Ocala courthouse: Prison, probation and more as six felony cases are resolved
Here's a recap of cases that went before the court March 21-23.
State v. Naida Watson Jackson
Plea: No contest.
Charges: Aggravated child abuse and possession of eutylone and cannabis.
Sentence: 12 years in prison, followed by 10 years of probation, with credit for 1,003 days already spent at the county jail.
No charges:State says it can't prove who shot William Douglas. And if it could, it couldn't prosecute them.
Request denied:Dismayed defendant asks Ocala judge to reconsider. But the sentence sticks: life in prison
A misunderstanding:Marion County woman charged with voting more than once says it's a misunderstanding
Probation conditions: No illegal substances.
About this case: In 2020, sheriff's deputies arrested Jackson, of Ocala, and accused her of abusing a 2-month child. Officials said the child was taken to a hospital with severe head injuries.
Jackson, now 26, gave conflicting stories on how the injuries were suffered.
State v. Joshua Smith
Plea: No contest.
Charge: Aggravated child abuse. A charge of sexual battery on a child younger than 12 was not pursued by prosecutors.
Sentence: Five years in prison and 10 years of probation. He has 883 days of credit for time served.
Probation conditions: No contact with the victim or victim's family.
About this case: Smith, of Ocala, was picked up by sheriff's deputies in 2020 after a girl told a child investigator that Smith forced her into sexual encounters with him. He's now 39.
State v. Bryan Vazquez-Rodriguez
Plea: No contest.
Charge: Unlawful sexual activity with a minor. A second charge of unlawful sexual activity with a minor was not pursued by prosecutors.
Sentence: Eight years in prison and seven years of probation. Vazquez-Rodriguez, 30, of Ocala, has two days of credit for time served.
Special probation conditions: Must register as a sexual offender and have no contact with the victim.
About this case: Vazquez-Rodriguez told sheriff's deputies in 2019 that he and the victim exchanged naked pictures and he performed a sex act on her. The girl told officials she had consensual encounters with Vazquez-Rodriguez.
State v. Leo McFatten
Plea: Guilty.
Charges: Aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, false imprisonment and lewd/lascivious behavior/commit sex act in presence of corrections employee.
Sentence: 15 years in prison for all charges. He has 1,000 days of credit time served. A convicted felon, McFatten, 36, of Ocala, has pending charges of armed kidnapping, sexual battery by use of a deadly weapon and witness intimidation.
About this case: A woman told Ocala police officers she was walking to work when a man tried talking to her. She said she ignored him and walked away. The same man later approached her, knocked her into a ditch and tried raping her.
The victim said she was stabbed multiple times with a sharp object. Officers later identified McFatten as the person and arrested him.
State v. Clayton Wilson
Plea: No contest.
Charges: Travel to meet a minor after use of computer to lure child, use computer to seduce solicit lure child, and transmission of harmful material to minor. A charge of unlawful use of a two-way communications device to facilitate was not pursued by prosecutors.
Sentence: Two years in prison, with 203 days of credit for time served.
Special probation conditions: Register as a sex offender, no unsupervised contact with anyone younger than 18, and complete sex offender treatment/counseling.
About this case: Sheriff's Office officials said Wilson, 22, of Belleview, was among more than a dozen men apprehended in the operation "April Fools," whose goal was to catch adults trying to have sexual encounters with children.
State v. Jesse L. Pettrey
Plea: No contest.
Charge: Aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.
Sentence: 65 months in prison with 872 days of credit for time served. His sentence is to run concurrent with the sentence for a previous conviction: lewd or lascivious battery on a child 12-16. The latter case was resolved in 2022.
About this case: Ocala police had arrested Pettrey, 26, of Belleview, on charges that he shot a man on the Ocala downtown square in 2020.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Judges resolve six felony cases during hearings in Marion County
