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FEBRUARY 24 - MARCH 2, 2023
Negligence, without consequence
VOLUME 4 ISSUE 8
March 4
Canine icon dies
The end of a recent lawsuit brought about by the estate of Jared Forsyth, the only Ocala Police officer to be killed in the line of duty in 60 years, raises questions about the fairness of current state legislation and the city of Ocala. By Jennifer Hunt Murty jennifer@ocalagazette.com
J
ared Forsyth and his Ocala Police Department partner Matt Sams were cleaning their service weapons after firearms training at a range adjacent to Lowell Correctional Institution when the unthinkable occurred. A fellow officer who was cleaning his weapon nearby squeezed the trigger, sending a live round ricocheting around the area. The single slug from the Glock .40 caliber handgun struck the cleaning station surface and rebounded off several other objects before finding a gap between the panels of Forsyth’s vest and severing an artery on his right side. Sams held his 33-yearold partner’s hand while first responders raced to help. Forsyth was taken to Ocala Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Nearly eight years after the April 6, 2015, tragic event, Forsyth’s mother, Amy Forsyth Juliano, continues to mourn her only child, who was unmarried with no children at the time of his death. Her heartache has been compounded, however, by a legal system that not only failed to provide her with any meaningful compensation for her loss, it targeted her as well See Forsyth, page A2
Molly with Lilly Baron, president of SPCA of Ocala. [Supplied by SPCA of Ocala]
Molly enjoys a golf cart ride. [Supplied by SPCA of Ocala]
Molly, the ambassador for the Marion County Animal Abuser Registry, succumbed to cancer. By Susan Smiley-Height susan@magnoliamediaco.com
O
ne of—if not the— most loved canines in the history of this area died on Wednesday. Molly, a white mixed-breed canine who survived life-threatening wounds, later became the ambassador for Marion County’s animal abuse registry, known as Molly’s Law. Molly died at age 15 at her forever home, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) of Ocala, with her longtime human companion Lilly Baron at her side, along with her canine companions Princess Lily and Sir Anthony. Molly had been being treated for cancer in recent months. “The last two weeks were hard on her,” Baron said, with tears falling and her
voice breaking in a phone conversation. “She was great; she died really peacefully at home. She’s in a better place, but I’m in a million pieces.” Molly was stabbed three times in the head and had her skull fractured with a baseball bat in early 2014. Her accused attacker, Steven Scott Fleming, served time in state prison on three counts of felony cruelty to animals. The local registry, commonly known as Molly’s Law, requires that any offender convicted of an animal abuse crime be placed on the registry. The online database allows citizens, pet sellers and rescue organizations to verify that they are not placing an animal with an animal abuser, according to the Marion County website. On April 24, 2022, the “Molly’s Law Documentary” premiered at the Marion
Theatre—and, of course, Molly was the star of the show, posing for photo ops before and after the event. A massive photo of the happy snow-white canine projected across the big screen drew murmurs of adoration. Images of a bloodied and beaten Molly had people gasping in horror. The purpose of the documentary is to share Molly’s story and serve as a model for other communities to create similar programs. A handful of other counties in Florida have adopted similar legislation, but Baron, and many others, want to see a statewide registry and, in turn, a national database. Baron said at the time that the documentary and appeal for a broader registry came about because, “We had somebody who abuses animals go over the county line and it wasn’t effective in the next
county. And that continuously happens. So, I put my mind to it that we we’re going to do a statewide animal abuser registry so they couldn’t get away with this.” The 24-minute film by Mark and Jackie Barrett details the abuse Molly suffered and how she was treated by Marion County Animal Services and later was adopted into the care of Baron. Also featured in the documentary is Peggy Hoyt, an attorney and animal activist whose father, John A. Hoyt, was formerly CEO of The Humane Society of the United States. In the film, she talks about evidence supporting that many forms of violence start with the abuse of animals and makes an appeal for a national registry. When news of Molly’s See Molly’s, page A5
Three Ocala government positions are up for election this year
Kristen Dryer, Ire Bethea and Kent Guinn
Staff report
T
his year, the city of Ocala has three seats up for election: two city council seats and the mayor’s seat.
Incumbent Ire Bethea has already filed to run again for the District 2 city council seat and has drawn no opponents. He reports contributing $1,000 to his campaign account. Incumbent Kristen Dryer has
indicated to the Gazette that she intends to run again for District 3 city council seat but has not formally filed for it. Mayor Kent Guinn has not filed to run for his mayoral seat and told the Gazette he had
“no interest” in answering questions about it. Ben Marciano is the only one who has filed for the mayoral seat and reports $103,700 raised for his campaign. The city elections are nonpartisan and open to qualified candidates registered under the district they live in, regardless of their party affiliation. The city elections will be using new district boundary maps, redrawn after the 2020 census.
City Clerk Angel Jacobs oversees qualifying candidates, and interested candidates can reach out to her for more information about what that entails. Jacob’s email is ajacobs@ocalafl.org. Jacobs said that the qualifying period for candidates begins at noon, on July 10, and ends at noon, on July 14. The general election is scheduled for Sept. 19. If needed, the runoff election is set for Nov. 21.
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