Page 33 - Florida Sentinel 4-27-18

Local
Judge Orders Mental Evaluation Of Seminole Heights Murder Suspect
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Late Monday afternoon, the attorney representing Howell Emanuel Donaldson, III, filed a motion in his case. The attorneys are seeking a mental evaluation of Donaldson.
During a hearing Wednes- day morning, Hillsborough Circuit Judge Mark Wolfe approved the request. The case is on the Court docket for a sta- tus hearing May 31st.
Donaldson is being repre- sented by Assistant Public De- fender Charles J. Traina. Judge Wolfe also approved the request to have Dr. Richard A. Carpenter, Ph.D., a court-approved psy- chologist, to conduct the eval- uation.
In the motion asking the Court to appoint determine Donaldson’s mental compe- tency, Attorney Traina asked “the Court for the ap- pointment of an expert to de- termine the competency of the defendant.”
Attorney Traina further said he has “good-faith belief that the defendant suffers from mental health issues and does not have sufficient present ability to: appreciate the charges or allegations; appre- ciate the range and nature of penalties that may be imposed; understand the adversary na- ture of the legal process; dis- close to defense attorney facts pertinent to the proceedings at issue; or manifest appropriate court behavior; testify rele- vantly.
“Under the circumstances, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the defendant is not mentally competent to pro- ceed,” he wrote.
Donaldson was arrested on November 28, 2017. He is
HOWELL EMANUEL DONALDSON, III
accused of killing 4 people be- tween October 9th, and No- vember 14th, in the East Tampa community of Semi- nole Heights.
The arrest came about after Donaldson walked into the McDonald’s Restaurant near Ybor City and gave a bag con- taining a handgun to Ms. De- Landa Walker, his manager. She alerted police after the bag was opened and she realized it contained a gun.
For 51 days, the city was held hostage by an unknown gunman who stalked the streets of Seminole Heights. All of the victims were walking in the neighborhood when they were shot. Shell casings found at the scenes tied the murders together.
The four victims were: Benjamin Mitchell, 22, was shot 4 times on October 9th. The murder took place near N. 15th Street and E. Frierson Avenue. A video at a business captured the image of the hooded culprit. Mitchell
was shot at 9 p.m.
Ms. Monica Hoffa’s body
was discovered on the morning of Friday, October 13th, by a city worker in the 1000 block
of E. New Orleans Avenue. She was last seen walking near 11th Street and New Orleans going to meet a friend. She had been shot 3 times.
Police believe she was killed shortly before 9 p.m., on October 11th. Officers had re- sponded to the area in refer- ence to reports of shots fired.
The murder of Anthony Naiboa, 20, took place on Oc- tober 19th, shortly before 8 p.m. Naiboa, a young adult with Autism, had gotten off the bus at the wrong stop. He was walking north on 15th Street in the area of Wilder Avenue when he was killed.
Although officers were in the area and heard the gun- shot, the suspect slipped through their grasp. The first three victims were killed after dark.
The next murder occurred on November 14th, at 4:40 a.m. Ronald Felton, 60, was killed while crossing the street in the 1500 block of N. Ne- braska Avenue.
Records show that Don- aldson bought the gun and a box of ammunition from Shooter’s World, 116 E. Fletcher Avenue, on October 7th.
About Donaldson Donaldson was arrested
two weeks later.
A Tampa native, Donald-
son, 25, attended the public schools of Hillsborough County. He graduated from Alonso High School in 2011. He continued his education at St. John’s University. While at the private, Catholic institu- tion, he was a walk-on basket- ball player for a year. He earned his degree and gradu- ated from the university.
Prior to his arrest, Donald- son had no prior police records.
JAMES LEON JACKSON ... Charged with first-degree murder
DIANA MEDINA
... Body found last year
Man Faces First-Degree Murder Charge
A 68-year-old man has been charged with killing a woman last year. Her body was found in West Tampa last year.
On the afternoon of Septem- ber 26, 2017, the body of an unidentified woman was found near the corner of W. Spruce Street and N. Oregon Street. She was later identified as Ms. Diana Blumenberg Med- ina, 35, of Kissimmee.
Ms. Medina died as a result of manual strangulation and she had been stabbed several times.
Last Monday, detectives with the Tampa Police Department charged James Leon Jack- son with first-degree murder in the case. Detectives said the investigation led them to a house across the street from where the body was found.
Forensic evidence led police to Jackson, who reportedly knew the victim. Jackson had been in jail since October 2017, on unrelated drug possession charges. He is currently being held at the Hillsborough County Jail without bond.
UNCLE SANDY SAYS
The time you 18, 22, 25, 30 feel lonely is the time 3, 19, 41, 43 you most need 5, 8, 10, 12 to be by yourself. 35, 45, 52, 58
Armed Carjacker Who Shot At Victim Identified
Police have identified a man wanted in connection with a string of criminal events that ended in Plant City. The man- hunt began Wednesday.
According to police, the sus- pect has been identified as 43- year-old Majar L. Jones, of Orlando. Jones is described as 6’7” and weighs between 200 and 210 pounds. He was last seen wearing a green shirt and blue jeans. He was driving a stolen 2002 Ford F150 truck with a Florida License plate 9379TJ. Police said Jones is con- sidered armed and extremely dangerous.
He is wanted for grand theft auto, robbery carjacking with a firearm, aggravated assault with a weapon, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and grand theft.
According to police, at about 10:45 a.m., Wednesday, Jones
MAJAR L. JONES
entered the victim’s Ford truck, which was attached to a utility trailer. He reportedly took the truck and trailer.
The unidentified victim fol- lowed Jones to the Marathon Gas Station at 2851 Thonoto- sassa Road and attempted to block him from leaving.
At that point, Jones is alleged to have gotten out of the truck, confronted the victim, and shot
at the victim twice. The bullets struck the driver’s door of the victim’s truck. He was not in- jured.
Jones then returned to the stolen truck and drove away. A short time later, the trailer that had been attached to the truck was abandoned.
Police said the incident began with a carjacking in Orlando County Wednesday morning. The suspect then took a 2009 Cadillac in Polk County. That ve- hicle was found abandoned less than a mile away on Interstate 4, on Thonotosassa Road in Hills- borough County.
Law enforcement agencies in- volved in the manhunt includes the Hillsborough County Sher- iff’s Office, the Florida Highway Patrol, Plant City Police Depart- ment, Polk County Sheriff’s Of- fice, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Anyone coming in contact with Jones is advised to call 9-1-1
FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 23-A