Name Merl Moncer
Address 7090 65th Way N
City Pinellas Park
State FL
Zipcode 33781-4009
Phone 727 545-2520
Comment EXCESSIVE PUNISHMENT? JUNK CAR PARTS EQUALS 30 YEARS IN PRISON IN FLORIDA. Your transmission is SAFE!

MICHAEL M. MONCER, My Son has been in prison since April 4, 1991, he was 25 when he was vindictively prosecuted by Prosecutor Timothy Kelley of Pinellas County Florida, who is now a defense attorney. I have heard from some attorneys who say Mr. Kelley was fired from the Prosecutors office. Mr. Kelley prosecuted Mike once before and lost, so he made it a point to railroad my Son.

The vindictiveness is very evident because if Mike was eligible for Habitual Offender, Mr. Kelly would have charged him that way on the first case. My Son is not an Angel and has been in trouble before this. Michael is coming up on his SEVENTH year of imprisonment for dealing in stolen property.

THE PROPERTY, some old car parts that Mike had traded for. Mike is an avid Mustang collector and the parts were in fact stolen but Mike would have had to know that fact in order to find him guilty. Mike traded an old Mustang transmission for the parts and the day he left home to trade I had told him to get the transmission out of the garage and he said, "don't worry Dad I'm trading it today". A guy named Jerry called and wanted to talk to Mike and Mike was not here when he called so I gave Mike the message. And Jerry called back a little later. He traded the transmission and Mike was arrested later for attempting to sell the parts he had traded for.

Michael has never had one act of violence. His problems are all related to petty theft. The transmission according to Mike was worth as much or more than the car parts. He traded the transmission for the car parts because this was the only person who was interested in it. Michael was in a youthful offender camp when he was 17 and in Florida if you get into trouble twice within 5 years you can and more often than not be sentenced as a Habitual Offender, so we have a 2 strikes and your out policy here.

There are a lot of NON-VIOLENT young men in Florida's prisons. The children in the schools are attending classes in portable buildings here. The Legislature spent all the money building prisons rather than building schools and trying to help these people when they were young. Mike was just a few months away from being out of the youthful offender camp 5 years. Mike was out of the youthful offender camp when he was 18. He was 25 when he was sentenced this time. As you can see that is 7 years since he was first sentenced.

The Prosecutor held that the time he was in prison didn't count and that he was on probation when he got out. He was not on probation. Mike had a receipt for the parts that he traded for and the Detectives destroyed it.

The Court Appointed attorney was nothing more than a WARM BODY at the trial. The attorney was a DIVORCE ATTORNEY who probably knew less about criminal law than I do. However the court feels they provided him with adequate representation. I raised so much anger about this that now the Court Appointed attorneys must have credentials to represent a defendant. I feel a great deal of pride if my actions are what brought this about.

Mike has outstanding, above average and exemplary progress reports and lots of the prison guards have told Mike that he doesn't belong in prison. He was recently transferred and the first thing the man he was to work for told him was he doesn't belong here. The Judge, Horace A. Andrews who sentenced my Son to 30 years for dealing in stolen property had sentenced a Largo Florida Cop, Edward Elebash to 2 years PROBATION for RAPE. The Judge was nothing more than a puppet for the prosecutor. The same Judge sentenced a man named Marino to 2 years house arrest for racketeering to the tune of $10 million a year.

One of the people that Mike was friends with in prison at Lake Butler Florida was also a non-violent young man with a 30 year sentence. His name is Steven Baker and I have been in touch with his parents. This young man is another non-violent excessively punished young man. A lot of Florida Prosecutors have climbed the Habitual Offender ladder. And they are all benefiting from the excessive sentences they moved past the Judges. Florida is second only to Texas in State Sanctioned Murder.

Please write to:
MICHAEL M. MONCER 233767
Sumter C. I.-Main C1123S
PO Box 667
Bushnell FL
33513-0667

Or Email to:
[email protected]

Please be sure to include a return mail address as I can only receive but can not send e-mail.

I look forward to your letter!