Sarah's Calls For Help Were Not a Crime

 

 

Sarah's Calls For Help Were Not a Crime

Hello, Neil Gillespie for Justice Network. I am making this video to report the death of a young woman, Sarah Thompson, age 35. Sarah died of a drug overdose on May 12, 2021 at the Stay & Save Extended Stay Hotel, in Ocala, Florida, at 2430 NE 2nd Street. Sarah's death was not reported by the local news media. Not reported by the Ocala Star-Banner. Not reported by the Ocala Gazette. Not reported by the Ocala News. 

I met Sarah in June of 2019 while looking for a live-in home health provider. At the time my doctor suggested I go into an independent living facility. I rejected that and decided to look for live-in help instead. Sarah seemed nice and she needed a place to stay. But shortly after arriving, Sarah admitted taking my prescription medication. On June 19, 2019, I sent an email to Susan Bailey, an Assistant Public Defender in Marion County who previously represented Sarah. I asked Ms. Bailey for help with Sarah. Ms. Bailey did not respond. 

Sarah left my home soon after, but would return on occasion when she had nowhere else to go. Sarah was a transient occupant of my home, not a tenant. Sarah would come to take a shower, wash her cloths that she carried in a backpack, get something to eat, and then sleep a lot. 

On May 16, 2020 while Sarah and I were having diner at my home, she suddenly passed out while sitting at the diner table. Sarah's head fell face-first into her plate of food. I grabbed a camera that was sitting on the table and took a picture. Then I shook Sarah and she woke up. 

Just prior to this incident Sarah seemed okay. In hindsight I believe Sarah experienced a drug-induced state called going "on the nod". 

After this incident I thought Sarah might die if she didn't get help. When Sarah stayed at my home, she slept a lot. Sometimes while Sarah was sleeping, her breathing was very heavy. Other times it was normal. But sometimes Sarah's breathing was so shallow, I could not see if she was breathing at all. I knew if Sarah stopped breathing she would die. It takes less than 10 minutes for a person to die once they stop breathing. 

In an effort to help Sarah, and to protect myself, I contacted the Marion County Sheriff Office. I emailed the photo of Sarah "on the nod" to three officials at the Marion County Sheriff's Office: 

1. Lt. Charles Welch, the South-Marion District Commander, 
2. Chief Robert Douglas, and 
3. The sheriff's legal counsel Timothy McCourt, Florida Bar ID 44604. Tim McCourt is now a Marion County Circuit Court Judge. Judge McCourt was appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis in 2023. 

I notified them that Sarah was a transient occupant of my residential property under Chapter 82 of the Florida Statutes, and that she was at risk of death by drug overdose. 

On January 5, 2021 @ 4:41 in the afternoon, I got a phone call from Sarah asking me for a ride because she was getting kicked out of the Howard Johnson hotel at 3951 NW Blitchton Road, in Ocala, Florida. The recorded call is part of this video. The recording shows Sarah was upset and crying, and needed a ride to go stay with her sister. This phone was one of a number of calls I got from Sarah. The phone calls were automatically recorded with a DynaMetric call saver program on my home phone, an old fashion, land-line type telephone. I provided these calls to the authorities as evidence that Sarah needed help. But the authorities did not help Sarah. 

May years ago I began recording my phone calls during a legal dispute with Florida lawyer Ryan Christopher Rodems. He was a bully who would call me about my lawsuit against his law firm and harass me. On March 3, 2006, Mr. Rodems called me at home about setting a hearing on my Motion To Disqualify him as Counsel for his law firm. During the phone call Mr. Rodems threatened to reveal my client confidences he learned during his law firm’s representation of me. Three days later Rodems filed a sworn affidavit under the penalty of perjury that falsely named the trial judge, the Honorable Richard A. Nielsen, in an "exact quote" he attributed to me. The Tampa Police Department listened to my recording of the phone call and determined Rodems was not right or accurate in his affidavit, but they would not prosecute him for perjury. Ryan Christopher Rodems now works for Morgan & Morgan, the same firm who refused to help my client Harold Minnis. 

A transcript of Sarah's phone call is posted online. My affidavit for Susan Bailey, the Assistant Public Defender, is posted online, and included at the end of this video. My affidavit for the Marion County Sheriff's Office is posted online, and shows I notified the Sheriff on May 16, 2020 that Sarah was a transient occupant of my home, and that she was at risk of death by drug overdose. This is one reason why I could not let Sarah move back on June 7, 2020 when she tried to return after getting kicked out of her boyfriend's place. I knew Sarah would die of a drug overdose if she did not get help. I did not want Sarah dying in my home. Sheriff Billy Woods and his incompetent staff, including his lawyer Tim McCourt, are guilty of not helping Sarah Thompson. Thank you.

Wings4Sarah