Wrong man held in Florida jail for 54 days on forgery charge

[rainbow4321]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D87TVE700.html


Hector Collazo complained to anyone who would listen that he was the victim of identify theft, but he sat in the Osceola County jail for 54 days by mistake on a Texas forgery warrant for a different man.

The Kissimmee man was arrested Dec. 4 outside his grandmother's house. Collazo had proof that he was in Orlando in a residential drug treatment program on the date of the crime.

A Harris County, Texas, sheriff's official was about to escort him Thursday onto a flight to Houston. After faxing Collazo's photograph to Harris County authorities, the official handed over $45 for taxi fare and told him he was free to go.

Collazo, 23, said deputies, jailers and other authorities in Texas and Florida had access to a photograph and other identifying information that would have clearly shown they were holding the wrong man. "All I was asking for over and over again was for them (authorities) to fax my picture over to Texas," Collazo said. "All it takes is five minutes."

[Rainscents]

1. This is great work of Jeb Bush!!!

Always resting wrong people and never checking anything.

[Downtown Hound]

2. I'd say he should sue

but in this day and age, who knows if that's even possible?

[loudsue]

3. If one of the "little people" sue, it's frivolous....

if one of the well-heeled sue, it works.

:wtf: Go figure!

:kick:

[Berserker]

4. This is

arrogance and ignorance and it happens all over the US. I hope it happens someday to the pricks that put him in jail and ignored him.

[teryang]

5. what's new?; deputies & judges mock pretrial detainees

...in court every day. Do anything but plead no contest and you are jeered and vilified. Want a hearing? Want a trial? Want to talk to a public defender? Don't hold your breath! They've got the detainees over a barrel and they know it. Sure wait a couple a months and we'll get to it, if you're lucky. Meanwhile enjoy your stay in our overcrowded, filthy jails.

Every American needs to keep at least $1000 cash on hand to bail out. You need to make sure that someone you trust can get to it as well. In on a out of jurisdiction hold? No bail. In on a VOP? No bail. In on an extradition? No bail. On probation and got a misdemeanor traffic offense? No bail. Probable cause hearings are a joke. Until a case reaches speedy trial deadlines NO ONE even looks at the facts.

Unethical prosecutors let unproven cases rot in jail while so called victims (with criminal records) using aliases and perjuring themselves in complaints and witness statements disappear. When the speedy trial period elapses the so called "defendant" is released without so much as a second thought.

[liberalnurse]

6. Sounds like he had a

lousy lawyer.