Leo Schofield leads the first hearing of the Florida Senate's Criminal Justice Committee

The 10th Circuit SAO should expect to hear much more in coming months from the Legislative Branch, led by Sen. Jonathan Martin, R-Fort Myers. The pressure for justice is ratcheting up, not easing.

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When we last saw Florida State Sen. Jonathan Martin, R-Fort Myers, back in May, he was addressing Florida’s parole board, officially known as the Commission on Offender Review, concerning Leo Schofield’s wrongful murder conviction and request for parole.

Martin gave this remarkable and damning statement to commissioners about the behavior of Florida’s criminal justice system in the Schofield case.

Everything that I’ve seen about this case turns my stomach. I don’t know why Leo Schofield wasn’t released years ago when he went before this board.

You have the opportunity to release him immediately. He wasn’t released last time because he wasn’t remorseful. You cannot be remorseful for something you did not do. It’s not your job to consider guilt or innocence, but if you are going to consider whether someone is remorseful and whether they should be released today or should have been released years ago, you have to at least crack the transcript, wonder why the fingerprints of a serial killer were inside Michelle’s car and were never tested and never presented to the jury in Polk County over 30 years ago. I was 5-years-old of when Leo Schofield started doing time for this murder.

I stand by the criminal justice system here in the state of Florida. We’re one of the best on the planet. But there’s a whole lot of doubt right now about how good we are. You guys have the chance today to restore credibility to a system that thousands of people know an injustice happened and is continuing every single second that Leo Schofield is behind bars.

Martin chairs the Senate’s Criminal Justice Committee, which opened its business for the coming Legislative year on Oct. 10. “Leo Schofield” was the second name out of Martin’s mouth after welcoming back his fellow lawmakers on the committee. And Schofield was the reason for the first name.

Watch the brief video below, where Sen. Martin describes traveling to Everglades Correctional Institution to meet Leo Schofield and learn about the inmate transition program the parole board sent him to attend in anticipation of supervised release in spring 2024. (Hat tip to Randy Wilkinson who alerted me to this hearing and video.)

You can watch the full hearing at this link to listen to the presentation by Dr. Regina Schern, who works with inmates in the transition program. The vast majority of those inmates, unlike Leo Schofield, are clearly guilty of serious crimes committed as much younger people.

Longtime former State’s Attorney Jerry Hill, current State’s Attorney Brian Haas, and key prosecutor Victoria Avalon should pay particular personal attention to this brief statement from Martin:

I was invited by Leo Schofield, learned a little bit more about his case, and I know I’ve shared with some of the members up here what’s been going on in his case.

I have no particular insight into what Martin has planned as a Legislative branch approach to addressing the multi-decade injustice done to Leo Schofield. But I’d be shocked if he spoke of visiting Leo Schofield right off the bat in the new Legislative year — then told the public clearly he’s talking to other legislators about Leo’s case — if he intended to do nothing else.

I strongly suspect a Legislative approach to the Schofield case is coming.

Exculpatory facts kept from any jury for years and years

Leo Schofield has been in prison more than 30 years for the Lakeland murder of his wife, despite the fact that a convicted murderer named Jeremy Scott has confessed repeatedly, in escalating detail, to Michelle Schofield’s murder, and despite the fact that this known killer left physical evidence — a palm print — on Michelle Schofield’s car the night she was killed. No jury has ever heard any of those facts, thanks largely to Jerry Hill, Victoria Avalon, Brian Haas and former Jerry Hill employees-turned-judges Keith Spoto and Kevin Abdoney.

No eyewitness or physical evidence has ever tied Schofield to the killing. He was convicted on vibes alone, related to testimony of violent behavior toward Michelle at times during their marriage. Schofield admits to slapping Michelle twice, but denies additional violence. Both Michelle and Leo were teenagers when they married.

Schofield’s story has become famous because of the Bone Valley podcast by Gilbert King and Kelsey Decker.

In a 2020 Parole Commission hearing for Schofield, former State’s Attorney Jerry Hill told parole commissioners that “the defendant” in the Schofield case, who is Leo Schofield, had confessed to killing his wife Michelle. This is unambiguously false. Schofield has never wavered in asserting his innocence. Hill made several other blatantly false statements — in addition to constantly conflating Leo Schofield Jr. with his father, Leo Schofield Sr.

I filed a Florida Bar Complaint against Jerry Hill in July 2023 over that 2020 performance, for which he was paid thousands of taxpayer dollars, and over his abusive behavior at a public meeting in 2023, when I asked him about his 2020 performance.

That latter incident occurred because Randy Wilkinson and I were trying to push the Polk County Commission into a localized version of the Legislative response/attention that Martin seems to be creating.

Updating Jerry Hill records requests

In an interesting sidebar to the case, I’ve been trying to determine who is paying Jerry Hill’s legal bills in his defense against my complaint — Hill himself or the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association (FPAA).

Here is the public records request I sent today:

Pursuant to Florida Statute 119, I am requesting any public records of the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association related to Jerry Hill's defense against the Florida Bar complaint filed by this writer (Billy Townsend). 

These records include, but are not limited to:

• Minutes or other record reflecting any governing board vote approving FPAA financial support of Hill's defense

• Any records of payment made to Hill's lawyers

• Any bills submitted to FPAA by Hill's lawyers  

• Any reimbursement to Hill by FPAA for personal funds spent on his personal defense. 

Florida Statute 119.01 (3) speaks to the public nature of the FPAA and its records, based on the assessment/dues it collects from state's attorneys offices. See relevant passage below:

(3) If public funds are expended by an agency in payment of dues or membership contributions for any person, corporation, foundation, trust, association, group, or other organization, all the financial, business, and membership records of that person, corporation, foundation, trust, association, group, or other organization which pertain to the public agency are public records and subject to the provisions of s. 119.07.

Alternatively, the FPAA and 10th Circuit could just tell me and the public who is paying for Jerry Hill's defense against a Bar complaint related to his behavior as a private lawyer.

Thank you,

Also, I’ve been trying to determine what work Jerry Hill has actually done in 2023 to earn his $5,833 monthly payment from taxpayers. Full background on that at the article linked below:

Jerry Hill is paid $5,833/month to attend parole hearings. So why did he miss Leo Schofield's in May?

Back on Oct. 6, I sent this public records request to the 10th Circuit State’s Attorney’s Office:

I would like to request copies of any work documentation Jerry Hill submitted related to his $5,800-ish monthly payment by the SAO in 2023. I am trying to determine what taxpayers actually bought for their money. 

It would probably be easier for everyone if SAO leadership would just tell me if any such records exist -- and what form they exist in. I could then shape my request in a way that would be the least burdensome for everyone. 

Absent that, I'll just refer back to the request for any documentation of parole consulting hours worked by Jerry Hill.  

The SAO acknowledged my request; but I have not yet received any substantive response. I sent a reminder email today, asking for an update.