Archer man denied bail after prosecutors argue that he would be a danger to the community
Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Joel Bruce Searby, 43, of Archer, was denied bail this morning after prosecutors argued that he would pose a threat to the community if released.
Searby, who led the campaign to convert three Newberry public schools to municipal charter schools and has served as a basketball coach at Oak View Middle School, was arrested on June 21 and charged with luring a 15-year-old boy to his home for sex.
The State Attorney’s Office filed notice at Searby’s First Appearance hearing on June 22 that they would file a motion for pre-trial detention within three days, and the motion was filed the same day, with the hearing set for this morning.
The State Attorney’s Office has been filing these motions in any case that qualifies since January 31, when an appeals court ruled that defendants are “entitled to be released on bail in a reasonable amount” and that the amount should not “preclude the probability of an ordinary citizen” being able to post bail. More information on that process is available here.
Traditionally, prosecutors would have asked a judge to set a very high bail in a case like Searby’s, but now that they are limited by the appeals court ruling, it is more common for prosecutors to argue that the defendant would be a danger to the community if released. As of April 22, State Attorney Brian Kramer told us that 63% of such motions had been granted.
The motion for pre-trial detention in Searby’s case stated that one of the charges against him – lewd or lascivious conduct with a victim under the age of 16 – qualifies under Florida statutes for pre-trial detention without bail and that a prosecutor would argue at the hearing that “there is a substantial probability that the defendant committed such crime, the factual circumstances of the crime indicate a disregard for the safety of the community, and there are no conditions of release reasonably sufficient to protect the community from the risk of physical harm to person.”
At the hearing this morning, Judge James Colaw agreed with prosecutors and granted the motion for pre-trial detention, which means that Searby will remain in jail until his case is resolved, whether through a plea agreement or a trial. Two Alachua County Sheriff’s Office detectives presented testimony, according to the memo that summarized the results of the hearing. Five letters of support for Searby were submitted but are not yet public.
Searby has hired attorney Logan Doll, and Doll has filed a plea of not guilty and a waiver of a right to a speedy trial on behalf of Searby.
Thank you judge! The rabbit hole runs deep with this one. Data 🎯
(Side note: Logan Doll would represent Judas Iscariot if given the chance)
Another side note – if indeed his crimes are true, if he shared the same fate as Judas, he would be getting off easy.
I wonder if the sheriff’s office will be further investigating this guy because it would be a shock if this was his only victim.
I don’t disagree that he’s a danger to the community and should be held without bail but how about all the other suspects that are dangerous and seem to get released at will. If it wasn’t for the AC we would never see those stories in print or on tv.
If you click through the link about the pre-trial detention process, there is a list of crimes that require a motion for pre-trial detention and a list that permits a motion for pre-trial detention. They can’t request pre-trial detention without bail for other crimes.
Five letters of support submitted? I’d love to know who those people are…
You and me both, K. I am watching his court docket to see when they are uploaded.
Why? Good chance his wife or other relatives are among them. Want to make her life even harder?
Jazzman – I have no intention of making anyone’s life harder because of his crimes, especially not his wife. He’s done enough damage himself. To her, his children, what are likely his multiple victims and their families, and to everyone in his life who he fooled, manipulated and abused.
But I do want to know who would be willing to sign a letter of support to release a man accused of these crimes, especially with the evidence we know they have against him. If they wrote a letter saying they think he should be let back out in our community and attesting to his good character, we have a right to know who they are and what they said.
Having said that, I also know from experience how adept people like Searby are at hiding their true nature, even from those closest to him. The smartest people can be fooled.
I appreciate your concern for the family, but I don’t agree that this particular kind of information should be made public or what is gained by that.
If a person doesn’t have unlimited funds to fight a case, they will be in jail until trial or entering a plea. If you have money you generally don’t go to jail here in America.
Well if you don’t break the law then you don’t have to worry about it either way, do ya?
And you’re wrong about unlimited funds- there are several judges here who set laughable bonds and ROR guilty people all the time.
I’m wondering why he waived his right to a ‘speedy’ trial with no bail. With the charge filed, he will be very popular in jail.
Jail rapes are not funny, and the victims are often the least violent of those who land there. “Cruel and unusual punishment” is unconstitutional.
Whatever helps pay off law skool loans faster always prevails 🤡👿👺👹ACLUlincolnproject💩
I’m shocked that they haven’t redacted the exhibit to the Motion for Pretrial Detention, since it contains very lurid details of the crime. And, I suspect they are going to redact the names of those people who wrote letters of support – at least, if I wrote one for someone like him, I’d want my personal info to be redacted. The docket lists the 5 letters, but there are no links to them, so they might leave them like that, as well.
Logan Doll, how do you sleep at night man?
My very close relative was a federal prosecutor for 20 years, doing RICO cases involving murders, as well as white collar crimes, but I understand and we all should that our legal system is based on adequate representation for the accused and lawyers representing them does not imply that they think the defendant innocent or the crime not serious. They are doing their job and the pay is not always so great.
Leading the charge to secede from Alachua County Schools might present some problems in terms of this being a fair venue for him. You have to wonder if he would be held without bail in a different county.
It’s not like he tried to abduct a child from a bus stop in his van, which was found to contain an axe and a shovel (he’s not quite Hannibal Lechter). Age of consent varies by location. If he was in Italy or Germany, for example, what he did wouldn’t even be an arrestable offense. He should be punished according to the laws here – but not made into a political punching bag by a wild-eyed angry mob seeking revenge against the bad orange man, DeathSantis, etc.
Ummmm someone may need to investigate you based off your support for this….
You must want his conviction to get easily overturned so he can be released.
“Archer man” is doing a lot of work here.