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GAINESVILLE/HIGH SPRINGS ‒ Ricardo Lamar Neal, 31, of High Springs, was sentenced on Monday, Oct. 24, to 19.65 months in prison on a charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, with credit for 160 days served.

Neal was arrested on Feb. 21, after allegedly confronting a man in the 14300 block of Northwest 155^th Place in Alachua. Neal claimed that the man had followed him on the highway. Neal allegedly became upset, grabbed a pistol and fired one round into the air. A shell casing was later found at the location. Neal then allegedly pointed the pistol at a crowd of people at the location and told the man, “You don’t want this,” before leaving the area.

The victim told law enforcement that he did not want to press charges, so no aggravated assault charges were filed regarding the threat to shoot, but Alachua Police Department (APD) later filed charges of firing a weapon in public and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Officers learned that Neal was a convicted felon who is not permitted to possess a firearm and that he had a warrant out of Alachua County for felony domestic battery, which was later dropped.

Within a few minutes, the car was located near Walmart off Northwest 23^rd Street in Gainesville. When a Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officer approached the car, Neal allegedly ran. When an Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ASO) K-9 deputy told him to stop running, Neal reportedly jumped over a wall.

Citizens reported seeing Neal running into the Walmart store, where he was located wearing different clothes and a hat, all of which still had the tags attached. Neal was detained in the store but then began throwing up.

Neal was taken to the hospital, where an APD officer arrived with an arrest warrant. ASO deputies added a charge of resisting without violence and the felony warrant. GPD found a gun in the vehicle and charged Neal with three counts of possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon and one count of carrying a concealed weapon without a permit.

In May, Neal entered pleas of nolo contendere to the charge of resisting arrest from ASO and 15 counts of violating pre-trial release conditions in the domestic battery case by contacting the victim, all misdemeanors. He was sentenced to 180 days in the Alachua County Jail.

The APD charge of firing a weapon in public was dropped and the APD charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon was consolidated into the GPD case.

Neal entered a plea of nolo contendere to one charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Judge James Colaw sentenced him to 19.65 months in state prison. The other firearm charges from GPD were dropped as part of the plea deal.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ Darren Phillip Brown, 24, and Jenipher Lisbet Milan, 25, both from the Miami area, were arrested on Wednesday, Nov. 9, in High Springs after allegedly trying to pawn a stolen laptop.

Brown and Milan allegedly pawned a computer in High Springs on Oct. 24. The pawn store owner told a High Springs Police Department (HSPD) officer that when they turned on the computer to verify that it worked, he saw personal information belonging to another unknown individual, indicating possible fraud. The pawn shop owner contacted law enforcement, and it was determined that the pawn form showed Milan’s name but Brown’s thumbprint and signature. The owner was advised to contact law enforcement if either or both returned to the store.

On Nov. 8, both Brown and Milan returned to the pawn shop to collect the computer, but the computer had already been seized by Florida Department of Law Enforcement pending a search warrant. HSPD officers responded to the pawn shop and saw both Brown and Milan in a vehicle in the parking lot. They told Brown he was being detained. He allegedly ran from the officer, but she was able to apprehend him and put him in handcuffs.

Milan and Brown both reportedly told a detective they didn’t know who owned the computer and Brown allegedly refused to identify himself. After he was told a Rapid ID system was being brought to identify him, he reportedly gave his name and told the officer that his ID was in his pocket. The officers also reported that the vehicle they were driving was not registered to either one of them. A second laptop and two cell phones were found in the vehicle, along with nine credit cards, all with different names on them. None of the cards matched either defendant. The officers wrote that they believed the pair is involved in racketeering and further charges may be forthcoming.

Brown has been charged with fraudulently pawning an item, possession of stolen debit/credit cards, resisting arrest without violence and obstruction by a disguised person. He has a criminal history in Arizona and is wanted on a warrant out of Texas for human trafficking. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $145,000.

Milan has been charged with fraudulently pawning an item and possession of stolen debit/credit cards. She has no criminal history. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $75,000.

