Judge Revokes $1.6 Mil Bail, Releases Sex Offender on OR

Kim Palmer of Kim Palmer A1 Bail Bonds didn't like her odds when she heard that Doug Wilhite, a man she had earlier bailed out of jail on a $100,000 bond, had been charged with seven new sex offenses, and that the police had been tipped off that Wilhite was planning on fleeing. The bail for the new charges alone was $1.6 million. Circuit Judge John Doyle decided that Wilhite could be released, but Palmer did what she thought was best and revoked Wilhite's bond, bringing him back to jail.

Despite Palmer's best judgement in revoking the bail, Circuit Judge R. Michael Hutcheson at a separate hearing decided that Wilhite wasn't a danger to the community or a flight risk, and released him on his own recognizance.

Don't believe us? Read the complete story here.

Caregiver Suspected of Poisoning Elderly Patient Denied Bail

A caregiver of an elderly Florida lady was denied bail after allegedly stealing from then poisoning the 78-year-old woman in her care. A toxicology report showing ten times the prescribed amount of painkillers in the victim's body confirmed that she had not died of natural causes, like the caregiver claimed.

Read the complete story here.

In Florida, Controversy Over Pretrial Release

Public Defender Howard Finkelstein rankled county commissioners Thursday when he cursed at them and accused them of meddling in the justice system to help lobbyist friends.

Finkelstein was upset with plans for an upcoming public hearing on a proposal that delineates how pre-trial release should work. In January, the commission expanded a program run by the Sheriff’s Office that releases and monitor criminal defendants awaiting trial.

They want to delay construction of a new jail and reduce detention costs. The bail bond industry had major concerns about the expansion and has argued since that the county needs to better spell out how the program works.

Finkelstein is opposed to the proposal and accused influential lobbyist Ron Book of manipulating the commission for the bail bond industry.

“There’s something else here, and it’s very important that I put this out there, and I don’t know how to phrase it other than what the hell is going on here?” he asked at the start of his speech to the commission.

He later added: “I’m going to ask you again, what the hell is going on? The people that work in this system, that run this system, whose mission is justice and equal justice, say: Don’t do this. Mr. Book says: Do it. And we’re going to do it? Don’t sell out the justice system.”

Finkelstein alleged commissioners were acting unconstitutionally and said they were being manipulated by financial interests.

“This is an end-run to shut me up so that it can go to a public hearing so that the bondsmen’s lobbyist can lobby each and every one of you so that the fix can be put in. This is why there was a cry for change in this country. It’s how business is conducted by our government bodies. I am urging you, do not fall prey to that.”

The commission ended up not setting the public hearing for Dec. 9 as planned. Instead, it set it for late January to give its staff time to collect information on how other counties handle pre-trial release programs.

Bounty Hunters To Head Caylee Search

EquuSearch will be in Central Florida next month along with bounty hunter Leonard Padilla.

Padilla and a group of other bounty hunters will be trained to be team leaders in the search for the 3-year-old.

Padilla bonded Caylee's mother, Casey, out of jail when she was charged with child neglect.

Casey Anthony is back in jail charged with Caylee's murder, Local 6 reported.

EquuSearch officials said they plan to sit down with law enforcement and go over any tips and sightings that have surfaced before the Nov. 7 search begins.

Meanwhile, Casey Anthony pleaded not guilty Friday to charges that she killed her daughter.

Casey Anthony's written plea came three days after a grand jury indicted her on charges of first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated manslaughter and four counts of lying to investigators about the disappearance of her daughter, Caylee.

Caylee has not been seen since June but wasn't reported missing until a month later. The child's grandmother, Cindy Anthony, first called authorities in July to say that she hadn't seen Caylee for a month and that her daughter's car smelled like death.

Casey Anthony, 22, told authorities that she had left her daughter with a baby sitter in June, and that the two were gone when she returned from work. She said she spent the next month trying to find her daughter and didn't call authorities because she was scared.

Investigators immediately started poking holes in her story. The apartment where Casey Anthony said she had left her daughter had been vacant for months, they said. They said she also lied when she told them she had been working at an area theme park as an event planner.

