Gainesville man convicted by jury of threatening to shoot a school, then released on $5k bond by judge

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

Update: Dominguez was re-arrested on March 8.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Yesterday, Daniel Julio Dominguez, 32, was convicted by a jury of making a threat to commit a mass shooting and then released on $5,000 bond by Judge Peter Sieg while he awaits sentencing.

Dominguez was arrested in October 2023 after posting an Instagram video in which he said he wanted to shoot up a middle school on a weekend so police would kill him. Statements in the video reportedly included, “I have decided to take up arms and attack the state. I intend to target a middle school, particularly the middle school I went to” and “I will be going on a Saturday or a Sunday when no children are there, with the intention of getting off as many NATO .556 rounds from my AR-15 at the building.” 

Evidence was later presented by the prosecution that Dominguez attended Kanapaha Middle School.

Various disclaimers were attached to the video, including statements indicating that the video was an “art piece.” Dominguez wrote, “I, personally, am not suicidal, but suicide notes are powerful and honest and beautiful and sad and all those interesting things. I like the video format, and while this is just the first one, I hope to make more… Something about the absurdity and resolve of people in this format is beautiful and terrifying… Anyway, I’m fine, everyone and everything is safe and sound! Please don’t call the police or report my account.”

First Appearance hearing

At the time of his arrest, Dominguez was charged with terrorism and making a written threat to kill. During his First Appearance hearing, the defense argued that Dominguez had not committed terrorism, according to its statutory definition, but made a threat to do violence that specifically said he didn’t want anyone to get hurt. The defense lawyer asked that he be released due to a lack of probable cause to charge him with either offense. The prosecution responded that there is always a possibility that a child or employee could be at a school on a weekend.

Judge Thomas Jaworski found probable cause for both charges and set bail at $1 million for each count, with a requirement that Dominguez have no weapons or firearms and that a GPS monitor be attached prior to release. After conferring with Dominguez and his parents, the defense attorney concluded that Dominguez could come up with $25,000 and would thus be able to make bail if it were set at $250,000. The defense attorney argued that it was unlawful for Dominguez to be held on an unaffordable bond unless the prosecution filed a motion for pre-trial detention. The prosecuting attorney responded that courts have held that a bond is not “per se, excessive” just because a defendant testifies that he can’t meet it. Judge Jaworski left the bond at $2 million and added a condition that Dominguez not return to any public or private schools. 

Motion to reduce bond

Dominguez’ defense attorney, Assistant Public Defender Alexis Giannasoli, filed a motion to reduce the bond, arguing that the bond was unaffordable and that Dominguez would live with his father if he was released. At a November 14 hearing on that motion, Giannasoli again argued that the video was intended as art and is protected by the First Amendment. She also argued that based on the disclaimer posted with the video, it was unlikely that Dominguez would be convicted. She presented witnesses to demonstrate strong ties to the community, where he grew up and attended K-12 school, although he had been in Tallahassee for some time and had recently returned after resigning from his job at Florida State University. 

Assistant State Attorney Britanee Prince argued that Dominguez made statements in the video indicating that he wanted law enforcement to come to the school and that he would point a firearm at the officers; she said the prosecution believed that he would have followed through with the threats if he had not been apprehended before the planned weekend.

Judge David Kreider said the Court was “very concerned for danger to the community” but agreed to reduce the bond to $1,500,000. 

A formal charge of making written threats to kill, do bodily injury, or conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism was filed in December and amended in January and February. The charge includes making, posting, or transmitting a threat “in a writing or other record, including an electronic record, to kill, or to do bodily harm to another person or to conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism, in any manner that would allow another person to view the threat, contrary to Section 836.10, Florida Statutes.”

Appeal of the bond amount

Dominguez appealed the bond amount to the First District Court of Appeals (1st DCA), which ruled on January 31 that he was being illegally detained and would need to be released on February 5 “unless the trial court enters an order setting reasonable conditions of pretrial release or conducts further proceedings and enters an order under section 907.041(5)(c) of the Florida Statutes.”

