PCB officer's DUI charge dismissed
IN THE COUNTY COURT, FOURTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA, IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF BAY
State of Florida
v. Case No. 11002834CTMA
David Lee Walker,
Defendant.
ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO DISMISS
THIS CAUSE having come on upon motion by Defendant and the Court finding the following:
Defendant was arrested and charged with DUI on July 21, 2011. Defense counsel filed a notice of appearance on the same date. Arraignment was set for July 25, 2011.
Defense counsel filed a waiver of appearance on July 25 and the case was set for pretrial conference on September 28, 2011.
The State filed discovery exhibits on July 29 and August 11, 2011.
At the scheduled pretrial conference, on September 28, 2011, the local prosecutor indicated that there existed a conflict and that this case would be handled by an executively-assigned prosecutor. No one appeared on behalf of the State. The case was set for the trial management docket on October 13, 2011.
On October 13, 2011, defense counsel appeared and asked for a trial date. There was no waiver of speedy trial. No one appeared on behalf of the State. The local prosecutor indicated that a request for an executive assignment had been made. Trial was set for October 31, 2011.
On October 31, 2011, jurors were present and available for selection. Defense counsel announced ready for trial. No one appeared on behalf of the State. Local prosecutors were present to handle other cases on the docket. Defense counsel requested a dismissal. The Court asked the local prosecutor to determine if someone had been appointed. Defense counsel filed a notice of expiration of speedy trial.
On November 1, 2011, defense counsel filed a motion to strike State’s motion to continue and this motion to dismiss.
On November 4, 2011, the Court received the State’s motion to continue, filed by the Office of the State Attorney for the First Circuit, though said motion was dated October 31. The State’s motion indicated that no written notification of assignment had been received. Also on November 4, pursuant to Rule 3.191, Fla. R. Cr. P., the Court set Defendant’s notice of expiration for hearing; to be heard November 8, 2011, at 1:30 p.m.
The hearing was held, as scheduled, November 8, at 1:30 p.m. At the hearing, the local prosecutor indicated that the Fourteenth Circuit State Attorney sent a letter of conflict in August but that no order of executive assignment had been received by the local office or by the First Circuit. It was also indicated that the conflict still existed.
On November 8—110 days after the arrest of Defendant—the Court orally granted Defendant’s motion to dismiss. Due to other Court obligations and the holiday weekend, a written order was not immediately filed.
On November 9, 2011, the Clerk of Court clocked-in a copy of Executive Order 11-217, appointing the First Circuit State Attorney. Said order was received after the oral pronouncement of the Court’s order dismissing the case. It is, hereby,
ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that Defendant’s motion is granted and the case is DISMISSED.
DONE AND ORDERED, this 14th day of November, 2011.
PANAMA CITY BEACH — A DUI case against a former Panama City Beach police officer has been dismissed because no one could legally prosecute the charges before the defendant’s right to a speedy trial expired.
According to statements made at a Nov. 8 hearing, the 14th Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office declared a conflict in the DUI case against David Lee Walker in August. As is procedure when a conflict of interest is declared, the prosecutors in Glenn Hess’ office asked Gov. Rick Scott to intervene and appoint another prosecutor to handle the case. The 1st Judicial Circuit was supposed to take over the case, but they did not receive formal notice from the governor’s office in time for an Oct. 31 trial, according to statements at last week’s motion hearing.
Walker’s defense team did not waive the speedy trial requirements under Florida law and showed up Oct. 31 ready to go a trial, officials said. No one showed up to prosecute the case.
“From time to time we would make inquiries with the governor’s office; it was never assigned,” Bob Pell, the head of the misdemeanor division with the 14th Judicial Circuit, said during the Nov. 8 hearing. “I feel that our circuit has done everything we can possibly do to move the case along.”
At the end of the hearing, Judge Joe Grammer dismissed the charges against Walker. Although the case has been dismissed, prosecutors could appeal, officials said. The 1st Judicial Circuit did eventually get official notification from the governor’s office and sent a notice to Grammer.
The notice arrived the day after he dismissed the case, Grammer said.
Walker and another officer repeatedly sought “professional courtesy” from Trooper Wesley Harsey after Harsey stopped Walker for allegedly driving 50 miles per hour on Front Beach Road after leaving the bar on July 21, according to investigative reports. Walker offered to leave his car parked at the scene and take a taxi home, but Harsey told him he should have done that before they left the bar, the reports said.
Walker initially said he had only two beers, but during the conversation, he eventually admitted to drinking eight or nine beers that night, according to the reports. Ultimately, he refused to submit to a breath test, and Walker resigned shortly after the arrest.
While he won in court, Walker will not automatically get his job back with the Panama City Beach Police Department, officials said.
“He can certainly reapply just like anybody else,” said PCBPD Chief Robert Harding. “The city is not under any obligation to reinstate him because of the resignation.”
He added that an alcohol-related arrest, regardless of the outcome in court, is enough to terminate an officer under the department’s code of conduct.
