Jealous Attack Led to Crash, Jurors Told
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Vol. 101 No. 57 Wednesday, May 12, 2010 50¢ Plus tax Fun and Games: Gang Free Bike Fest Jealous attack led to crash, OHS boys soccer team honored jurors told ... Page 14 By Eric Kopp Okeechobee News Pedestrian struck The stage was set that by car on SR 70 March afternoon in 2009 for something bad to hap- ... Page 3 pen. James Mullin and his girlfriend, Angela Gehle, OHS graduates were fi ghting. They were James do well in college fi ghting because Mullin Mullin was jealous of Angela’s es- softball ... Page 16 tranged husband, Anthony Richard Gehle— even though the couple had been separated Okeechobee News/Eric Kopp for two years. Lake Levels Detective Bill Maerki of the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Offi ce holds his Harley- When the fi ghting fi nally ended, Anthony Davidson motorcycle steady while his wife Ellen Maerki throws and catches a wa- ‘Tony’ Gehle, 24, was dead and Mullin was 15.15 feet ter-fi lled balloon during the balloon toss game at the Saturday, May 8, Gang Free on the run. Bike Fest held in Flagler Park. ... see Page 2 Last Year: 11.02 feet See TRIAL — Page 2 6SRQVRUHG%\ OUA approves settlement with developer 3RJH\·V)DPLO\5HVWDXUDQW By Pete Gawda had questions about fi re hydrants fi re hydrants. Since 2002 a total of ford calculated that 122 additional 63DUURWW$YH Okeechobee News the board could not answer. This $494,736 has been collected for fi re hydrants would be needed month the answer to those ques- that purpose and $218,245 was at an expected cost of $698,588. At their meeting on Tuesday, tions was presented as staff gave spent for a total of 84 fi re hydrants. If the 50 cents per bill generates May 11 the Okeechobee Utility a detailed report on fi re hydrant In addition, John Hayford, OUA’s $55,000 per year it will take almost See page 4 for information about Authority (OUA) Board of Direc- installation and maintenance. The executive director, presented maps 13 years to install those proposed how to contact this newspaper. tors were presented information board was presented with a chart of the entire OUA system showing 122 fi re hydrants. on fi re hydrants that would have that showed how much money the location of existing and pro- There were 28 fi re hydrants in- answered a lot of customers’ newszap.com was set aside each year since 2002 posed fi re hydrants. The proposed stalled in 2009, the largest number questions had it been available Free Speech Free Ads for fi re hydrants, how much was locations did not cover some of any year. Mr. Hayford said that last month. They also approved a actually spent on fi re hydrants subdivisions such as Taylor Creek in the future OUA crews would try settlement with one of the devel- each year and how many fi re hy- Isles, Basswood and Oak Park be- to install around 30 fi re hydrants a opers that is behind on his devel- drants were installed each year. It cause those subdivisions do not year. oper agreement payments. has been the policy of OUA since have large enough water mains to These fi gures pertain to existing Last month the meeting hall 2002 to set aside 50 cents each support fi re hydrants. Adding a fi re was fi lled with customers who month from each customer for hydrant every 1,000 feet, Mr. Hay- See OUA— Page 13 Se Habla ® Español 2 Okeechobee News May 12, 2010 - / 1RZ2SHQDW /DZQ(TXLSPHQW5HSDLU//& WK$YH 6: 4XDOLW\6PDOO(QJLQH5HSDLUDW %HKLQG0RUJDQ¶V)XUQLWXUH 5HDVRQDEOH3ULFHV 3LFNXS 'HOLYHU\$YDLODEOH 0)$0306DW$030&ORVHG6XQGD\ /HRQDUG8SWKHJURYH2ZQHU Okeechobee News/Eric Kopp Bike Fest (Above) Phil Conroy of Okeechobee thrilled Aldo Lombardo, M.D., FACS the crowd on Saturday, May 8, at the fourth annual Gang Free Bike Fest as he smoked Board Certified Plastic Surgeon the rear tire of his Harley-Davidson motor- cycle in the burnout pit. Helping Mr. Controy b~xxv{Éuxx fÑxv|tÄá is Marc Sandlin, who emceed the one-day event. (At right) Taylor Davis shoved ‘em in Good Thru 5/31/2010 as fast as she could and she went on to win the kids’ doughnut eating contest. Breast Augmentation $3,999 reportedly hit Mr. Gehle several more times Tummy Tuck $6,450 for “... still talking ... about me,” stated an (Some Restrictions Apply) TRIAL arrest report by Detective Ted Van Deman Call us to schedule your consultation in Jupiter! Continued From Page 1 of the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Offi ce (OCSO). Mullin fl ed the area and was fi