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ALACHUA ‒ A convicted felon is back in jail after attempted robbery. Austin Michael Croy, 32, was arrested on Monday, Nov. 14, and charged with armed robbery after allegedly trying to rob an Alachua phone store while displaying a gun.at

Croy allegedly took two Bluetooth speakers from Healthy Phone Tech located at 15202 N.W. 147^th Drive in Alachua and tried to walk out of the store without paying for them. When the clerk told him he had to pay for them, Croy allegedly put the items down. Croy then walked back toward the clerk and lifted his shirt, displaying a gun, which was later described the authorities as a “gun/stun gun,” on his hip.

Croy left the store and went to his vehicle, where he reportedly put on a hooded jacket and tied a bandanna on his face to hide his identity and tried to re-enter the store. However, while he was outside, the clerk and some customers had locked the front door and hidden at the back of the store.

Croy then allegedly started beating on the glass front door and was still pounding on the door when officers arrived and arrested him.

Croy has 11 felony convictions and has served one state prison sentence.

Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $150,000 in this case.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ The Newberry City Commission on Nov. 14 approved an ordinance amending the City’s Alcoholic Beverages regulations on first reading in a 4-1 vote with Commissioner Monty Farnsworth casting the dissenting vote citing concerns over liability.

The new law, if passed in a second public hearing, will allow for open consumption of beer and wine within a defined area of downtown Newberry during special events sanctioned by the City. The ordinance limits consumption of beer and wine to that purchased from merchants within the approved zone or a licensed vendor operating within the zone during the special event.

The area specified by this ordinance is a two-block area of the downtown district, plus the area south along the Seaboard Drive right-of-way. City sanctioned events include the Newberry Main Street Organization’s Fall and Spring Festivals, but are not limited to those events.

The special events offering open consumption shall be set by Resolution of the City Commission, either annually for multiple events or on an individual event basis.

Individuals consuming beer and wine in the zone will be identified by some means, such as an event wristband or special “Sip and Shop” cups. The ordinance will also include penalties for violating the Code.

Cottage Industry Permit

In other business, the Commission approved a Cottage Industry Special Permit application by Brittany Huffman, owner of Southeast Perimeter Solutions, Inc., to allow an electrical contractor business ancillary to an existing single-family residence within the Agricultural (A) zoning district.

The approval came in the face of existing violations on site, which are in violation of the criteria for conducting a Cottage Industry. The business has been operating on-site in violation of City Code since at least 2020, more than two additional employees are working at the site, and the accessory structures that support the business are in excess of the 50 percent of residential structure limitation as outlined in the City’s code.  The property is located at 27317 N.W. 78^th Avenue.

“Cottage industries are uses which are also a form of home occupation, but due to the intensity of the use, are only allowed within the Agricultural (A) zoning district,” said Planning and Economic Development Director Bryan Thomas.

Thomas said, “because the business has been operating for several years without complaint from neighbors, staff does not believe that granting this special permit will negatively impact the health, safety and welfare of the residents of the city of Newberry.”

The special permit will sunset in five years and will be reviewed again at that time.

Changes to P&Z and HARB Appointments

Under the direction of the City Commission, City of Newberry staff will be preparing an ordinance changing the appointment process for the Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Board and Historic Architectural Review Board (HARB). Under the new procedure, board member appointments will be reduced to two years as opposed to the three-year terms currently in place, board members will be assigned seat numbers and the mayor will chair both meetings as an ex-officio non-voting member. Openings will continue to be publicly noticed when they become available, but criteria will be developed for the review and ranking. Staff will present their findings to the Commission for a final decision on appointments to both boards. Applicants will still be able to address the Commission prior to the Commission’s vote on board appointments.

Five Percent Salary Increases

The Commission has agreed to five percent salary increases for the city manager and city clerk. Five percent is the highest amount the Commission could approve. It is expected that City staff will provide a resolution at the next Commission meeting to formalize the action.

In other business, Duke Energy has pledged $20,000 toward the $50,000 cost of a feasibility study on an ag-tech business incubator. City Manager Mike New said the City also plans to seek funding from the Department of Economic Opportunity to help make up the rest of the funds needed for the study.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ It has been a long journey—one that Clarence Hope Sr. had never imagined. A truck driver by trade, a husband, and a father to three young children, Hope had no inkling of what was to come and how it would change his life. But in January 2010 he began having health problems including trouble breathing and extreme fatigue causing multiple trips to the Emergency Room (ER).

