FROM THE DESK OF STATE ATTORNEY BILL GLADSON
(Fifth Judicial Circuit, FL) Recently, an Orlando media outlet reported that the Ninth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s non-arrest policy was influenced by the policy in the Fifth Judicial Circuit. To infer that their policy is comparable to mine is misleading. The policy utilized by our office was implemented during the height of Covid, following nearly […]
SUMTER MAN INDICTED FOR MURDER OF GIRLFRIEND
(Sumter County, FL) Yesterday, State Attorney Bill Gladson announced the grand jury indictment of 47-year-old Brian William Decot, paramour of the victim. A grand jury was convened to determine whether there was sufficient evidence to charge Decot for his role in the death of 54-year-old Tracy Jean Miller. The grand jury returned a true bill […]
LAKE COUNTY COUPLE INDICTED FOR MURDER OF CHILD
(Lake County, FL) Yesterday, State Attorney Bill Gladson announced the grand jury indictment of 37-year-old Kimberly Mills, mother of the victim, and 36-year-old Andre Walker, paramour of Mills. A grand jury was convened to determine whether there was sufficient evidence to charge both Mills and Walker for their roles in the death of 10-year-old Xavier […]
CITRUS WOMAN SENTENCED TO 27 YEARS FOR TRAFFICKING FENTANYL
(Citrus County, FL) Today, seven-time convicted felon 41-year-old Heather Lynne Duarte-Wright was sentenced to 27 years in the Florida Department of Corrections for Trafficking in Fentanyl and Possession of Paraphernalia. Duarte-Wright was found guilty by a jury after her trial back in January of this year. “Fentanyl continues to claim lives in our community, making […]
GUILTY VERDICT FOR MOUNT DORA MAN IN CAPITAL SEX BATTERY CASE
(Lake County, FL) Earlier this week, jurors found 38-year-old Richard Michael Hutcheson, of Mount Dora, guilty of Capital Sexual Battery upon a child just an hour into deliberations after hearing both the defense and state during trial. After his conviction, Judge James R. Baxley sentenced Hutcheson to life in prison. Hutcheson was convicted of Capital […]
FRAZIARS CONVICTED OF TRAFFICKING COCAINE AFTER 10-MINUTE JURY DELIBERATION
(Marion County, FL) On Tuesday, March 11, 2025, 64-year-old Frederick Leon Fraziars was found guilty of Trafficking in Cocaine and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Jurors deliberated for roughly 10 minutes, after hearing expert testimony and examining evidence presented during the trial, before rendering their verdict. After the verdict was read, Judge Timothy T. McCourt sentenced […]
TWENTY-THREE-TIME CONVICTED FELON SENTENCED TO FIFTY YEARS FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING
(Marion County, FL) On Thursday, March 6, 2025, the day after 43-year-old Santini Antwain Chisholm’s trial commenced, jurors found the twenty-three-time convicted felon guilty on all five counts of drug-trafficking-related offenses. After his conviction, Judge Barbara Kissner-Kwatkosky sentenced Chisholm to fifty years in prison. Chisholm was charged and convicted of Armed Trafficking in Fentanyl, two […]
KOWANKO CONVICTED OF TRAFFICKING NARCOTICS
(Citrus County, FL) In Judge Joel D. Fritton’s courtroom last week, 50-year-old Robert Paul Kowanko was found guilty by a jury on trafficking illicit narcotics charges stemming from his 2023 arrest. Kowanko was convicted of Trafficking in Methamphetamine, Trafficking in Cocaine, Unlawful Use of a Two-way Communications Device, and Possession of Paraphernalia. Kowanko was remanded […]
BAILEY GUILTY OF LEESBURG GAS STATION MURDER
(Lake County, FL) Last week, 22-year-old Kenneth Dalon Bailey entered a plea of guilty to the charge of Second-Degree Murder for the 2024 murder of 87-year-old Clarence Harold Ervin. Judge Cary Rada sentenced Bailey to 45 years in the Florida Department of Corrections. “Despite his young age, this defendant made the choice that led to […]
SANTIAGO ENTERS OPEN PLEA TO THE COURT AHEAD OF FELONY TRIAL FOR BURGLARY
(Citrus County, FL) Earlier this morning, 40-year-old Ashley Jerome Oliver Santiago entered an open plea to the Court before Judge Joel D. Fritton just minutes before jurors were scheduled to hear the state’s evidence against the defendant. Santiago was charged with two counts of Burglary of a Structure, two counts of Felony Petit Theft, and […]