nally (561) 747-1232 arrested on June 7, 2009, in Pinellas County www.allureplasticsurgery.com In Okeechobee Circuit Court Tuesday, as he prepared to board the 44-foot Hatteras May 11, jurors heard how Mr. Gehle took charter boat “Quality Time” to go fi shing in his daughter, Catelyn, to see her mother on the Gulf. March 12, 2009. They heard how Mullin tried While Mullin was on the lam, Catelyn his best to goad Mr. Gehle into a fi ght but was undergoing surgeries for the numerous when the much larger man would not take lacerations to her tiny face. Her aunt, Amber the bait, Mullin hit him anyway. Anthony, suffered a back injury in the crash. With blood streaming from a cut over It was pointed out to the jury that Catelyn his left eye, Mr. Gehle told his sister-in-law was not wearing a seat belt when the crash he wanted to get his then-5-year-old daugh- occurred. When queried Tuesday morning, ter out of there. As Mr. Gehle tried to leave Ms. Anthony told the jury that she had rid- Mullin’s home in Oak Park, the still enraged den with Mr. Gehle “thousands of times” Mullin apparently jumped onto the hood of and that he was always careful to secure his Mr. Gehle’s 2004 red Toyota. daughter in a seat belt. But on that day, she “Mullin was trying to punch Tony and said there wasn’t time because he wanted to trying to hit him in the face,” Assistant State get his daughter away from Mullin. Attorney Don Richardson told the jury in his Esdras Gomez, 33, dressed in an orange opening statement. Okeechobee County Jail jumpsuit, said he Mr. Richardson went on to call Mullin, had no time to react and plowed into the who is charged with one count of man- driver’ side door of the red Toyota. Gomez slaughter and two counts of culpable negli- was not charged in the accident. However, gence with personal injury, a “lunatic.” he was arrested on Aug. 18, 2009, on charg- “He (Mullin) wanted to fi ght, but Tony es unrelated to the crash. wouldn’t fi ght him,” testifi ed Mrs. Gehle, now 24, who told jurors that she had been While on the stand, Gomez said when he living with Mullin for about six months. saw the small four-door car run the stop sign As Mr. Gehle tried to get his daughter no one was on the hood. However, he did away from Mullin, he ran a stop sign at the say when he fi rst saw the car he saw “... a intersection of S.E. 32nd Ave. and S.W. 21st guy on the hood of the car.” He told jurors St. The Toyota was then hit in the driver’s he saw the man reach inside the open driv- side door by an oncoming F-350 pickup pull- er’s side window, but he couldn’t tell if the ing a trailer loaded down with irrigation and man was trying to hit the driver or if he was lawn maintenance equipment. holding onto the car. After the crash, Gomez Because his window was open, Mr. Geh- said he never saw that man again. le’s head struck the grill of the 1-ton pickup. Wednesday, jurors will hear from an His death came quickly, testifi ed District 19 expert who is expected to testify that DNA Medical Examiner Roger Mittleman. At this from blood drops found on the hood of the point, Mullin, now 37, was no longer on the car will match Mullin’s DNA sample. hood of the Toyota. Once the car had come “There are 6 billion people on the earth to rest in the ditch after careening off the and only one person’s DNA matches that guardrail, Mullin returned to the Toyota and found on the car—and that’s the defendant,” Mr. Richardson told the jury. May 12, 2010 Okeechobee News 3 Indiantown man faces sexual battery and burglary charges By Eric Kopp screwdriver to pry open a door. Once couch. When she woke, Salazar was report- pry marks on the back door of the mobile Okeechobee News inside, he went to her bedroom and edly standing over her. home. waited. At this point, he held the woman down Deputy Astacio said the woman sustained An Indiantown man has been The report indicates that the man arrested and charged with report- and sexually battered her. minor injuries. The deputy went on to state and the woman knew each other. As he was leaving the home, the man told that the victim had told him she had grabbed edly breaking into a woman’s When the woman and her children home and sexually assaulting her the woman she had better leave town or “... her attacker about the neck and biceps. returned home, the man reportedly he would make her life hell” and threatened When the deputy later found Salazar, he while her three small children were came out of the bedroom and started in the home.