Her attorney, Jose Baez, didn't immediately return phone and e-mail messages Friday. Shortly before the indictment was issued Tuesday, he said he believed his client would be vindicated.

Caylee On Cover Of People Magazine

For the second time in the last few months, People magazine has decided to put Caylee Anthony on its cover.

The issue, which hit newsstands on Friday with the cover headline "A Mom's Web Of Lies," features a big picture of the 3-year-old with a smaller image of her mother.

Unlike the first story People wrote regarding Caylee, the Anthony family was not interviewed.

Cindy Anthony said she felt duped by People after the first article was released.

"We did not in any way mislead anybody about what the story was, which is a story about this missing toddler," said Betsy Gleick of People.

The current story features a lengthy article that recaps the entire story with recently released photos of Casey Anthony allegedly using stolen checks to purchase items.

The story says the family continues to search for Caylee, and a private investigator is following a tip of a possible Caylee sighting two weeks ago, where someone took a grainy pic of a child who looked like the missing girl.

The current story went to press before murder charges were issued against Casey Anthony.

Meanwhile, Casey Anthony is scheduled to be arraigned on Tuesday, Oct. 28 in her murder case. On Nov. 5, pretrial proceedings are set for her child neglect and fraud cases.

Baez: Caylee Is Alive

The spokesman for an attorney representing Casey Anthony said Thursday that they believe the child is alive, and that he never told a cable television network the girl was dead.

Caylee's body has not been found in four months of searches, but her family has maintained she is alive.

"That is our belief," spokesman Todd Black said Thursday. "It's preposterous to report anything else."

The child's mother, Casey Anthony, was indicted Tuesday on charges of first-degree murder, aggravated abuse of a child, aggravated manslaughter and four counts of lying to investigators. Her attorneys have said she is innocent.

Black was interviewed by CNN Headline News on Tuesday. A transcript released by the network showed Black said "this is a very serious case involving not just the loss of the life of this little girl, but the loss of whatever is going to happen with Casey Anthony."

Jose Baez, Anthony's lawyer, held a news conference on Thursday to discuss the issue.

"We believe Caylee is alive," Baez said. "To take that out of context is a disservice to the Anthonys and the child."

The network stood by its interview.

"This was a live interview, and it is what he said," said Janine Iamunno, a Headline News spokeswoman.

Anthony told authorities that she had left her daughter with a baby sitter in June, and that when she returned after work, the two were gone.

Anthony said she spent the next month trying to find her daughter on her own and didn't call authorities out of fear. The child's grandmother called authorities and said her daughter's car "smelled like death."

But investigators said the apartment where the baby sitter supposedly lived had been vacant for months and that Anthony lied about her job.

Earlier this week, Baez, said: "I sincerely believe that when we have finally spoken, everyone, and I mean everyone, will sit back and say, 'Now, I understand. That explains it.'"

Judge Rules On Motions

Meanwhile, Ninth Circuit Judge Stan Strickland released his order on Anthony's motion to preserve forensic evidence and to consider additional testing.

The order stated:

"Being duly advised in the premises, the defendant's motion is denied in part and granted in part.

"Specifically, the portion of the defendant's motion which seeks to halt the handling and analysis of any and all forensic evidence is denied. The court knows of no authority or logical reason why the state should be prevented, even temporarily, from further analysis of relevant evidence.

"The defendant's request to be notified in advance regarding any further testing is granted. Following reasonable notice by the state the defendant may have an expert present to view any further scientific testing performed by the state. Should the defendant choose to have an expert present at any further testing, the expert's presence is merely to view and document the means and manner of testing. The right for a defense expert to be present at any further testing does not include the right to interfere with, thwart, or even comment on the testing procedures as they occur. The state shall make every effort to retain a large enough sample of any item tested so that the defense expert may have an opportunity to conduct their own test on same. Reliability and admissibility of any test performed by either party is not the subject of this motion or order."

