By Janet Begley

Posted March 4, 2010 at 5 p.m. , updated March 4, 2010 at 5:28 p.m.

VERO BEACH - Nicholas Potvin, 5, lays with silver lab puppies outside of his home in Vero Lake Estates. The dogs used to belong to his grandmother who died last week. Potvin's family is trying to sell the AKC registered puppies to help pay for funeral expenses. Photo by Sam Wolfe/TCPalm.

Susan Beaudoin, 58, of Vero Lake Estates died suddenly last Thursday from undetermined causes, leaving behind her four adult Labrador retrievers and their silver and yellow puppies, according to her son Mitchell Potvin.

“My mom was an animal lover all of her life,” said Potvin, who also lives in Vero Lake Estates with his wife Laurie, and sons Nicholas, 5, and Jack, 5 months. “She raised all kinds of animals, from prize-winning chickens to pot belly pigs, but she really fell in love with the labs.”

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By Eve Samples

MARTIN COUNTY — Denise Krochta was consumed by her son’s drug abuse. Her professional life was suffering because she couldn’t stop thinking about his OxyContin habit. Severe headaches plagued her, and she was eating poorly. She was so on edge that the chime of a doorbell or the ringing of a phone gave her a shock. Put simply, Krochta was addicted to the addict in her life.

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STUART — All 139 charges filed against an attorney’s legal assistant arrested in June 2008 on suspicion of stealing from her boss were dropped Monday, according to the Martin County Clerk of Court Web site.

Port St. Lucie resident Wandalyn Jackson of Port St. Lucie was arrested by Stuart Police Department detectives on suspicion of writing herself more than 50 checks totaling more than $15,000 from her employer’s probate law firm in Stuart. The case was scheduled to go to trial Monday.

The 139 counts against Jackson were a combination of charges of grand theft, petit theft, forgery and uttering, or using, a forged document.

STUART — A judge Tuesday ruled that women in court papers known as “Jane Does” who have accused famed attorney Willie Gary of sexual misconduct will be allowed to be deposed as part of the sexual battery lawsuit filed against him by a former secretary.

Attorneys representing Jillian Nedd, 28, a former employee of Gary’s law firm who in her lawsuit accuses him of raping her at a Stuart hotel in 2007, claimed that years before that incident other women were similar victims of Gary’s sexual conduct, with some signing confidential settlement agreements.

That’s the case with Jane Doe No. 5, argued Nedd’s Stuart attorneys Linda Capobianco and Jerome Stone, who said she entered into a confidential agreement with Gary about 11 years ago.

Capobianco in court said they tried to depose Jane Doe No. 5, but when they inquired into the basis of her settlement, she refused to comply, citing a confidential agreement she entered into with Gary and his firm under the direction of Gary’s law partner, Lorenzo Williams.

“It’s our understanding she had an incident similar to the plaintiff’s incident,” Capobianco said.

She said they want to depose Jane Doe No. 5, and several other Jane Does and one John Doe “to be able to establish that … the firm had knowledge of the prior instances.”

“And as to the defendant Gary,” Capobianco said, “to establish his modus operandi (and) common plan or scheme.”

Attorney Craig Hudson, who represents Gary’s firm — Gary, Williams, Finney, Lewis, Watson and Speranado — strongly objected to the move.

He argued the events involving Jane Doe No. 5 occurred 11 years ago, making her information too “remote” to be relevant.

“The purpose is to show propensity and to show bad acts, which is specifically excluded under the law,” Hudson argued.

“They want this because they figure this will make Mr. Gary look bad and make the firm look bad,” he continued, “so because there is a confidential settlement agreement, I think the court should take a step back and say ‘wait a second, let’s take a hard look at the admissibility issue before we violate a confidential settlement.’”

Martin Circuit Judge Elizabeth Metzger, though, said based on her review of Jane Doe No. 5’s confidential settlement, she determined Nedd’s lawyers could depose the women and others like her, but she forbid any inquiry into specific terms of any agreements, including any cash amounts paid by Gary or the firm.

“But other than that,” Metzger ruled, “I do find that the testimony sought from Jane Doe No. 5 is potentially relevant; it’s reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence in this case, so I am going to allow it.”

STUART — John E. Pierson, owner of Toyota of Stuart, in court Monday was granted a temporary restraining order against his estranged wife Amy, after alleging that she’d abused their two young boys, including accusations of repeatedly striking their toddler son.

