Treasure Coast Man Arrested for Assault in Alleged ‘Good Samaritan’ Incident
An unusual Valentine’s Day story caught the attention of our Miami assault and battery criminal defense attorneys. A Feb. 16 article in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel says a man was arrested Sunday for attacking a couple celebrating Valentine’s Day. The unidentified man and woman said Larry Bert Sexton, 37, broke into their house and attacked both of them with his fists. Sexton and an unnamed acquaintance said they saw the man beating up the woman and tried to help. Law enforcement in St. Lucie County apparently sided with the couple, charging Sexton with two counts of battery, impersonating an officer and burglary of an occupied dwelling.
The incident happened around 4 a.m. early on Feb. 14. According to the newspaper, the man said he arrived at the home with flowers and carried the woman inside. About ten minutes later, he said, Sexton kicked down the door and announced that he was a sheriff’s deputy. Sexton then threw a punch that missed, followed the man into a bedroom and began punching him. The woman tried to pull Sexton away from the fight, but Sexton turned and began strangling her. After the fight, Sexton went into a house across the street. Sexton told police he and a resident had been watching the couple from that house. He said he saw them in an argument that turned violent; his companion said they saw a man beating up a woman. Police found no evidence to support that, the article said.
As West Palm Beach battery criminal defense lawyers, we are not so sure. The article doesn’t have enough detail to show who was telling the truth, but it’s easy to see another side to the story. For one thing, it’s a sad truth, and well-known to law enforcement, that victims of domestic violence often side with their abusers. If the man truly was beating the woman, it’s not unlikely that she would try to help cover it up after the fact, and even try to defend him from Sexton. The police said they found no evidence of a fight, but the fight with Sexton may have covered up evidence of a previous fight. While it was illegal for Sexton to lie about being a sheriff’s deputy, he may have been trying to scare the man. And if there was no intent to batter the couple or commit any other crime, the burglary charge is legally bogus and must be dropped.
At Law offices of Sebastian John Balliro, P.A., we know how to defend serious crimes like these because we’ve been working in the criminal justice system for more than a decade. Our partners are former prosecutors and public defenders, so we understand how cases are built on both sides -- prosecution and defense. Battery and assault are serious crimes that can be charged as felonies, depending on the circumstances and the prosecutor’s discretion. Our Fort Lauderdale assault and battery defense attorneys start every case by determining whether the facts support an argument of self-defense, defense of another or lack of intent to harm. If they do, we can argue for dropped charges, reduced charges or substantially reduced penalties that may better fit the facts of what happened.
If you’re accused of battery, assault or another serious crime, don’t wait before calling Balliro for help. For a free consultation, please call us toll-free from anywhere in Florida at 1-866-ARRESTED or send us a message through our site.
