11-year-old girl in fake 911 texting case charged with 2 misdemeanors
Prosecutors have formally filed two misdemeanor charges in juvenile court against the 11-year-old Port Orange girl accused of sending fake 911 texts claiming her friend was abducted by an armed kidnapper.
Prosecutors filed charges of false report of a crime and misuse of the 911 system against Ava Rose Langone. She appeared with her parents and her attorney in juvenile court on Monday.
Her defense attorney, Jeremy Buckmaster, entered a plea of not guilty on her behalf.
Buckmaster said he was working with prosecutors on resolving the case and needed more time.
Circuit Judge A. Kathleen McNeilly set the next hearing for Sept. 18.
"I think that the home detention is appropriate based on her age," McNeilly said.
The 11-year-old made no statements in court as she stood between her parents, Amanda and Michael Langone, facing the judge. Her parents asked through their attorney questions regarding the terms of the 11-year-old's home detention.
The judge said she could go to school, as the girl has been doing. Other than school, she must be at home or be with her parents.
"She can go anywhere with her parents," McNeilly said. "She just cannot be out on her own."
The mother said she worked from home so she can supervise her.
The judge said the girl's grandmother could also supervise her.
The girl's parents and attorney declined comment after the hearing.
Initially charged with a felony
The Volusia Sheriff’s Office initially charged the girl with making a false police report concerning using a firearm in a violent manner, which is a felony, and misuse of 911, a misdemeanor.
The case sent law enforcement scrambling on July 26 when the girl reported that her 14-year-old friend had been taken by an armed kidnapper driving a white van traveling south on Interstate 95 in Oak Hill, the sheriff’s office stated.
The girl was released to her parents at a juvenile detention hearing on July 27.
Normally, law enforcement officials do not release the name of juvenile offenders. But under state law, the name, age, photo and other identifying information of juveniles charged with what amounts to a felony can be released.
False kidnapping report
The girl sent a message to police saying she was in a blue Jeep following the kidnapper’s van on I-95 in Oak Hill. Multiple deputies responded, along with police from Edgewater, New Smyrna Beach and Port Orange. A sheriff’s helicopter also joined the search for the suspect and the van.
For 90 minutes, the girl texted updates including a description of the suspect, whom she reported had a gun, sheriff's spokeswoman Laura Williams said. Deputies and police found no suspect or van, but they did find the girl at her home in Port Orange after tracing the messages.
The girl’s father told deputies she was at home. As deputies approached the girl, her cellphone rang when 911 dispatchers called.
She was transported to the Family Resource Center for processing, then transferred to the Volusia Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Daytona Beach, Williams said.
The sheriff's office stated previously that it will seek restitution for the cost of the resources used in the response to her texts. Spokesman Andrew Gant wrote that that the rate for Air One, the helicopter, is $625.29 an hour. The sheriff's office will seek $1,246.29 for all costs, including the helicopter.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Port Orange girl, 11, charged with 2 misdemeanors in fake 911 text case