Over the next 12 years Hope would go through a series of tests, misdiagnosis, and multiple hospital stays. At one point he was told by hospital doctors that he had only days to live. But thanks to the UF Health Heart and Vascular Care unit, High Springs resident Hope has a new lease on life after receiving a heart transplant in October 2022.

When his health problems first appeared in 2010, Hope was initially diagnosed as having pneumonia, but the problems persisted and the symptoms worsened including swelling of the legs, dizziness, rapid heartbeats, chest discomfort and issues with internal organs.

Continued tests and hospital stays were inconclusive and he was diagnosed with a variety of ailments with no conclusive proof and no relief. At one point they claimed it was caused by STD's or AIDS, which Hope knew was wrong.

Finally, after a year of tests and frustrations, another doctor said the hospital had been reading the signs wrong and that the issue was his heart, a condition termed cardiomyopathy, which is a disease of the heart muscle that makes it harder for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body.

Ultimately, cardiomyopathy can lead to heart failure and death. At first Hope was being treated with medications. Later, his medical team put in a pacemaker, a small device that's surgically implanted in the chest to help control the heartbeat and to prevent the heart from beating too slowly.

For a while, things seem to improve. Hope’s primary care physician, Doctor Nasir Ahmed of High Springs Pediatric and Primary Care, monitored his condition in between hospital stays and tests. Hope was able to return to work part time and do activities with his family, watching the kids while his wife Marion worked.

But this came to an end one day when Hope was talking to friends while sitting on his riding lawnmower. Suddenly, the pacemaker seized up, sending a shock through his body and knocking him unconscious onto the ground.

After another extended hospital stay and repairs to the pacemaker, Hope developed gout, which was treated with steroids, but other issues complicated the problem. During another trip to the ER, his blood sugar registered high at 138 although Hope had no history of diabetes. He developed gall bladder problems due to his enlarged heart, which was pressing against the gallbladder. Also, his other organs were being affected and beginning to fail.

In 2017, due to gall bladder issues, doctors installed a biliary drain. Also called a biliary stint, it is a thin, hollow, flexible tube with several small holes along the sides that is used when too much bile collects in the bile ducts. If something is blocking the bile duct, bile can back up into the liver and start causing multiple organ failures.

As time passed, his condition did not improve and actually worsened. As 2018 began, Hope received devastating news. Doctors at the hospital said he was septic and nothing could be done. They suggested he gather his family and friends to say goodbye and he would probably not last the weekend.

“That news was gut wrenching,” Hope said. “I was suddenly facing my own mortality and would never have a chance to see my children grow.” Not wanting to die in the hospital, Hope’s wife took him home to be with family.

One of his first stops to say goodbye was to his physician, Nasir Ahmed, who had monitored Hope’s health for eight years. Ahmed refused to accept the hospital’s diagnosis and was dismayed that they couldn’t diagnose the problem. Ahmed reached out to a friend, Mustafa Ahmed, a leading cardiology surgeon at Shands.

The following day, Hope received a call from the surgeon stating that if he could go to Shands ER the following day, his team would reevaluate his situation and admit him to Shands’ cardiology unit. The next day after that, Hope awoke in the hospital to find himself in a room full of doctors. The lead doctor asked Hope if he wanted to live. When Hope replied, “of course,” the doctor fist bumped Hope and told his team, “Let’s go guys, we got work to do.”

With Hope's heart only working at two percent, doctors installed an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP), which is a therapeutic device that helps the heart pump more blood as a temporary fix. Their realization was that Hope’s heart had to be replaced, but unfortunately there were no donor hearts available.

To keep Hope alive, a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) was surgically installed until a heart could become available. A LAVD is a pump that for patients who have reached end-stage heart failure. The battery-operated mechanical pump helps the left ventricle pump blood to the rest of the body to keep the patient alive. During this time in 2018, Hope spent almost five months in the hospital.

It would be almost four years of being on the wait list for a heart transplant, when on Oct. 2, 2022, Hope received a call that a transplant was available. Within an hour he was at Shands with the operating room ready.

