In the Courts

The following felony cases have either been tried in a court of law or have been settled without trial and are considered closed. 

• Sydney Gore was sentenced to two days in county jail after pleading no contest to criminal mischief and trespass. He was also ordered to pay court fees. Gore was arrested in August of 2021 after the manager of a local orange grove reported Gore was entering the property without permission and had removed boards from a structure/culvert multiple times causing the grove to flood. He said pumping the water out cost the grove several thousand dollars. In addition, he had to repair the fence repeatedly.
• Rene Hampton was sentenced to six months in county jail followed by three years probation after pleading no contest to eight counts of forgery. Hampton was arrested in April after an Okeechobee man reported she had stolen checks from his checkbook and used them to take money from his trust fund. He explained she cleans his house and had access to the checkbook. The checks were traced, and some were found to have been deposited directly into Hampton’s account. The victim also provided the sheriff’s office with access to his Facebook messenger where he had received messages from Hampton stating, “Do what you gotta do.” And “Sorry about the drama.”
• Toemyka Peterson was sentenced to three years probation and fines after pleading no contest to engaging in public aid fraud. She was arrested in July after a report that she failed to report a change in her circumstances in order to continue receiving public assistance.
• Kayla Harris was sentenced to one year in county jail after pleading no contest to possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia. Harris was arrested in June during a traffic stop.
• Chad McWhorter was sentenced to two years and six months in state prison after pleading no contest to battery by strangulation and trespass. Charges of burglary, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon were dropped. McWhorter was arrested in March after his ex-girlfriend accused him of breaking into her home and arming himself with a firearm as he did so. She told deputies he came to her home at about 3:15 a.m. and knocked on the window, kicked the door in and came into her bedroom and choked her, telling her not to contact law enforcement.
• Raul Pineda was sentenced to two years drug offender probation after pleading no contest to possession of cocaine. Adjudication was withheld. Pineda was arrested in October after a detective saw him snorting cocaine during a Mexican rodeo at the Ag-Civic Center.
• Brandon Goddard was sentenced to six months in county jail followed by two years probation after pleading no contest to high-speed fleeing. A DUI charge was dropped. Goddard, 24, was arrested in February after a call reported a car driving all over the road at a high rate of speed. The caller, Sheriff Steve Whidden of Hendry County, said the white Chevy Caprice was near the 1200 block of State Road 710 and was headed towards town. He said he was following the vehicle. Goddard was finally stopped near Coco Farms on State Road 70 West.
• Brenden Christmas was sentenced to two years probation after pleading no contest to the attempted purchase of a controlled substance without a prescription, altering or destroying evidence and sale or delivery of cannabis. Adjudication was withheld. Christmas, 20, was arrested in June during an undercover operation by the narcotics task force.
• Jose Perez was sentenced to two years probation after pleading no contest to child neglect. Adjudication was withheld. Perez was arrested in December 2021 after a toddler in his care was injured.
• Jared Gahley was sentenced to two years, four months and 24 days in state prison after pleading no contest to two counts battery on a law officer, one count battery and one count resisting an officer. Gahley was arrested in March of 2021 after he was seen punching a woman multiple times. When law enforcement attempted to intervene, Gahley pushed and shoved them, elbowing one of the men in the shoulder.
• Randall Milner was sentenced to one year and one month in state prison after pleading no contest to fleeing law enforcement, reckless driving, possession of methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Milner was arrested in April.

A no contest plea does not mean the defendant admits guilt. It means he/she chooses not to fight the charges for one reason or another. The effect of the plea is virtually identical to that of a guilty plea.

Withheld adjudication generally refers to a decision by a judge to put a person on probation without an adjudication of guilt. It means an individual is not found guilty legally by the court. If the person successfully completes the terms of probation and has no subsequent offenses, no further action will be taken on the case, and the offense for which adjudication was withheld is typically not considered a prior conviction for purposes of habitual offender sentencing.