2nd degree attempted murder charge for September stabbing
ORANGE PARK – Authorities have arrested an Orange Park man for attempted second-degree murder for allegedly stabbing his half-brother multiple times during an argument on Sept. 14.
Officers from the Orange Park Police Department obtained a warrant for Curtis Allen Simpson, 58, after responding to a home at 1800 Miller St. regarding a stabbing.
According to the warrant, Simpson went into the house and asked his brother to move his car. However, the victim said he did not want to leave “hot grease unattended in order to move his car.”
The victim told police that Simpson poked him in the head with his hand and they started a fight that ended up outside of the home. The victim told police that he tried to run from Simpson but he tripped and landed on his stomach with Simpson standing over him stabbing him.
According to officials at Orange Park Medical Center who examined the victim, the man sustained a stab wound to his left scapula, his upper and middle back and his left side of his torso. His left lung collapsed and required medical staff to insert a chest tube to allow breathing. Doctors also said one stab wound went to the victim’s spine and broke the tip of his spine.
At press time, Simpson remained in the Clay County Jail where his bond has yet to be set.

Argument ends in knife attack, arrest
ORANGE PARK – An Orange Park area man faces a felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after a verbal argument got out of control and ended with a knife attack.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Christopher Joseph Miller, 45, on Sept. 30 at 1:35 a.m. after a brief investigation.
According to the police report, Miller got into an argument with the victim after the victim allegedly broke the stove in the house. To calm down, police said, the victim walked outside, but when he returned he found Miller urinating on the floor.
The victim said Miller then went to a back bedroom and returned to the living room area with a knife that he allegedly threw at the victim, striking him in his left leg.
The victim’s girlfriend was dressing the man’s wounds when police arrived at the scene. Police said the victim’s leg had a one-to-two-inch laceration and was transported to Orange Park Medical Center for treatment.
Police booked Miller into the Clay County Jail where, at press time, he remained with bond set at $75,003.

Middleburg man hits pedestrian
JACKSONVILLE – Police report that a Middleburg man struck and killed a pedestrian in the pre-dawn hours on Sept. 30.
The Florida Highway Patrol reports that Alvin Chadwick Padgett, 45, of Jacksonville, was attempting to cross Highway 301 in the northbound lanes at 5:50 a.m.
FHP said Padgett was struck by a 2008 Dodge Ram pickup driven by Jerry Lee Walden III of Middleburg who was heading northbound on U.S. 301. Padgett was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.
FHP said charges are pending after a traffic homicide investigation in conducted.

Two die in Blanding crash
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS – The Florida Highway Patrol reports that two Interlachen residents were killed in a two-vehicle crash Sept. 29 on Blanding Boulevard at the County Road 315 C intersection.
Witnesses told FHP that Eric B. Pierce, 52, of Keystone Heights, was driving a 2004 Dodge Ram pickup southbound when he attempted to pass several cars in a no passing zone at 7:42 p.m.
While attempting to pass, Pierce’s truck ran head-on into a 2011 Ford Fiesta driven by a 52-year-old man whose identity has not been released because his next of kin have not been notified.
A passenger in the Ford, Tabatha May Taylor, 42, was also pronounced dead at the scene along with the driver of the Ford.
Pierce and a passenger, Frederic Donald Helm III, 73, of Orange Park, both received critical injuries and were transported to Orange Park Medical Center.
State Road 21/Blanding was shut down for several hours while FHP conducted an investigation.
FHP says charges are pending further investigation.

Assault, burglary arrest
ORANGE PARK – An Orange Park area man faces charges of breaking into a home and assaulting his cousin’s ex-boyfriend.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Richard Allen Webb II, 36, on Sept. 27 at 2:52 p.m. after responding to the scene of the crime and questioning Webb.
According to the police report, Webb went to the victim’s home in the 3000 block of Doctors Lake Drive at 10:30 p.m. on Sept. 26, and broke in without permission. The victim told police he was awakened by the sound of breaking glass and within minutes, Webb entered the victim’s bedroom, placed his legs around the victim’s torso and began punching the victim in the face with a closed fist.
According to police, Webb stopped punching the victim and began choking him until he could not breathe and his “lips went numb.”
To defend himself, the victim grabbed a knife from his night stand, yelled at Webb to get off him and began jabbing upwards multiple times towards Webb.
Fire and rescue transported Webb to Orange Park Medical Center for treatment from the stabbing and went to the victim’s home to get a written statement from him.
“There was blood on the bed and on the walls,” states the police report. The victim’s neck was red and the victim had blood all over his person and clothing.”
At press time, Webb remained in the Clay County Jail where he is being held without bond.

Lake Asbury pot grower arrested
LAKE ASBURY – An anonymous tip led police to a home in Lake Asbury where they say a cannabis grow operation was busted.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office charged Brian Michael Fowler, 33, with one felony count of cultivation of marijuana after searching the home in the 3000 block of Citation Drive.
According to the police report, undercover drug officers removed one marijuana plant, two marijuana growing stations, two light bulbs, two ballasts, multiple pipes and approximately two grams of marijuana hash oil.
Fowler was booked into the Clay County Jail but has since been released on an undisclosed bond.