Dear Chief Justice Charles T. Canady,

I am writing to you in regard to my husband, John Charles Haskell. John has been a resident of Cocoa, Florida since September of 2009. He was arrested by Brevard County Sherriff’s Officers on Saturday, March 29, 2014 and is still being held at The Brevard County Jail Complex. His case has a bond set at $1,100,000 on 3 separate charges.

Please, I beg you; don’t put this letter down without taking 10 minutes out of your extremely busy schedule and sitting down and actually read this. I will give you the facts in his case and attempt to keep my emotions out of it.

First I’d like you to know that I am writing this to you with the understanding that you probably receive letters like this all the time. Please take solace in the knowledge that I more than appreciate you honoring the request of a very distraught wife and mother. My only wish is that you hear me out, before you turn me and my family away.

My husband is currently facing three charges:

Attempted First Degree Premeditated Murder While Inflicting Great Bodily Harm or Death (F1) 782.01(1)(a)1

Aggravated Battery Reclassified While Inflicting Great Bodily Harm or Death (F1) 784.045(1)(a)

Discharging a Firearm From a Vehicle (F2) 790.15(2)

John was arrested in the early afternoon of Saturday, March 29, 2014. This occurred in the parking lot of the King Street Baptist Church located on the corner of Fiske Boulevard and SR520 in Cocoa, Florida. His arrest was based on a statement given by a single States Witness.

The witness stated that John attempted to take the life of another human being, claiming that my husband shot another man. This man is also a 9 time convicted felon in multiple states including Florida and Ohio. His convictions range from “Driving under the Influence” to possession of “Controlled Deadly Substance”. At the time of his statement to Officers from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, was out on bond in Lake County, FL for possession of a CDS. I find it puzzling that my husband was arrested based on the word of a man with a 20 year felony rap sheet.

At John’s initial hearing, he did not have an attorney present. I believe this to be a complete violation of his Miranda rights. “You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.” The Judge that presided over my husband’s arraignment denied him a Bond of any amount.

The first Attorneys we hired were Roger Butcher and Daniel Archer. The first Bond Hearing in this case was held on April 30, 2014. At this hearing was held before Judge David Dugan. To give you a short version of the outcome of this hearing: The state prosecutor was requesting $500,000 bond across the board for all 3 charges. However, the Judge Dugan did not agree. Instead, he set the total bond at $1,100,000. He divided this figure amongst the 3 charges: $500,000 each for the first two charges that are 1st Degree Felony charges and $100,000 for the third charge which is a 2nd Degree Felony charge.

As a family, we do not have any real tangible assets to speak of. We have been renting the same home our family has resided in for 5 consecutive years. Outside of our basic needs, we have very little. My husband and I have an income under $16,000. A $1,100,000 bond is one that we’ll never have the ability to reach.

The next Court Appearance was attended by Attorney Roger Butcher. This was a simple Docket Sounding held on May 14, 2014. During this appearance, Mr. Butcher filed a motion that waived John’s right to a “Speedy Trial”! Neither Mr. Butcher nor Mr. Archer discussed filing this or any other motions with either John or I. This was done without John’s prior knowledge or his approval.

Due to this blatant disregard to their client’s wishes, we hired John’s new attorney, Michael J. Kelley. Mr. Kelley has listened, empathizes with and understands John side of the alleged incident. Mr. Kelley has hit one brick wall after another in this case.

On June 17, 2014, after a lot of research and reviewing of the case, Mr. Kelley filed a “Motion for ROR/Reduce Bond”. This motion was denied without being heard in person and without reason. We believe this motion was denied due to the fact that Judge Dugan was being reassigned.

On July 1, 2014 this case was reassigned to Judge George W. Maxwell III. Due to our belief that Judge Dugan denied the above mentioned motion because the case was being reassigned, Mr. Kelley filed a “Motion for Bond Modification” on July 7, 2014. However, on July 28, 2014 Judge Maxwell denied Mr. Kelley’s motion on the grounds that he wasn’t going to go against the previous orders without knowing why Judge Dugan set the bond at the $1,100,000 amount. Then again, on August 8, 2014, another “Bond Hearing” was held again in front of Judge Maxwell. Again he denied any form of modification to the bond amount.

Mr. Kelley has attended all “Docket Soundings” and has also filed various other motions. The only one that was approved of by Judge Maxwell was a “Motion for Return of Property” filed on November 18, 2014. This was approved and “ordered” on November 20, 2014. The property that was returned to me was my own personal vehicle.

To our dismay, the case was once again reassigned on January 6, 2015. However, this time the case was reassigned to a new Judge and a new States Attorney. Judge Charles Roberts is now presiding and Donald Loughran is representing the State. All these changes in judges & attorneys have truly disrupted the whole judicial process and speed in this case. I understand that John’s previous attorney, without his knowledge, waived his right to a speedy trial however, all these changes have caused major delays in John’s right to due process.

