The family of the then-10-year-old perpetrator, who was walking near the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, is demanding accountability weeks after their son was sentenced to probation for an alleged threat at school.
The family of Daniel Marquez, 11, who was… He walked openly by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office last year and was sentenced to probation on a school threatening charge, and is asking for support and contributions to a legal fund, according to Marquez. First and Fourteenth Amendment rights It has been violated.
Judge Carolyn Swift found Marquez, of Cape Coral, delinquent at a trial in July, ruling that text messages he sent to a school friend last year constituted a threat to conduct a school shooting. At her sentencing hearing on August 3, Swift said she would withhold judgment in the case, meaning it would not be considered a conviction as long as Marquez follows the terms of his probation.
Swift did not provide the length of Marquez’s probation. He was not qualified to be tried by jury, due to his age.
The Marquez family said on Change.org Online petition The organization that promised last year to fund the minor’s legal expenses informed his father that it could not provide any additional support.
Conditions of probation require Marquez to follow a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, ask permission before leaving Lee County and write a 500-word essay about the definition of a school threat and what he learned from his case. It also includes a standard ban on drug use and weapons possession. The petition says the length of probation is indefinite.
He added: “This case has been a difficult ongoing struggle for Daniel and his family, and now it is a pivotal moment.” Marquez’s Change.org petition reads in part.
The net effect of Swift’s actions would be to “turn Daniel into a pariah,” the petition claimed.
“It’s not corrective, it’s punitive,” the petition says.
The petition, launched on August 22, has collected more than 40,000 signatures.
Marquez texted a friend
Previous reporting from this news organization He notes that the case stems from text messages Marquez sent to a colleague last year, days after the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
“I cheated my friend” out of $1 trillion, one message read, along with a photo of money seized from Google, according to a deputy’s report and photos of texts released by the Sheriff’s Office. Then “I bought this” along with another Google image of AR-style rifles. Hence the phrase “Get ready for Water Day” – an end-of-school event for students.
Marquez testified in his defence, saying the photo of the weapons was part of a joke about defrauding a friend and using the money to buy expensive items. But Swift did not find Marquez convincing after he gave some inconsistent answers about the timing of the messages and the contents of his phone under questioning.
Florida law prohibits written threats to carry out mass shootings, even if the threat is not sincere.
Three hours after Marquez’s arrest, the Sheriff’s Office released a 22-second clip of a deputy walking the middle school student in handcuffs to a cruiser. Daniel’s face was visible, and his name and date of birth were included in the accompanying Facebook post. The video received hundreds of thousands of views.
Marceno subsequently gave a series of interviews to local, national and international media, touting his commitment to zero tolerance for law enforcement in the wake of the Uvalde school massacre. While some media outlets withheld Daniel’s identity, others broadcast his name and face.
The News Press and Naples Daily News published his name with his father’s approval after Marcino revealed his identity.
In an interview, Marceno defended his decision to reveal Danielle’s identity, saying he received support from parents who used the incident to scare their children.
On July 15, 2022, an advocacy group representing Marquez asked who US Department of Justice to Investigating the handling of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office the case.
Marquez’s attorney, Alex John Saez, and the Sheriff’s Office could not immediately be reached for comment.
Thomas Rodriguez is a breaking/live news reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Thomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Contact him on topics @tomasfrobeltranInstagram @tomasfrobeltranFacebook @tomasrodrigueznews And Twitter @tomasfrobeltran.
This article originally appeared on the Naples Daily News: The family of a Florida boy followed by LCSO has launched a Change.org petition
