Summary:
As the defendant was parking, his co-defendant sees a woman sitting on a nearby bench on the phone. He steps out, grabs the phone from her hand, gets back in the car, and tells the defendant to drive away. However, the State ended up dropping the charges.
Facts of the Case:
A 23-year-old man was driving around the Town of Palm Beach with his co-defendant, who’s a 24-year-old man. The two men ultimately decide to go to the beach. However as the defendant was parking his car, his co-defendant sees an 80-year-old woman sitting on a nearby bench. She had her phone in her hand, raised to her ear, and was speaking to someone. That’s when the co-defendant decides to get out of the car, walk towards the woman, and snatch the phone right from her hand. He then gets back inside the defendant’s car, through the passenger side, and tells him to drive away.
The woman then goes back to her house, where she calls the police. Once the police officers arrive, they go inside the woman’s house and speak with her. She explains that her phone was an iPhone 8 inside a black case, worth about $800. She also explains that she can identify the person who snatched her phone from her as a white male with dirty blonde hair, about 20 years old, and wearing a blue shirt and khaki pants. She didn’t see what the defendant, the driver, looked like, but she told the police that the car he was driving was a red, older model, and a small compact vehicle.
After using the Town of Palm Beach’s surveillance cameras, a suspect vehicle—a red 2011 Kia—was identified, which ended up being the defendant’s vehicle. The police stopped the defendant’s car at their traffic stop, and he admitted to committing the robbery. He also stated that he was remorseful of the situation and didn’t realize that the victim was an elderly woman.
The police also find his co-defendant. They go to his rental apartment and speak with him, where he admits to committing the robbery as well. However, he explains that he had stolen phones on 5 other occasions because he didn’t have a job and needed money. The co-defendant had been selling the stolen phones at a local cell phone shop. He also told the officers that the victim’s phone was in his bathroom cabinet, and they then retrieved it.
The defendant was ultimately charged with Robbery by Sudden Snatching as well as Grand Theft because the property was valued at over $750. Both charges are felonies.
Process and Result:
After the bonds for each charge were set and the judge issued an order finding probable cause, there was an order of no contact issued. The defendant was first assigned to a public defender, but then he filed a motion to withdraw, so lead attorney David Tarras took over the case. He helped the defendant file a notice of appearance and a waiver of arraignment because he decided to plead not guilty.
Final Result:
Eventually, the State investigated the defendant’s offenses and background and decided to offer him entry into a Pretrial Intervention Program. The program contained some special conditions, such as no contact with his co-defendant as well as the victim, and proof of employment. The defendant also had to complete theft abatement and restitution was ordered.
Once the defendant successfully completed all of the conditions with the Pretrial Intervention Agreement, the charges against him were nolle prossed, meaning dropped, and his case was dismissed.