Within three weeks from the surgery, Hope is up with no problems and no signs of rejection of the new heart. Marion Hope expressed their gratitude to all the medical staff at Shands and their primary care physician who refused to give up on him.

“We are also eternally grateful to the family that provided the donor heart,” said Marion Hope. “We know it was a great loss to their family, but they provided life to another family.”

Marion Hope said that the rules of donorship prevent both the donor and the recipient from knowing each other’s identity for a year. “We can correspond with letters and they can decide after the year whether to establish contact with us,” said Marion Hope. “We hope they will so we can tell them how much this meant to our family”.

Now, Clarence Hope, Sr., has a new lease on life and the future with his wife and children that he dreamed of.

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ALACHUA ‒ For the second straight year, Santa Fe High School is the winner of the Class 4A Volleyball State Championship. The Raiders (29-2) took down Academy of the Holy Names (22-5) in four sets at Polk State College in Winter Haven to claim their second consecutive state title on Nov. 12. This is the first time Santa Fe faced the Academy of the Holy Names since Santa Fe swept the Jaguars in last year’s semifinals when they went on to beat Calvary Christian Academy for their first crown in the school’s history.

Under the direction of Coach Eric Marshall, the Santa Fe Raiders played four sets in the Championship game. Early in the first set, it was a back-and-forth battle between the teams, 8-6, until the momentum shifted in the Raiders’ favor with an 8-0 run, stretching the score to 15-6. The Jaguars attempted to close the gap but fell short 25-13.

The Jaguars stepped up in the second set and forced a Santa Fe timeout after leading 8-6. After the timeout, the Jaguars didn’t let up, stretching the score to 22-14. The Raiders never gave up and fought their way back into the game 22-19. But, in the end, the Jaguars took set two, 25-21. “The second set was lost due to errors in our playing,” said Marshall. “We gave them 10 free points. We talked about the team calming down and reminded them to take a deep breath and focus on their playing.”

The Raiders responded and dominated the court, taking an 8-2 lead early in the third set. Sparking the rally were seniors Jalyn Stout and Anisa Dorlouis. Both delivered multiple kills while the defense shut down the Jaguars, resulting in the Raiders winning the set, 25-12.

In the fourth set, Santa Fe went ahead 12-5 early on, highlighted by Miya Thomas’ seven service points and an ace. The domination continued as the Raiders pulled ahead 23-13, paced by Stouts’ five digs and five kill assists. Stout finished with 28 kills, 17 digs, 13 assists and two aces.

Thomas added 23 digs, nine assists, nine service points and two aces. Anisa Dorlouis had 18 assists, 15 digs, 12 kills and one ace. 

Senior Jalyn Stout played a pivotal role in the win, including the match-winning kill to close out the victory in style. Stout has helped lead the team in both championships with over 1,500 kills in her career at Santa Fe, as well as over 1,000 digs. Saturday’s game was the fourth time in five seasons Santa Fe has advanced to the state championship match, finishing runner-up in 2018 (6A) and 2019 (4A) before winning its first title last year.

“Winning two championships has been an incredible feeling for both me and the team, but it is also somewhat bittersweet since I am losing five great senior players this year, including Jaylen and Anisa.”

Stout is headed to college at Costal Carolina University while Dorlouis is going to the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

“I have known these girls since they were 12, and I coached them in Gainesville Juniors Volleyball,” said Marshall. “For them to go out and win back-to-back state titles is a big deal. That locker room got emotional for the girls and me after the game.

“They are a special group of girls, so while it’s bittersweet, I am happy I did it with them,” said Marshall. “I have to give a shoutout to the crowd that came down to support us. They have been here all year long and for several hundred to make the trip on a Saturday afternoon is just incredible.

Marshall said that student “Rowdy Raiders” made the difference and “Coach 6” kept the crowd pumped up all year long. “We have something special here at Santa Fe, from our boosters, to fans, to an awesome administration in Principal Tim Wright and Athletic Director Michel Faulk,” said Marshall.

Santa Fe High School Athletic Director Michele Faulk added, “Sweet to repeat!” About the win Faulk said, “So sweet to see a good group of kids be successful on the court. It’s bittersweet because the senior group is special and have left a legacy that will be here forever.

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