Drug Dealer Finally Gets Prison Time
In May I wrote about drug dealer Willie Findley. For 5 years we have been trying to put away this guy. We'd get him arrested and then he either would be put on probation or just serve a minor jail sentence. Invariably while on probation he would abscond or commit another crime. Not any more.
He was finally arrested and in today's Tampa Tribune it was noted that yesterday he was sentenced to 5 years in prison to follow with 10 years of Probation. He also has been banned from Seminole Heights while on probation.
This conviction was only possible because residents kept making a fuss and kept reporting sightings of him, because police kept their eyes out and kept arresting him, because the news media kept doing stories on him, because the State Attorney's Office acted on residents concerns, and because residents showed up in court to testify against Willie.
Thanks to State Attorney Mark Ober, Tampa Police Department Major George McNamara's and his District 3 police officers and those named and un-named residents.
In the article the reporter noted "In a courthouse hallway, a supporter of Findley criticized the three women who testified against him, saying they should have minded their own business. "
They were minding their own business. They were keeping their homes and neighborhood safer from this creep.
By working together we are making this a better place to live. Government can't do it's job alone. It needs the citizens involved to do a better job. If you want your neighborhood to get better, you have to do something about it.
2 comments:
That's what it takes - an ongoing effort by everyone to make the neighborhoods a better place. Just because a situation has been ongoing for years does not mean that we have to accept it as status quo.
I think the efforts of hooker patrol combined with the renewed efforts of the police show all of us that we can make a difference. Congrats on the follow through and making a difference one day at a time
I don't feel sorry for Willie one bit. He knew there was a possiblity of doing serious time. His mother even hired a private attorney (as she did last time). I don't know why since he so obviously didn't bother to take the opportunity he was given to make changes in his life. His uncle sat there in court and said, "I have a POSSIBLE job lined up for him when he gets out". This is the same uncle that let Willie live with him for the last four months while he had a warrant out for his arrest. If he wanted a real job he would have gotten one last year when he got out of jail. He made no attempt to comply with his probation and was out on our streets dealing in no time. He's not the worst of the worst but he's become such a symbol to so many that his removal makes a big statement. I hope this encourages more people to get (and stay) involved.
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