Vehicle Swap Before Arrest

On Tuesday, Cindy Anthony, the mother of Casey Anthony, was videotaped scolding a TV news van and erratically cutting across traffic before her daughter was secretly transferred to a vehicle and later arrested during a wild post-indictment ride in Orlando streets.

A grand jury issued a sealed indictment charging Casey Anthony with first-degree murder in the death of daughter Caylee, even though the child's body has not been found during a four-month search.

The grand jury also charged Anthony with aggravated child abuse, aggravated manslaughter and four counts of lying to investigators about Caylee's disappearance.

After the indictment was delivered, Casey Anthony and her mother left attorney Jose Baez's office in Kissimmee and began to drive around Orlando at about 3:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Cindy Anthony was videotaped cutting across two lanes of traffic in an apparent attempt to lose several television crews following behind.

Anthony then cut across a shopping center and drove through parking lots.

Sky 6 showed Cindy Anthony eventually jumping out of the vehicle on a road and waving her finger at the driver of a television van while walking down the road.

Anthony jumped back in her SUV and drove into a no-fly zone near the Orlando International Airport and Casey Anthony switched vehicles.

"They pulled a switcharoo," a photographer yelled as the cars stopped underneath an overpass and out of view of helicopters.

A car traveling behind another sport utility vehicle then cut off a Local 6 vehicle.

Local 6 asked Baez about the incident.

"As he attempted to try to get away from them, he didn't know if someone was trying to harm Casey or what," Baez said. "At that point, finally, it turned about to be law enforcement and they in turned pulled him over and (the driver) identified himself as the bondsman."

Anthony was taken into custody by police during the stop.

Baez also said he didn't want a media circus or anyone filming Anthony being handcuffed, Local 6 reported.

A national search for Caylee continues.

Man Released From Jail Arrested Again in Jail Parking Lot

A Port Charlotte man was released from its County Jail at 6:30 a.m. this morning and arrested a short time later after he was caught burglarizing a vehicle and "carhopping" in the jail and adjacent Public Safety Building parking lots.

28-year-old Bryan David Dudenhefer was first arrested Wednesday shortly after 10:00 p.m. and charged with Burglary, and Possession of Burglary Tools for breaking into the Army-Navy Fashion Store in Port Charlotte at 3811 Tamiami Trail. Deputies found him outside the store next to a broken window. They found a bag with a brick inside the window and a search of Dedenhefer located a 3/8-inch ratchet socket wrench in his pocket and broken glass in his shoes. Inside the store they found a 3/8-inch socket for the wrench.

After posting bond this morning, Dedenhefer was observed by a Corrections Deputy checking car doors in the jail parking lot and appeared trying to locate an unlocked vehicle. The deputy contacted another deputy in the jail and when they came out they saw Dedenhefer get into a Ford F-150 pickup truck in the parking lot next to the jail. The deputies told Dedenhefer to get out of the truck but he refused several times; deputies then physically removed him.

Padilla Questions Decision to Post Casey Anthony's Bond

Bounty hunter Leonard Padilla now questions his decision to bail Casey Anthony out of jail.

On Tuesday night, he told CNN's Nancy Grace he doesn't think he would have posted the $500,000 bond for her freedom if he had read newly-released documents beforehand.

He told Grace, "After reading it, I don't believe I would have talked my nephew Tony Padilla into posting the bond. And I don't think I would have come to Orlando after reading that. I
mean, I'm still hoping that little girl's alive, but there's a lot of information in those 400 pages that would lead those people to believe something different."

The documents paint an unflattering picture of the Orlando mother. Some of the most negative opinions of Anthony come from her own family and friends. Anthony's mother Cindy called her daughter a "sociopath".

In a written statement to police, Anthony's father said she was very vague when he asked about his granddaughter, Caylee, saying:

"Each time we have asked to see her... my daughter would always have a different answer."

Inside the Bail Business

If you're arrested, a bail bondsman can be your best friend or worst enemy.

Bondsmen hold the "get-out-of-jail" card, but unlike the game of Monopoly, it's not free. And once they secure your release, your level of freedom may be just a little greater than it was when you were behind bars.

Do what the bail bondsman asks and show up for all your court dates, however, and you'll be fine. Slip up, and you could be headed back to the slammer.