An emotional Amy Pierson, 37, who denied ever harming her children, left the courthouse in tears.

Following the contentious three-hour hearing, John Pierson, 55, immediately left court and later couldn’t be reached for comment.
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That little survey is all about quality of life.

Starting Monday, the 2010 Census form will be mailed to households and its results could impact the future of the Treasure Coast.

The federal government counts everyone in its borders every 10 years as required by the U.S. Constitution. The results impact roads, schools, hospitals and Congressional seats.

The most immediate impact is the near 1,200 temporary jobs locally the census is providing to the region that in December had an unemployment rate of 13.7 percent.

The 10-question survey, with a postage-paid return envelope, will be mailed to households asking questions about number of people residing there.

Forms should be returned by April 1, when federal officials will release the country’s population for that day.

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By Will Greenlee

Brady Charles Gainer

PORT ST. LUCIE — St. Lucie County Sheriff’s investigators arrested two family members and found about one-quarter pound of marijuana after searching a residence in the 1500 block of Southeast Royal Green Circle, according to affidavits released Thursday and a sheriff’s lieutenant.

Investigators Wednesday executed a search warrant at the apartment and found about one-quarter pound of pot in Nicholas Stanley Bourne’s bedroom. Bourne, 18, said he’d been selling marijuana for two weeks.

Nicholas Stanley Bourne

Bourne, of the 1500 block of Southeast Royal Green Circle, faces charges including possession of marijuana with intent to sell, possession of more than 20 grams of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Brady Charles Gainer, 38, also of the 1500 block of Southeast Royal Green Circle, was arrested on a charge of misdemeanor possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana. Gainer, identified as Bourne’s uncle, was sitting next to half of a rolled marijuana cigar.

Sheriff’s officials began investigating after receiving complaints about the smell of marijuana coming from the apartment and about the number of people frequenting the apartment, sheriff’s Lt. Charlie Scavuzzo said Thursday.

Bourne and Gainer are listed as unemployed.

Alvin Tumblin is shown during opening statements in his first-degree murder, death penalty trial in January of 2007.

FORT PIERCE — The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday ordered a new trial for convicted murderer Alwin Tumblin and threw out the death sentence he received for the 2004 shooting death of Fort Pierce auto shop owner Jimmy Johns.

In a 25-page order, the high court ruled that in June 2007 Tumblin was denied a fair trial when a judge improperly allowed St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Lt. Dennis Smith to testify about the truthfulness of a state witness.

The jury that convicted Tumblin in June 2007 voted 12-0 to recommend he be put to death, the punishment imposed by Circuit Judge James McCann. (more…)

FORT PIERCE — An 18-year-old man accused of pushing a teacher and swearing at him Wednesday at Fort Pierce Westwood High School faces a felony charge, according to an arrest affidavit released Thursday.

Aakeem Rashas Bynoe

Aakeem Rashas Bynoe, of the 2600 block of Bennett Drive in Fort Pierce, was arrested on an aggravated battery on a public or private education employee charge following the 1:10 p.m. incidents.

The victim, a teacher, said he followed Bynoe into another teacher’s room after Bynoe was told not to go inside. The victim said he asked Bynoe to leave, but Bynoe yelled and swore and was told to go to the dean’s office. Bynoe, listed as a 12th-grade student, allegedly pushed the victim and swore again. (more…)

STUART — Martin Memorial officials have disciplined emergency room employees who shot and e-mailed cell phone photos of Stephen Howard Schafer after he was killed by a shark at Stuart Beach earlier this month, administrators announced this morning.

Hospital officials would not identify the employees or say how many were disciplined. The employees received anything from written warnings to suspensions or loss of their positions — but none were fired.

“Ultimately, we have determined that these inappropriate actions were taken by good people who exercised poor judgement,” said Miguel Coty, the hospital’s vice president and chief marketing communications officer.

Coty, who announced the end of the hospital’s internal investigation at a press conference this morning, said the hospital has not changed any policies in light of the incident. He said they have re-trained and re-educated hospital workers on the hospital’s policies regarding cell phone usage.

The hospital’s current policy is that patients and visitors to the hospital are allowed to take photos of their loved ones. But doctors, nurses and other hospital workers are prohibited from doing so unless they receive approval from the patient and a supervisor.
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