Under both Judge Dugan and the current presiding Judge Roberts, Mr. Kelley has scheduled 16 depositions for people involved in this case including, the alleged victim, both witnesses, Brevard County Sherriff Officers, Deputies, Corporals, and Sergeants, Crime Scene Technicians and Crime Scene Analysts. All of them were served with Subpoenas with their scheduled dates and times. Most of the depositions were completed within dates ranging from October 21, 2014 - May 20, 2015.

However, causing us even more delays, a few officers did not show up to their scheduled dates. Mr. Kelley has had to re-serve them with a new date. On the second scheduled date again, a few officers did not show up. The alleged victim still hasn’t shown up and is currently residing in another state and refuses to return to Florida for a deposition in this case. How can my husband continue being held on a $1,100,000 bond in a case where the alleged victim won’t give a deposition? I hope you can understand our frustration in the fact that it has taken over 7 months to complete 11 out of 16 depositions.

Unfortunately in this case, John is not the only one being severely punished. After 14 previously unsuccessful pregnancies, on April 26, 2013, I gave birth to our little miracle, Lilith. She is our God sent Angel. With great pride and a saddened heart I’d like to tell you that Lilith took her first steps in our kitchen on Sunday, May 18, 2014 without her daddy there to catch her. When she was diagnosed with pneumonia and hospitalized for 2 nights in December 2014, the nurses in the ER attempted to administer an IV. During this very frightening experience for our then 20 month old little girl continuously screamed out “DADDY”! Lilith is now a beautiful 2 year old that sadly has had to start her life without the real presence of her Daddy. He has missed so many of milestones since his arrest less than a month before her 1st birthday. As any mother would, I’ve put on a happy face during both of her 2 birthdays without him. To no fault of his own, John has been denied his human right to be a father to Lilith. In this world, there are so many men that have children and refuse to step up. Here stands a good man, wanting to care for and raise our little girl and he has been completely denied that right for over 15 months.

In the summer of 2008, John was nearly destroyed emotionally, after his oldest daughter made the choice to move to Alabama with her birth mother. Lilith & I were a second chance for him, by creating a family, one based on love and trust. Florida had given us so many opportunities, a beautiful daughter, new careers, and many new friends. John had finally found work as a mechanic after he was laid off from Port Canaveral. I was working part-time as a CNA in a private home. And then suddenly, it was all gone. The state that had given us so much, denied us any further hope.

With John currently in jail, I have been forced to return to an extremely undesirable job as an exotic dancer. Unfortunately, this is the only way I am able to financial support our daughter on my own. John’s financial support of our family before his arrest, had allowed me to study for and become a Certified Nursing Assistant. Without his income, my part-time salary alone does not substantiate our family.

John Charles Haskell is a good man. Like all people, he is not without flaws. I’ve known this man for over 15 years. We have never been financially wealthy, sometimes scraping the bottom of the barrel to pay our bills. However, we love each other and our little girl. We’ve always stood by one another no matter what. He’s a loving, nurturing and caring father and a wonderfully loving husband who has always tried to provide for us. He deserves and needs to be at home with his family.

I used to have an enormous amount of faith in our justice system. I truly believed that it was the fairest in the world. I believed that the statute of the blind folded lady of justice stood for something, that all men are created equal, and that every citizen will get a fair trial. However, these past 15 extremely long and emotionally draining months have proven my misguided faith to be nothing but a product of my own naivety.

In 1894 the US Supreme Court made a decision and entered into law a simple Principle Phrases that states: “The law presumes that persons charged with crime are innocent until they are proven by competent evidence to be guilty”. This Principle Phrase has been in our laws for over a century. Why won’t our elected judges today adhering to it? Why is John being punished before trial or conviction?

John hasn’t always been the most upstanding citizen as you would have him. However, he has always, paid every fine ever handed to him, completed all volunteer work, and with one small exception (missing a court date), has always come to court.

I want to still believe in our justice system, the Constitution, and its amendments. I believe in rights, and laws, and freedom. It is my hope that you will read my letter, and hear my voice. The voice of a mother, and a wife. A woman with hope.

I know there is a chance that John may be proven guilty in a court of law, but it is my hope that he will be allowed his eighth amendment right to a bond amount that we can afford. I am not asking you to prove my husband innocence, only to assist me in protecting his rights and allow him come home to his family until his court date. I would appreciate any and all help you could provide to our family. If not for me, if only out of respect for the law and the Constitution, please help us. I will pray that my loving husband might be able to sit next to me holding our little girl again.

Thank you for your time. Thank you for reading this letter. And thank you in advance for any help you may find in your heart to give to my family.

Most Respectfully,

 

Mrs. Juanita Peggy Haskell                                                 pegg1019@yahoo.com                                                                             321-536-5262