led to the arrest of a Tampa man who authorities believe murdered his girlfriend.Last Saturday Hector Favio "Pops" Acevedo allegedly called his mother Maria Soto, telling her that he wished to end his own life. Police say she picked him up and brought the 24-year-old to her home, subsequently asking an off-duty sheriff's deputy to her residence for help with the situation.According to the police report, the off-duty deputy contacted deputies who were on the clock while Acevedo was sleeping. Acting under Florida's Baker Act, which allows for the involuntary...

The second time was a charm for a man first convicted six years ago for a 2006 murder, as a Pinellas County jury opted not to convict a Mississippi man again for the crime last week.Twenty-nine-year-old Hector Josue Vasquez-Padilla was first charged with the murder of Marcos Antonio Diaz in 2011. According to county prosecutors, Vasquez believed that Diaz intended to rob him of $2,000 in the course of a planned drug deal.Though the murder was determined to have occurred in May 2006, investigators had precious little evidence at their disposal. However, a break in the case came in 2008, as...

A Holiday man is accused of driving while impaired by cannabis after he allegedly struck and killed a cyclist in Hudson last week. Twenty-five-year-old Ali Hassan Hazime was driving his 2007 Ford Explorer south on U.S. 19 last Sunday evening when officers of the Florida Highway Patrol say he struck cyclist Grady Miles. According to troopers, Miles was crossing U.S. 19 on his bicycle a short distance north of the intersection of Hudson Avenue when Hazime's vehicle allegedly made contact with him. Troopers say that Grady, who was 49 years old at the time of his passing, traveled into the path...

A twenty-six-year veteran of the U.S. Navy was arrested and charged with arson and insurance fraud last week after investigators say he set fire to his home in order to claim insurance benefits. Lieutenant Nolen John Zander's home caught fire on St. Patrick's Day in 2014. Upon their arrival, Hillsborough County Fire Rescue crews say they immediately suspected that the conflagration was set intentionally due to their perception of a strong smell of gasoline. After the flames were extinguished, investigators say that several gasoline-fueled fires were set throughout the two-bedroom home in...