Mar 04, 2021 By Gary Blankenship Senior Editor Top Stories
11th Circuit State Attorney, justice reform commission back the legislation
Katherine Fernandez Rundle
A grass-roots justice reform group begun by the 11th Circuit State Attorney’s Office is backing legislation calling for better training of police to de-escalate potentially violent confrontations and limiting the use of choke holds.
The Continuing Criminal Justice Reform Commission, set up by State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle in December, has won sponsorship for the legislation (SB 1970 and HB 1513) from Sen. Jason Pizzo, D-Miami, chair of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee. Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez, R-Miami, will be co-sponsoring.
The 5th District Court of Appeal has denied a request by prosecutors to reconsider a ruling which would allow Travis Archer, the man who killed Ponce the dog, to own animals again.
The appeals court in a split decision released Dec. 18 struck down a ruling by Circuit Judge Sandra Upchurch prohibiting Archer from ever owning animals again.
The Attorney General s Office, which handles appeals of such cases, had filed a motion supported by prosecutors asking for a rehearing on the issue.
Archer’s defense attorney, Aaron Delgado, responded in a text message Friday that he hoped the appeals court s decision to not rehear the case would end the matter.
Death investigation – Chipley Bugle chipleybugle.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from chipleybugle.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Alachua County grand jury indicts two for murder
A Gainesville man was indicted Thursday on murder and other charges for the shooting death of a his girlfriend and their infant on Dec. 4, the Eighth Circuit State Attorney’s Office reported in a news release.
Kivi Jacquis Ellis, 26, was indicted for two counts of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, two counts of child abuse and resisting arrest without violence.
The grand jury also indicted Brandon Michael Martin, 31, for first-degree murder, grand theft of a motor vehicle and tampering with physical evidence in the death of his former girlfriend, the release states.
A judge will allow prosecutors to present crucial evidence in the trial of three family members accused of killing St. Cloud woman Nicole Montalvo, rejecting the arguments of defense attorneys who claimed that the family’s properties were improperly searched.