Mark Ashmun Brown of Sarasota, Florida, was sentenced to 17.5 years in federal prison for possession and distribution of child pornography. The court also ordered Brown to forfeit his hard drive and a laptop computer that he used in committing the offenses. Brown pleaded guilty to the charges earlier this year.
After an extensive investigation by several law enforcement agencies, authorities identified Brown and a subsequent search of his laptop computer and external hard drive confirmed that he was using the screen name to possess and distribute child pornography using a wireless connection. His main access point was a yacht named “Aloan at Last,” which was docked at Marina Jack in Sarasota.
According to U.S. District Judge Richard A. Lazarra’s court documents, Brown, 52, used various online aliases to distribute child pornography on the Internet. Brown’s distribution network attracted the attention of several undercover investigations from multiple agencies.
A search of Brown’s laptop computer and external hard drive showed that he possessed more than 5,000 images of child pornography and almost 1,000 videos of child pornography.
A Collier County Florida judge will hear arguments on whether Florida’s DUI law is unconstitutional.
A Naples-based DUI attorney says the law should be thrown out because it violates drivers’ rights by denying them access to information on breath-test machines that have been instrumental in thousands of DUI convictions.
The judge’s decision could affect more than 400 pending DUI cases in Collier, 1,400 in Lee and thousands throughout the state.
Case reversals would not automatically happen since the appeals process could take years and there is a possibility the law could be amended before the process is complete.
The breath-test machines used in South Florida have been scrutinized more and more by DUI attorneys since one DUI lawyer was successful last month in persuading a judge to rule a machine in Sarasota County as unreliable. The judge ordered prosecutors to send letters about the problem to dozens of DUI lawyers and their clients who were tested on the same machine.
During the Dec. 1 hearing, Collier County Judge Vincent Murphy is scheduled to consider the constitutionality issue Florida’s breath machines in Sarasota County.
An expert hired in the Venice cases to analyze the state’s data on Florida’s Intoxilyzer 8000 breath test machines said a lack of information about how the machine works hurts defendants and their attorneys.
Prosecutors have decided not to use alcohol breath-test results in about 100 current DUI cases in Sarasota and Manatee counties after learning about problematic Intoxilyzer 8000 breath-test machines.
The 12th Circuit State Attorney’s Office reviewed DUI cases this week and will send letters notifying defendants who were tested on five Intoxilyzer 8000s that the machines were not working properly and therefore the breath-test results will not be used as evidence against them.
Prosecutors will still pursue DUI charges in those cases where there is other evidence the driver was impaired.
But the lack of breath-test results could mean dropped charges and better plea deals for some drunk driving suspects.
“It doesn’t mean this is the end of those cases, just we’ll be prosecuting them without the breath tests,” said Assistant State Attorney Spencer Rasnake, supervisor of the division that prosecutes most DUI cases.
The flawed breath-test results play a role in about one of every three pending DUI cases in Sarasota County, and just a handful of cases in Manatee County.
The state attorney’s office started reviewing cases the day after the Herald-Tribune reported this week that drivers across Florida have been arrested and convicted of DUI charges based on flawed Intoxilyzer 8000s that reported impossible results.
For instance, the machine at Sarasota County’s South County jail in Venice had reported that some drivers — who have a maximum lung capacity of about five liters — blew 10, 11 or even 12 liters of breath into the machine. That improper sample size can taint the results, experts say.
The problematic machines stayed in service, unquestioned, possibly for as long as five years because state officials never tested a key component or performed mandatory reviews of every breath test.
Inspectors in the process of checking every machine in the state this year have found that about 40 percent of 231 machines checked so far were incorrectly measuring the flow of breath into the Intoxilyzer 8000.
In July, inspectors found four of the six machines in Sarasota County and one of the four machines in Manatee County were incorrectly measuring the flow of breath into the Intoxilyzer 8000.
Continue reading “100 Sarasota/Manatee DUI Cases Dropped” »
A 60-year-old man surrendered to sheriff’s deputies who tracked him down after he reportedly threatened people with a gun while claiming to be a police officer.
Ronald S., of the 4500 block of Hidden View Place in Sarasota, faces a charge of impersonating a police officer.
Deputies arrested him Friday night after a couple on DeSoto Road complained that a man in a red Ford Mustang had been driving erratically, passed them at a high rate of speed and abruptly stopped his car in front of their vehicle.
The couple claimed the man got out of the Mustang and screamed that he was a police officer. They say that, when they asked to see his badge, the man lifted his shirt to reveal a handgun in a holster and said, “This is all I need.”
The couple gave deputies a tag number for the Mustang. Deputies reported that they found Ronald at his home, where he answered the door with his hands over his head. Deputies reported that Ronald has a valid concealed weapons permit.
As you probably know, this is a very serious crime. Anyone charged with impersonating a police officer or a related crime should promptly contact a Sarasota criminal attorney to discuss their legal options.
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The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office is continuing its search for leads in the attempted kidnapping incident reported Sept. 5 at 6703 Midnight Pass Road.
Public Information Officer Wendy Rose said Tuesday detectives have been checking footage from surveillance cameras in the area.
The 12-year-old victim, whose name was withheld, was walking to her family’s vacation home when the suspect reportedly grabbed her from behind. The victim resisted, and the suspect fled the area. Patrol and K-9 units were used to search for the suspect, but they had no success that morning.
