Man on probation arrested for threatening to shoot friend who gave him a place to stay

Staff report

Updated on June 3 with pre-trial detention information

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Joseph D. Henley, 26, was arrested yesterday for allegedly threatening to shoot a friend who had given him a place to stay.

At about 1:32 p.m. on May 27, an Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy responded to an apartment near the 800 block of SW 61st Street, where the victim said she had let Henley stay with her to keep him out of trouble. However, today they had gotten into an argument, and she told him to leave her apartment.

The victim said Henley went into his room and came out with a rifle and his belongings; he walked toward the front door and allegedly told the victim he was going to shoot her and kill her. The victim said she was in fear for her life because he was carrying a rifle. As soon as Henley stepped outside, the victim quickly closed and locked the door.

The victim reportedly took a picture just before Henley stepped outside, and the deputy reported that Henley had what appeared to be a hunting-style rifle slung on his back.

Henley has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and violating probation. He has one felony conviction (violent) for a 2018 incident in which he was working as a bouncer, hit a customer with an expandable baton, and walked away without rendering aid while the victim was lying unconscious in a pool of blood; the victim was found 12 minutes later by a police officer, and the bouncers all denied knowing what had happened to him. Henley served one year in jail, followed by eight years of probation, and is designated as a violent felony offender of special concern.

Judge Meshon Rawls ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold him without bail until trial. On June 3, Judge Denise Ferrero granted the motion and ordered him held without bail until trial.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.