Bail Bondsman Attacked with Knife

The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office has filed more charges on 28-year-old Shane Steele after he pulled a knife on two bail bondsmen and was shot Monday.

After being shot in the leg, treated and released from an area hospital, Steel was originally charged on an outstanding Sarasota County warrant for Home Invasion Robbery with a Deadly Weapon and Attempted Murder.

The new charges filed were two counts of Assault With Intent to Commit Homicide, and two outstanding warrants for Robbery and Failure to Appear in a Charlotte County court.

Two licensed Bail Bondsmen from A Way Out Bail Bonds were acting on a tip that Steele would be at the Luther Road apartment complex. The bondsmen spotted Steele, a physical struggle ensued, and Steele pulled out a knife. Both bondsmen pulled their firearms ordering him to drop the knife. Steele displayed the knife in a threatening manner saying several times, "I'll kill you," then came at the bondsmen and they both fired, hitting Steele in the right upper portion of his leg.

Steele kept the knife and fled into an apartment where he barricaded himself in the bathroom.

The CCSO Fugitive Warrant Squad detectives arrived and established communications with Steele who told Sgt. Rick Goff that if he attempted to enter he would "cut his throat." Forced entry was made, Steele continued to resist and a Tazer was activated. Steele remains in the County Jail without bond.

Mom Works With Bondsmen To Have Son Arrested

John Darlington went to the county Tax Collector's Office Tuesday afternoon for the mundane task of registering a vehicle.

As he sat among the rows of lobby chairs with his mother, waiting for his number to flash, two men approached.

"John, you need to stand up," one of them told him, displaying a bail bondsman's badge. "You're under arrest."

But Darlington didn't just surrender his wrists to the handcuffs. He pushed and fought until he and the bondsmen fell to the floor. Then, according to bail bondsman David Lowman, Darlington reached into the waistband of his pants and pulled a gun.

Customers ran. Employees ducked behind their desks.

Darlington ended up handcuffed with a bloody face. New Port Richey police arrived and took him to jail.

But one person isn't pleased about the chosen setting for the confrontation.

Said Pasco County Tax Collector Mike Olson: "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand that this could have been a tragic circumstance. You could be reporting that somebody got shot or killed."

Darlington, 45, of Holiday, is awaiting trial on a Pinellas County grand theft charge. He was released from jail in October after his mother put up 10 percent of his $15,000 bail.

Lowman, who owns Help Bail Bonds of Clearwater, said Darlington had checked in every week like he was supposed to since his release. But recently Nell Darlington told Lowman that her son wasn't keeping his bargain with her. He had left town in her truck, and she wanted it back.

She also wanted his bail revoked.

Nell Darlington decided to lure her son back by promising to transfer title of the truck to him, Lowman said. They agreed to meet at the tax office.

So about 1 p.m. Tuesday, Lowman and his brother Donald waited outside the office on U.S. 19. Darlington arrived but walked quickly into the building.

Lowman said he had no reason to think Darlington was armed.

"We didn't have him out on a gun charge," he said.

Lowman left his own gun in the car, he said, because he knows it's illegal to carry a weapon into a government office.

Lowman said Darlington "just, like, snapped." In the melee, Lowman said, Darlington pressed the gun into Lowman's stomach and cocked it. Then, inexplicably, Darlington started telling Lowman and the officers who arrived to shoot him.

Records show Darlington has a long arrest record, including an armed robbery in 1991.

Reached last night at Darlington's home, a woman who identified herself as his mother but would not confirm her name said Darlington "didn't really threaten the bondsmen. He asked them to shoot him so he wouldn't have to shoot himself."

She said Darlington had talked about killing himself "because he's in trouble." She said she agreed to work with the bondsmen because she wants her son to get help. She declined to say much more about the situation. "Nobody understands it," she said. "I can't."

Darlington was charged with aggravated assault, being a felon in possession of a firearm, carrying a concealed firearm and grand theft.

Police say the gun, a .380 caliber semiautomatic handgun, was stolen out of Pasco County.