Ocala courthouse: Two deaths, two trials, two guilty verdicts

Two men have been found guilty of manslaughter in separate trials.

Jury selection for both cases began Sept. 26 and the proceedings began the next day. Here's a look at what happened:

State v. Cristian Omar Polanco

Judge: Circuit Judge Peter Brigham.

Lawyers: David G. Mengers for the defense and Assistant State Attorney Janine Nixon.

About the case: Sheriff's deputies were told Paul Everett Leach, 85, was pushed from a moving vehicle by Polanco. Witnesses said Polanco stopped the vehicle, got out, and kicked Leach in the head.

At trial, one witness told the court that Polanco kicked the victim as if he was a football, and did so at least three times.

Leach was taken to a local hospital for treatment of multiple lacerations, several broken bones in his face and possibly a brain contusion.

The elderly man spent weeks in the hospital, underwent two brain surgeries, and was on a ventilator, according to testimony given in court and documented in an arrest report.

Once released, Leach went to a specialty hospital in The Villages for other treatment and then to a rehabilitation center, according to the man's ex-wife, who testified at trial. Leach was at the rehab center for several weeks and then went home. Leach died less than a week after he got home, his ex-wife said.

On the witness stand, Leach's ex-wife said Leach was in pain and had to be spoon fed. The incident occurred in the 5400 block of Northeast 35th Street in March 17, 2021. He died on July 17, 2021, she said.

The defense established when questioning the victim's ex-wife that Leach had medical issues prior to the beating.

Polanco takes the witness stand: The defendant told the court that the victim wanted to have sex with him and he refused. He said Leach touched his leg and penis and he pushed the man's hand away.

Polanco said Leach took out a gun and pointed it at him. Feeling threatened, he grabbed Leach's hand, punched him, and during their struggle, they fell out the vehicle. Once outside, he said, he kicked Leach once because he was afraid Leach may shoot him.

"I defended myself," Polanco testified.

On cross-examination, Nixon asked Polanco about any injuries he suffered. He said he scraped his elbow and had a few scratches. He admitted he never told anyone about the alleged sexual advances or the gun. He said he didn't want to embarrass Leach.

Closing arguments: Nixon said Polanco kicked Leach more than once and the injuries were so severe the victim had to go to the hospital because he didn't know the year or who the president was. She said the beating was a result of Polanco being angry about not getting enough money for his work. She said he complained about being forced to work, and he was tired of it.

"He kicked and stomped Paul Leach to death," Nixon said.

Mengers said the case is about Leach making sexual advances and pulling a gun on Polanco. Mengers said his client defended himself.

Why didn't Polanco explain all this before? Because the man's ex-wife "is a nice lady" and Polanco didn't want to upset her, the lawyer said. He also felt ashamed about the advances.

Mengers indicated that, in any event, Leach's death was not a homicide. He noted that the man had prior medical issues that could have led to his decline and eventual death. At the crime scene, he said, "nobody thought he (Leach) would die."

Charges: Second-degree murder and aggravated battery on a person 65 or older.

Trial: The trial started Sept. 27 and concluded Sept. 28.

Verdict: Guilty of a lesser charge, manslaughter, and guilty of aggravated battery on a person 65 and older.

Testimony in court before sentencing: Mengers told the judge that Polanco called police and cooperated with them. He said it was one act that led to two separate charges. He asked the judge for the lowest possible sentence and said any prison sentences should be served consecutively.

Polanco thanked the court for its time and offered condolences to Leach's family and friends.

Leach's ex-wife told the court that Leach loved Polanco. She said she's hurt that Polanco thrashed her ex-husband's reputation. She hopes Polanco will find God.

She said she and her ex-husband "forgive him," making reference to Polanco. She said when Leach was hospitalized, he asked her why Polanco had beaten him.

The woman's brother said while he has no "animosity" against Polanco, what he did to Leach "was a crime against human decency" and "he didn't give Paul any mercy." He believes Polanco beat Leach because he was bitter that he was working for little money. He said Leach was "a good man," who "would forgive him."

"I'm going to try to forgive him," the man said of Polanco.

Sentence: A convicted felon, Polanco, 30, was sentenced to a 15-year prison term for the manslaughter charge and a 30-year term for the second offense. The sentences will run concurrently. He has 926 days of credit for time served at the jail.

Special conditions: Polanco cannot have any contact with the victim's family.

State v. Dejon Traique Rashard Woods

Judge: Circuit Judge Lisa Herndon.

Lawyers: Assistant State Attorneys Tucker O'Neil and Marissa Meyer and defense lawyer A. Antonio Tomas. The prosecutors took turns questioning witnesses during the trial.

Charge: Manslaughter with a firearm.

About the case: Sheriff's deputies said Woods shot 15-year-old Kyrion Demonte Weathers, a high school student and football player, once in the chest with a handgun in July 2020.

Kyrion was taken to a local hospital, where he died. Deputies recovered the firearm, along with a second gun not far from the incident location: the 15100 block of Southeast 104th Court in Summerfield.

Woods told deputies he and the teen were playing video games in a room when he stepped outside to get a drink. He said he heard a pop and the boy came outside holding his chest. Woods said the teen told him to call the police. He also said another person, a male, was at the residence.

A third person, a girl who at the time was 16, was at the residence and had removed the firearms from the location. She hid them in nearby bushes, according to officials.

At the time, the teen, now an adult, was not truthful when questioned by authorities. In a later interview, she told them she was at the residence with Woods and the victim.

She said Woods and the teenager were playing around with the gun when it went off. She never mentioned anything about a fourth person, described by Woods as a male.

When Woods was interviewed, he told detectives the girl was not there when the shooting occurred.

Woods was arrested in May 2022.

On the witness stand, Detective Joseph Miller said the investigation took a long time in part because of obtaining interviews and waiting on lab results. Miller said during the investigation, there was no evidence indicating a fourth person, believed to be a third male, was at the location.

Trial: Started Sept. 27 and ended Sept. 28.

Arguments: Meyer told jurors that Woods' version of events and explanation of who was at the scene at the time of the shooting changed. She said he talked about a fourth person being there, even though there was no evidence of that mystery individual.

The prosecutor said Woods was playing around with the gun, knew it was loaded, and shot the teen. She said whether the shot was an accident or not, Woods is responsible for his actions and therefore should be found guilty.

In his client's defense, Tomas said the incident was an accident and no DNA evidence links his client to the gun. He said everyone was playing around and taking pictures with guns, and that Woods shouldn't be held responsible because it's unknown who pulled the trigger.

He argued that "regardless of who fired the weapon," indicating a fourth person could've been there, "it was an accident and there was no intent to harm."

Verdict: The six-member jury found the 21-year-old Ocala man guilty of manslaughter with a firearm.

Lawyers' arguments before sentencing: Prosecutors said while Woods was out of jail on bond, he was accused of two more crimes. One charge involved a firearm. Meyer told the court that Woods "clearly had not learned his lesson."

Tomas countered that there was no intent to harm and Woods had lost his friend. The lawyer asked the judge to think about his client's age and to sentence him to the lowest possible sentence: 124.5 months in prison.

Prison: She beat an 85-year-old man to death with an audio speaker. Prison sentence: 35 years

Sentence: Woods, who has prior convictions, was sentenced to a 20-year prison term. The judge told Woods that what he did was "enormously reckless," and "someone lost their life."

He has 384 days of credit for time served while at the jail.

Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala juries return guilty verdicts in two death cases