He said he wasn't the shooter. A jury disagreed. How did the judge handle sentencing?
Here's a look at what happened at the Marion County Judicial Center the week of Nov. 27.
State v. Jihad Kiran Elvy
Lawyers: Assistant State Attorneys Sasha Kidney and Shanae Pickens, and Jack Maro for the defense.
Judge: Circuit Judge Anthony Tatti.
About the case: Ocala police officials said 22-year-old Elvy, of Hampton, Georgia, shot and wounded a man at an apartment complex located off Southwest 27th Avenue in 2021.
Elvy has denied shooting the victim and told detectives he was visiting his girlfriend at the time of the incident. At the time of the shooting, he was on probation for a gun offense.
Charges: Aggravated battery with a firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with no serial number.
Trial: A jury found Elvy guilty as charged. His trial lasted two days and concluded in late September.
Sentence: The judge on Nov. 28 sentenced Elvy to 40 years in prison. He said he spared Elvy from a life sentence, which he could have received, because of his age. Elvy has 1,233 days of credit for time already served at the jail.
State v. Keiunte Cooper
Lawyers: A. Antonio Tomas for the defense and Assistant State Attorney Janine Nixon for the prosecution.
Judge: Circuit Judge Peter Brigham.
Charge: Robbery. A charge of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon was dropped.
Plea: Guilty.
What happened in court? In an agreement between the lawyers, Cooper, 22, was sentenced to 129 days in jail, which he already served. He also must pay $1,200 in restitution, plus fines and court costs. The change of plea hearing was held on Nov. 27.
About the case: The Ocala man was booked into the county jail in September 2021 and accused of robbing a victim of money and valuables. The victim was also shot in the leg, officials said.
Last year, Cooper's accomplice, Freddie Lee Honor Jr., pleaded guilty to charges connected to that incident, among other offenses. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
State v. Jerry Leon Guyton
Judge: Circuit Judge Peter Brigham.
Charges: At a hearing held Nov. 27, Guyton, of Ocala, admitted he violated the terms of his probation.
In 2020, Guyton was charged with organized fraud. In that case, he was accused of stealing $8,430 from Walmart in less than a month while working there as a cashier. He said he stole the money to provide for his family. He was sentenced to three years of probation.
While on probation, the 30-year-old was one of many men arrested this year and accused of trying to meet juveniles online and arrange for sex. Instead of conversing with a minor, Guyton was speaking to an undercover law enforcement official.
Guyton was charged with travel to meet a minor after use of computer to lure child and use computer to seduce/solicit/lure child.
Lawyers: David Bradley Duclos from the Public Defender's Office and Assistant State Attorney Elizabeth White.
What did the lawyers have to say? Duclos told the judge his client has no criminal history and has 195 days of credit for time already served at the county jail. Though Guyton admits to violating his probation, he's asking the judge to sentence him to time served.
White told the judge that Guyton is a danger to the community based on his new charges and noted that he had traveled to meet what he thought was a 14-year-old child for sex.
Guyton told the judge he's not a threat to society, he works, and he wants to do better with his life. The man's father told the judge that his son is a good man.
Judge's ruling: The judge told Guyton he agrees with the prosecution that he's a danger to the community. He also noted that Guyton has a previous probation violation. He sentenced Guyton to 42 months in prison for the violation of probation.
Next court date? The judge said Guyton will face his new charges early next year.
State v. Jonathan Ryan Cuppels and Gregory Martin Freeman
Cuppels and Freeman had charges filed against them by prosecutors from the State Attorney's Office. An arraignment for the men was held Nov. 28 in Circuit Judge Peter Brigham's courtroom.
A former Belleview Police Department officer, Freeman, of Ocala, is charged with two counts of access computer electronic device without authority, possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia. Jimmie Sparrow is representing the 54-year-old man.
Cuppels, 38, of Fruitland Park, was appointed a public defender as his attorney. He's charged with vehicular homicide and DUI manslaughter.
Freeman was arrested in September after authorities said he used drugs while on duty, had drugs at his residence and made unauthorized searches of people.
Prison: 25-year prison term for man who fatally shot his girlfriend
Cuppels was taken into custody and accused of driving recklessly, running a red light and crashing into a vehicle driven by an elderly woman. Florida Highway Patrol troopers said Cuppels was under the influence of drugs when the crash occurred.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala courthouse: How many years in prison for man convicted in shooting?