That statute holds that there is a “presumption in favor of release on nonmonetary conditions for any person who is granted pretrial release unless such person is charged with a dangerous crime.” In that case, the person “shall be released on monetary conditions” if the monetary conditions are necessary to protect the community or assure the presence of the person at hearings or at trial. Written threats to kill are on the list of dangerous crimes in the statute.

Section (5)(c) of the statute states that the State Attorney may make a motion for pretrial detention under certain conditions, including a finding that the defendant “poses the threat of harm to the community” or “that there are no conditions of release reasonably sufficient to protect the community from the risk of physical harm to persons.”

1st DCA Judge Stephanie Ray wrote in a concurrence, “The Florida Constitution guarantees that a presumptively innocent individual will be released prior to trial on reasonable conditions… [T]he only exception to the guarantee is if a court finds that no conditions of pretrial release can reasonably protect the community, ensure the presence of the accused, or ensure the integrity of the judicial process… That has not occurred.”

She also wrote that because Dominguez and his family testified that they could only come up with “$25,000 or a $250,000 bond… the court has converted a condition of release into a jail term… [W]hile the court has wide discretion in fashioning appropriate conditions of release – after it makes the threshold determination to release the accused – it must stop short of imposing a requirement that simply cannot be met… For these reasons, the petitioner is being illegally detained.”

Motion for pretrial detention

The next day, Prince filed a motion that Dominguez be detained in custody pending a final hearing on pretrial detention, arguing that he “poses the threat of harm to the community.” Judge Kreider granted the motion.

Judge Kreider: “[T]here are no conditions of release reasonable sufficient to protect the community.”

On February 5, after the final hearing on pretrial detention, Judge Kreider ordered that Dominguez be held without bail, finding that Dominguez “talks about… taking arms up against the State… [He] has an actual AR-15 available to him… [T]he disclaimers at the end do not set aside the crime that has been committed.” Judge Kreider concluded, “[T]here are no conditions of release reasonable sufficient to protect the community.”

Evidence about previous incidents

On February 23, Prince filed notice of intent to present evidence about an incident in Tallahassee in June 2023 in which Dominguez reportedly flagged down two police officers and “advised that he was going to all of the police departments in town to essentially clear his name because people kept calling the police regarding him owning a gun.” He reportedly said he had bought an “AR .556” and that after he told his roommate about the gun, “it ‘trickled’ out from there… [Dominguez] advised even the people he has issues with do not need to be afraid. He stated he is not trying to create a threat of violence or intimidation to anyone.”

According to the attached incident report, Dominguez told the officers that his friends were worried about the purchase of the firearm because “they were liberals and he was registered as a Republican… He stated he is a Boy Scout and was trained to shoot shotguns, rifles, and pistols. He advised he owns other firearms that are stored at his dad’s house [in Gainesville]… Daniel believes the people that know he possesses the firearm are overreacting… He also advised a grad student contacted [the Florida State University Police Department] about him last night.”

In a February 24 motion, Giannasoli asked for evidence to be excluded, including a 2011 report referencing a Baker Act of Dominguez and several Tallahassee Police Department reports of interactions with Dominguez. She also requested the exclusion of a number of text messages referencing the gun, arguing that they have no context as stand-alone messages. 

On February 29, Judge Kreider agreed to exclude the Baker Act report and two of the police reports, although not the one described above in which Dominguez approached the officers. Two of the text messages were also excluded, but the rest were allowed.

Jury conviction and release

On March 6, Dominguez was found guilty by a jury of the charge of making written threats to kill, do bodily injury, or conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism, a second-degree felony.

Judge Kreider was unable to attend on the day of the trial due to personal circumstances, and Judge Peter Sieg conducted the trial.

Following the guilty verdict, despite the previous finding that “[T]here are no conditions of release reasonable sufficient to protect the community,” Judge Sieg reduced Dominguez’ bond to $5,000 pending sentencing, which is set for April 23. Dominguez has now posted bail and has been released from the jail.