State Attorney will decide next step in election fistfight

Historic City News received a copy of the incident report from yesterday’s fistfight outside the Southeast Branch of the St Johns County Public Library located at 6658 US-1 South in Saint Augustine, between a candidate for Mosquito Control Board and an officer of the Executive Committee of the St Johns County Republican Party.

According to the St Johns County Sheriff’s report filed by Detective Jason Kroul, the committeeman, 51-year-old David “Eric” West, is 5’11’ tall. West lives on Clovelly Lane in St Augustine, according to the report.

The candidate, 62-year-old Merrill Paul Roland, is 5’8″ tall. He is disabled, walks with a cane, and wears a prosthetic leg. The injuries sustained by Roland during the fight caused him to request to be transported to Flagler Hospital at about 3:49 p.m. October 27th, for medical evaluation and treatment. Roland lives on Old Dixie Drive in St Augustine.

Statements were taken from each man by investigators and they are surprisingly similar — except for the part about who did what, on which they are not surprisingly opposite.

Roland says West spit in his face. In the West version, Roland spit in West’s face. Roland says it was West who was primed for a fight, and that he never struck West. In the statement given to sheriff’s investigators, West said Roland began physically shoving him, and that Roland attempted to punch him — but missed.

Witness statements were taken from two individuals who are also officials with the St Johns County Republican Party. They generally support the West version of what happened. Roland, on the other hand, told law enforcement that he recorded the entire conversation between him and West using his cell phone. In the West statement he acknowledges that, leading up to the physical exchange, Roland removed his cellular phone from his hip and told him that he had recorded their entire conversation. West reported that Roland told him that he was going to file a complaint against him; presumably with the Republican Party of Florida who sanctions local Party activities.

West told Detective Jason Kroul that a verbal exchange of profanity and name calling escalated to the face-spitting event. At that point, West stated that he “struck Roland against the left side of his face with a closed fist”.

“As Roland was falling backwards, he produced a Taser and deployed it at West,” Kroul wrote in his report. “One probe hit West’s shirt at his belt line and the other probe missed. West did not feel electricity.”

Roland reported to emergency medical dispatchers that he was having chest pain after the attack. By the time Deputy Justin Cash made his arrival at the library, he reported that Roland was being attended to by Fire Rescue Station 11. According to St Johns County Fire Rescue, Roland requested transportation to Flagler Hospital having just been “struck in the face” by West.

Deputy Cash recovered more than 25 photographs at the scene and identified other evidence collected, including the Taser probe that struck West and several serial-numbered pieces of confetti that are released when a Taser is deployed; used to identify the weapon.

An affidavit charging the commission of first-degree battery was signed by Roland against West; likewise, West signed an affidavit against Roland charging the commission of first-degree battery against him.

The incident report, a copy of each witness statement, an evidence report and the individual sworn statements will be forwarded to the offices of R. J. Larizza, State Attorney for the Seventh Judicial Circuit. An assistant state attorney will investigate and recommend whether or not to pursue charges against either combatant.