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Police Briefs 1/28/21

Clay County Sheriff's Office
Posted 1/27/21

Middleburg couple charged with joining siege at U.S. CapitolJACKSONVILLE – Two Middleburg residents turned themselves into the FBI to face charges connected to the Jan. 6 siege on the U.S. …

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Police Briefs 1/28/21


Posted

Middleburg couple charged with joining siege at U.S. Capitol

JACKSONVILLE – Two Middleburg residents turned themselves into the FBI to face charges connected to the Jan. 6 siege on the U.S. Capitol.
Rachael Lynn Pert, 40, and Dana Joe Winn, 45, faced a federal judge Tuesday after they were seen on social media posts travelling to Washington, D.C. and participating in the attack on the Capitol while Congress was meeting to confirm Joe Biden’s presidential victory.
Both were charged with unlawful entry on a restricted building or ground and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
The couple share a home in Middleburg and deputies found items related to the Capitol, including clothes seen on video and an American flag Winn was seen waving inside the building.
They became suspects after Pert’s co-worker at a Middleburg convenience store recognized her on a flyer that showed the riot. She alerted authorities.
The couple were released and ordered to return for a hearing on Friday, Jan. 29. The judge said they had to wear an ankle monitor and they must move apart from each other. They also were ordered to stay away from Washington, D.C. and not use alcohol or drugs.
With the arrests, there now have been 10 people arrested from Florida related to the siege.
Pert was arrested in Clay County in 2016 after she was charged with punching another woman in the eye. Winn has been arrested in Clay County several times, including a 2019 battery charge that listed Pert as the victim.

Macclenny man arrested following two separate cars chases

GREEN COVE SPRINGS – A man was arrested for possessing marijuana and drug paraphernalia following two different police chases on Jan. 19.
Christopher Luis Gaston, 33, of Macclenny, was charged with possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, resisting a police officer, attempting to flee law enforcement and driving with a suspended license after a deputy with the Clay County Sheriff’s Office noticed Gaston’s tag light wasn’t properly lit.
Gaston took off westbound on State Road 16 when the deputy turned on his lights and siren. At one point, according to CCSO, Gaston made approximately six tight circles in the middle of the highway before resuming westbound at a high rate of speed.
The deputy stopped the pursuit for safety reasons, but Gaston was seen by another deputy on State Road 218. He also gave chase until Gaston turned onto Eagle Point Road and stopped.
After refusing the comply with the deputy’s commands to step away from the car, Gaston was arrested. Deputies found a marijuana grinder in the front seat of the car, and they found a partially-smoked “blunt” one deputy said he saw Gaston throw away as he stepped out of the car.
Gaston, who also got a ticket for not having a sufficient tag light, remained in the Clay County Jail after his bond was set at $54,761.

Man jailed for firing pistol at woman during road rage incident

MIDDLEBURG – A man was arrested for firing a gun at another car in what the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said was the result of road rage.
Brandon James Range, 22, of Middleburg, was arrested on Jan. 22 after deputies said he shot at a car on Blanding Boulevard on Jan. 8.
According to the affidavit for arrest, a woman said Range got behind her as they drove north on Blanding. She said Range reached through his sunroof and fired a pistol at her while she was driving. When the two stopped at the traffic light at Blanding and Bolton Road, Range got out of his car, banged on her window, demanded her to get out of her car – all while he still had the pistol. He eventually yelled at other motorists before speeding away.
Range was charged with discharging a firearm from a moving vehicle within 1,000 feet of another person and aggravated assault. Deputies added charges of resisting an officer with violence and battery on a law enforcement officer when Range briefly fought with deputies who were serving the arrest warrant.
Range eventually was identified by two fingerprints left on the victim’s window, as well as footage obtained from a FDOT traffic camera.
According to CCSO, video shows the victim changed lanes in front of Range’s car, which apparently triggered the altercation.
Range, whose bond was set at $115,012, also has been arrested for firing a gun at a woman after stealing the money in a marijuana purchase. The woman returned to Range’s house for her money and was chased away when he fired shots into the air, according to county records.

CCSO uses PIT maneuver to end high-speed chase

ORANGE PARK – A man trying to run away from the police was caught after a successful PIT maneuver on Valderia Drive.
Horace O’Neal Jackson III, 31, of Jacksonville, was charged with resisting arrest, reckless driving, attempting to flee and elude with lights and siren active, driving with a suspended or revoked license for at least the third time and possession of Xanax and marijuana.
According to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called after residents reported a black sedan driving recklessly and slamming into cars in the area of College Boulevard and Jefferson Avenue. Jackson reportedly tried to speed away from deputies, including running at red light at Blairmore and Blanding boulevards.
The deputy used the PIT maneuver to send Jackson’s car into the front yard of a house on Valderia. Jackson then tried to run away, but he was tackled while scaling a fence.