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Century Man Jailed As He Awaits Sentencing To More Prison Time In Drug Case
December 18, 2015
A Century man that recently completed a prison sentence for a drug crime is now back behind bars awaiting a sentence of more prison time due to an opinion issued in October by Florida’s First District Court of Appeals.
At a circuit court hearing this week before Judge J. Scott Duncan, 38-year old Steven Daniel Kite was remanded into custody without bond pending sentencing next month.
Kite was arrested as part of the “Operation Blister Pack 2″ sweep in April 2013. It took an Escambia County jury just under an hour to find Kite guilty of conspiracy to traffic in methamphetamine and unlawful possession of a listed chemical – pseudoephedrine.
However, Kite moved for and obtained a judgement of acquittal on the conspiracy to traffic count. The trial judge cited two grounds for the judgement of acquittal — inaccurate wording and the failure to prove that there was any agreement between Kite and any other person to purchase and deliver pseudoephedrine. The state appealed the ruling.
In October, the appeals court found the acquittal on the conspiracy to to traffic count to be incorrect and ordered the trial court to reinstate the jury’s original guilty verdict.
The appeals court found that Kite did conspire to traffic in methamphetamine. Between December 2010 and April 2013, Kite made 53 purchases of pseudoephedrine, totaling 123.94 grams, from various pharmacies. He would deliver the package of pseudoephedrine to the home of a known methamphetamine cook and receive half a gram of meth each time in return.
According to the State Attorney’s Office, Kite faces a minimum mandatory sentence of seven years on the reinstated trafficking charge. The seven years must be served day by day without the possibility of parole or gain time. He will not be able to receive any credit for the two years already served under the possession charge.
Kite previously received a two year sentence, with credit for 122 days previously served, on the possession charge. According to Florida Department of Corrections records, Kite was released from prison on September 20.
In 2013, Operation Blister Pack targeted nearly 80 individuals on methamphetamine and pseudoephedrine related charges. Many of those arrested were involved with drug groups dubbed “The Village Group”, centered around “The Village” area of Forrest Street and Lakeview Avenue in Cantonment; and “The Ayers Group”, a group centered around Ayers Street in Molino, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Offfice.
Comments
11 Responses to “Century Man Jailed As He Awaits Sentencing To More Prison Time In Drug Case”
The thought of taxing drugs (not including marijuana) as a answer to the drug problem is sooooooo funny. David lee Roth said it best when asked if he had a drug problem during an interview in the 80’s. He replied that he used to have a drug problem, but now that he is rich and famous he no longer has a problem getting drugs. Drugs and alcohol is the number 1 driving force in ALL crime.
What else can really be said. You did the crime do the time. It’s no so sad to me because I know your background you have always been in trouble stealing or using drugs I’m pretty sure you were on here a while back for stealing copper off the telephone poles. And have a record for several more things don’t think anybody is a dummy. Go get your mind right and give it another shot luke
REGARDING:
“he and his attorney made the choice to file for a acquittal and lost.”
They won before they lost.
Their request to throw out the jury verdict was successful.
The state’s request to have that opinion overturned was successful.
The jury verdict stands.
AND
“This guy did wrong but was a user, addicted. Buying pseudoephedrine to trade for drugs. Thats not trafficking meth to me.”
Thereby pointing out the well-known danger of easy access to psychoactive chemicals. They will cause a person to do anything to get more, including trade in necessary precursors, theft and murder. Legalizing won’t do away with these effects.
If you tax it at a rate commensurate with the cost of the damage it does, this still makes legal access unaffordable and opens the door for illegal supply avoiding the high tax.
Find a way to kill the addiction to save the addict or stop the suppliers from creating new addicts or write off the addicted people and give them unlimited access to the drugs without access to other potential victims.
David for freed souls
Describes perfectly what is wrong with our legal system where drugs are concerned. That war on drugs thing is a complete failure. It will never be won. The only solution is to legalize everything, collect tax dollars on it and get the thugs on both sides of the issue out of drugs.
Drug sentencing is also a crime in and of itself. Considering what folks get for armed robbery, assault and battery, etc., why are we overloading our jails with drug addicts. Prisons no nothing about helping them get off the drugs to become citizens capable of becoming self-supporting.
This guy is anything but innocent, but that minimum mandatory time is way out of line. That only keeps the prison empires running. Well, maybe that is the goal.
What about the rest of the content I described ? Make it even across the board. Some of the more involved players went to fed prison had cell phones and computer access. One got out in March and got into other trouble by September. My point being the higher ups did easy time and out. This poor sap wasn’t high enough up the food chain to get a fed charge so the states gonna make him do 9 years on a 7 year sentance.
I care not if they were all in prison but lets have a little justice and equality. If a guy comes to me and asks for me to loan him a pistol and he kills someone with it, theres no way I should get 25 years and him 5.
Yes he may have been doing great after being release on a 2 year charge, but the other co-defendants that did not take responsibility for what they did and pled to the charges (he did not and went to trial) are still in prison.
Now is it fair to them. He and his attorney made the choice to go to trial and lost. he and his attorney made the choice to file for a acquittal and lost.
These are his choices, as was the choice to purchase pseudoephedrine for meth.
@chris in molino: look up the definition of “enabling.” This guy was not buying all that pseudoephedrine because he had a head cold.
@Chris in Molino,
I guess when he delivered the stuff it went no further than the cook for his own use right,. He supplied the crap which was sold to the rest of his kind. Might want to do a search of the individual and see he is headed right where he needs to be.
If you never take that first hit, you will never become a drug addict. AMEN. Merry Christmas
You win some you lose some. To bad they wouldn’t let him stay out until after Christmas.
I don’t like this meth drug at all and feel they should be severe in penalties. However, this is a little tough to swallow. This guy did wrong but was a user, addicted. Buying pseudoephedrine to trade for drugs. Thats not trafficking meth to me. And he served two years and ready to start over and build a life over the right way. But because of legal wrangling those two years don’t mean anything, go back to jail, no bond, and maybe do seven years day for day.
Meanwhile, those more involved have been out no probation or anything. Not right at all.