The victim described the suspect as a white male, about 25 to 35, about 6 feet, 1 inch tall, with shaggy strawberry-blond hair and a pale complexion. He smelled of cigarette smoke, Sgt. Scott Osborne told members of the Siesta Key Village Association last week.
Anyone with information that might be helpful is asked to call Criminal Investigations at 861-4900 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers by calling 366-8477. You can also visit www.sarasotacrimestoppers.com.
Accused of a crime in Sarasota? If so, be sure to quickly contact a Sarasota criminal lawyer at Musca Law today for a free legal consultation.
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The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office launched a new map feature on its website Wednesday that allows residents to get a street view of what crime is like in their neighborhood.
“It’s important for Sheriff (Tom) Knight to provide as much transparency for the sheriff’s office and this is another way to do that,” said Sarah Kenniff, multimedia coordinator.
Citizens can search for crime statistics by type of crime, arresting agency, address and date.
“You can search by address and zoom in by street and set parameters for any type of criminal incident,” Kenniff said.
The sheriff’s office hopes this system will give Sarasota residents a better understanding of crime levels in their communities.
“The sheriff really feels it’s important to be as transparent as possible because an educated citizen can help in making the community a better place,” Kenniff said.
Continue reading “Sarasota Sheriff’s Site Zooms in on Crime” »
Statistics from the first seven months of 2011 provide an interesting picture of the community. Citizens called the Sarasota Police Department 37,559 times, or about five percent more than the same period in 2010. Total arrests were up six percent.
Major crimes dropped during the period by eight percent. These so-called “index crimes” include murder, rape, robbery, burglary, assault, battery and car theft. Felony arrests were down four percent.
Arrests for misdemeaner violations jumped 13 percent. When combined with felony arrests, the SPD made six percent more arrests in the first seven months of 2011.
Police have warned neighborhood associations for months to urge residents to lock their cars. The statistics back up their plea. For 2011 through the end of July, car burglaries are up a whopping 34 percent, with 447 cases investigated.
“Forcible sex offenses” jumped as well, to 18 cases from 12 in the same period last year. But burglaries were down by 25 percent. Capt. Paul Sutton ascribes the drop in burglaries to the apprehension of people responsible for multiple break-ins.
Continue reading “Patch: Sarasota Arrests Up, Crime Down” »
Trained dogs can really help police catch a criminal. Here are some cases in which Sarasota K-9 Search and Rescue dogs played a role:
Carlie B.
A bloodhound contributed greatly to the Sarasota County sheriff’s detectives apprehending a suspect in the 2004 abduction, rape and murder of 11-year-old Carlie.
Dogs followed Carlie’s scent until they lost it at a car wash on Bee Ridge Road. A video camera showed her being snatched at that very spot by Joseph S., who would be sentenced to death for the crime.
Denise L.
In January 2008, Sarasota K-9 discovered the body of abduction, rape and murder victim Denise L. of North Port in a shallow grave, a few miles from where a 911 caller had seen her struggling in a car driven by unemployed plumber Michael K.
Michael received a life sentence.
Continue reading “Major Cases Sarasota K-9 Helped Solve” »
The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office wrapped up Operation Meltdown, an intensive, two week effort, cracking down on metal thefts and burglaries. Authorities arrested over 60 people and recovered thousands of pounds of stolen metals.
Operation Meltdown focused on two crime patterns: The theft of large amounts of metals, like air conditioners, light poles, and home siding, which Sheriff Knight says are sold to secondary recyclers. Operation Meltdown also focused on daytime burglaries, where suspects break into homes to steal things like jewelry and other items to sell to pawn shops and gold buyers.
62 arrests, 67 felony charges, a couple of stolen vehicles and over 2000 pounds of metals recovered, Operation Meltdown was a success. “Some citizens in Sarasota County may not recognize how much this is of our crime patterns in Sarasota County, how much it affects our crime rate here in Sarasota County. It plays a significant role in our crime rate here in Sarasota,” Sarasota County Sheriff, Tom Knight.
Continue reading ““Operation Meltdown” Results in 62 Arrests” »
A 31-year-old Sarasota man has been arrested for allegedly shooting and injuring a man in a vehicle, the Sarasota Police Department reports.
Derrick W. was charged with aggravated battery and assault from a July 20 incident when a 31-year-old man was visiting with his children outside of an apartment in the 2200 block of Janie Poe Drive, a media release said.
That’s when Derrick approached the victim and began to try to fight with him.
When the victim attempted to leave the area in a vehicle driven by a woman, Derrick reportedly pulled out a black handgun and shot at the victim through the passenger window, the release said.
The bullet hit the victim in the chest, the report said. He was transported by air to Bayfront Medical Center.
An examination of the vehicle showed a bullet hole through the passenger window. Two bullet holes were observed on the passenger side of the vehicle just to the rear of the passenger door, and a fourth bullet shattered the rear window of the vehicle leaving a projectile lodged in the vehicles dashboard, the report said.
Derrick is in Sarasota County Jail.
Anyone with information concerning this investigation is asked to contact Detective Jackson at (941) 954-7070.
If you’ve too been charged with assault, battery or other crime in Sarasota, you need an attorney on your side. Contact our Sarasota criminal lawyers today to discuss your legal options, free of charge.
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