DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Judge Sandra Upchurch denied a bond request for 43-year-old Jason Minton, who is currently being held without bond on a kidnapping charge.
He’s also charged with sexual battery.
“I find that there are absolutely no conditions of release that can protect the community and certainly this victim from the risk of harm,” Judge Upchurch said.
[RELATED: Rape suspect reportedly seen on video dragging unconscious woman appears before judge]
The convicted sex offender is accused of faking a job interview to kidnap and rape an Ormond Beach woman earlier this month. Minton's attorney told the judge the state does not have enough proof to keep Minton behind bars.
“We think in close of the evidence, you’ll feel that at this time, the evidence the state has, they can’t meet that incredibly high burden,” Aaron Delgado said.
The state showed a surveillance video of who police said was Minton dragging the unconscious woman to his truck outside the River Grille Restaurant after the two consumed 16 alcoholic beverages.
JASON MINTON Wanted For Sexual BatteryUPDATE - Jason Minton turned himself in at his attorney's office tonight *** In 2015, the Sheriff's Office arrested convicted sex offender Jason Minton on charges of sexual battery and kidnapping. The victim in the case reported she went out for drinks with him. After several drinks at a bar, he was supposedly going to take her to a restaurant. Instead, he brought her to his house and forced a pill down her throat. The victim said she became incapacitated and faded in and out of consciousness while he raped her. The case went to trial, and Minton had local defense attorneys Aaron Delgado and David Damore on his side. What happened next is described on the Aaron Delgado & Associates website, in a post titled "From Life in Prison to Complete Freedom in 48 Hours." You can read their full account at https://communitylawfirm.com/facing-life-in-prison The short version is: Minton’s attorneys were able to prevent evidence of a prior offense from coming into the trial. In their own words, “Mr. Delgado was able to highlight inconsistencies between the Williams Rule witness' present-day testimony and her testimony almost twenty years ago, thereby undermining her credibility.” Rather than serve any prison time, Minton was able to secure a plea deal that meant he would plead to a misdemeanor, accept a year’s probation and avoid serving a single day in prison. As his attorneys wrote, Minton went "from facing the possibility of life in prison to walking out of the courtroom a free man in less than two full days of trial." You might be wondering why this matters today, more than three years after that trial. Jason Minton currently has felony warrants for his arrest on new charges of sexual battery and kidnapping in Ormond Beach. The victim in that case told Ormond Beach police that she met with Minton ostensibly for an interview for a secretarial job at a Tree Service business. She said the interview was at a bar, and she had some drinks with Minton. The next thing she remembers is waking up with painful injuries that suggest she was raped. Surveillance video from the bar showed Minton dragging the victim to his truck, pushing her inside and leaving. She appeared limp, unresponsive and unconscious. You can see it for yourself right here. You should also know that the Sheriff's Office is investigating a separate case in the Orange City area where a young woman reported she met with a man for an interview for a job at a tree service business. She said he met her at a bar and persistently ordered her alcohol. He then drove her to a secluded area, pulled her shirt down and touched her against her will, and offered her cash in exchange for sex. Fortunately, the victim in this case was not incapacitated, and she was able to resist, refuse and reject the suspect's advances. That case is still under investigation by our detectives, but I believe the suspect’s identity will be determined very soon. You have to wonder if Jason Minton's next plea deal will be featured on his defense attorney's website, too. He seems to be the poster boy for getting off light. We can all expect him to have the best defense attorneys money can buy. Until he’s behind bars where he belongs, I want to urge ANY woman who is approached or contacted by Jason Minton to stay as far away from him as you can. In the meantime, those of us who have a voice have to speak up for rape victims whose testimonies and personal lives are sure to be picked apart and placed under a microscope by defense attorneys working on their next big success story.
Posted by Mike Chitwood on Friday, February 21, 2020
The state also discussed a controlled phone call between Minton and the victim after the incident, along with witness statements and a detective’s testimony.
The detective from the Ormond Beach Police Department told the judge that a single earring was found inside Minton’s truck that belonged to the victim. But, Minton’s attorney, Aaron Delgado said the state still could not prove that a crime was even committed.
[RELATED: Man seen dragging unconscious rape victim to car outside Ormond Beach restaurant, police say]
“The officer testified the woman blacked out, had no memory of what happened. So, you don’t have evidence of any sexual activity, you don’t have evidence of sexual assault, sexual battery. None of those things. You don’t have evidence of a kidnapping. Kidnapping is moving someone to facilitate a crime. You don’t have evidence of a crime being committed,” Delgado said.
Delgado asked the judge for Minton to wear a monitoring device in addition to a bond but the judge denied that request. Minton is also charged with felony battery in a separate but similar case that happened four days prior. The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating.
[RELATED: Man accused of dragging, raping woman faces new felony charge in separate case]