Cape Coral man exonerated in New Jersey homicide sentenced to nearly 2 years in road rage
A Cape Coral man once facing homicide charges in New Jersey was sentenced in Lee County and will spend nearly two years in prison.
Lee Circuit Judge Bruce Kyle on Monday sentenced Zachary Latham, 21, to 20 months in prison. He was adjudicated guilty on two aggravated assault counts after he pleaded no contest.
Latham, who had once been charged the fatal stabbing of a neighbor in New Jersey, an off-duty South Woods State Prison corrections officer, was exonerated on all counts related to that case April 13.
In the Lee County incident, which happened about 11 p.m. Jan. 23, 2021, a motorist waved down a trooper in Fort Myers, saying he was a victim of an assault. The motorist claimed another driver confronted him and brandished a firearm on Meridian Center Parkway, near Southwest Florida International Airport.
Troopers found the vehicle, a Nissan Infinity driven by Latham, and stopped the car on Alico Road, beneath the Interstate 75 overpass.
Troopers found a black, airsoft BB gun resembling a real firearm — similar to an AK-47 in appearance — and placed Latham under arrest for felony aggravated assault. Latham was also charged with a second count of aggravated assault for attempting to intentionally ram the victim’s vehicle.
While troopers said Latham's driver's license listed a Cape Coral address, the Sheriff's Office arrest information listed him as living in Naples.
In New Jersey
In the 2020 incident, police responded the night of May 4 to a reported altercation and stabbing in a Vineland, New Jersey, neighborhood.
“It was reported by witnesses that a confrontation had occurred moments earlier between Latham and his wife and Durham Sr. and his wife, Catherine T. Durham,” a released statement from the prosecutor said at the time.
According to the prosecutor, the investigation revealed that Durham and his two sons, a 17-year-old, and William T. Durham Jr., 21, then responded to Latham’s residence where Zachary Latham had armed himself with a knife and stun gun, the Cumberland County prosecutor stated.
The second altercation, unfolding in Latham’s driveway, proceeded into his garage, the prosecutor stated.
Latham stabbed the elder Durham, "multiple times with a 4-inch fixed blade knife during a physical confrontation," and also attempted to stab Durham Jr., according to court documents.
Durham died that night.
Latham was taken to Atlantic City Medical Center for injuries he sustained and released. At Cumberland County Jail, he was also charged with second-degree aggravated assault and multiple weapons offenses.
Latham sustained a concussion and abrasions to his face, as well as neck and leg injuries, according to a complaint.
His out-of-state case centered on whether he legally defended himself against an attacker.
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Threads @tomasfrobeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran, Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews and Twitter @TomasFRoBeltran.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Cape Coral man sentenced in SWFL, exonerated in New Jersey homicide
