Polk County Deputies investigating the crash assured my family that Waters' bail would be set high. Despite the condition of my brother and the anguish we were going thru, being told that Waters was arrested and that he would probably not get out of jail did offer some comfort to my family.
The deputies asked the Circuit Judge to assign a $25,000 bail amount for each of the three charges, which he approved. The judges authorization was made by phone to the deputy who transported Waters to the Polk County Jail. When Waters was delivered to the jail, the receiving clerk added and attached a separate 'sticky note' to the arrest affidavit packet so that jail staff responsible for applying the normal bond schedule to the charges would know to set a higher bond amount.
Below is a picture of my brother in intensive care in critical condition. Monday morning as my brother lays in the hospital on a respirator, Michael S. Waters, the man who struck him with a van, from behind, while my brother was riding his bicycle and then fleeing the scene leaving him to die, was spotted at home in his front yard drinking a beer.
Mistake Gets Man Out on Lower Bail; Accused of Striking Bicyclist With Van
Photo supplied by Family
Norman Shepherd in intensive care unit at Lakeland Regional Medical Center Sunday in Lakeland. Mr Shepherd was hit by a van driven by Michael Waters while riding his bicycle outside of Lake Alfred Saturday morning. March 9th 2010.
BARTOW | A breakdown in communication between the Polk County Courthouse and the Sheriff's Office involving a "habitual traffic offender" accused of striking a Winter Haven bicyclist with his van led to his release on $7,000 bail instead of $75,000.
MICHAEL WATERS
Waters was charged Monday as a 'habitual traffic offender' by the Polk County Sheriff's Office. Some of his previous traffic charges include:
June 2007: Passenger safety belt violation; front seat passenger
January 2007: Knowingly driving while license suspended/revoked
August 2006: No valid driver license;no motor vehicle registration; failure to maintain proof of personal injury insurance; careless driving with damage/injury
March 2006: Unknowingly operating a vehicle while driver license suspended.
January 2006: Speeding on the Florida Turnpike; safety belt violation
July 2005: Knowingly driving while license suspended or revoked
June 2005: Careless driving; knowingly driving while license suspended/revoked
April 2005: Careless driving with property damage
March 2005: Operating vehicle with unsafe conditions/improper equipment
The situation has left sheriff's officials puzzled and the bicyclist's family upset.
"We are trying to find out what happened," sheriff's spokeswoman Donna Wood said Tuesday. "I don't have all the answers yet."
Michael S. Waters, 28, of Polk City was charged Saturday with driving on a suspended license, leaving the scene of a crash involving serious bodily injury and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, all of which stemmed from an accident that hospitalized 42-year-old Winter Haven bicyclist Norman Shepherd.
Deputies said Waters was driving his van on Cass Road near Lake Alfred when he struck Shepherd and then ran from the scene, leaving the bicyclist on the side of the road with life-threatening injuries.
Deputies arrested Waters about a mile away.
When he was booked into the jail, his charges were evaluated and a standard bail amount - established by the chief circuit judge - was assigned at $7,000, officials said.
But deputies investigating the crash wanted a higher bail for Waters, $25,000 for each charge, and Circuit Judge J. David Langford approved the higher bail.
But before paperwork could be processed, Waters posted $7,000 bail and was released from jail.
"Unfortunately, it didn't get completely through and he bonded out before first appearance for that standard bond," Wood said.
"The on-duty judge had approved it."
Sheriff's officials are investigating what will happen in the case and if Waters' bail will be raised.
Other charges will be considered after investigators receive the results of toxicology tests, officials said.
A LONG WAY TO RECOVERY
The mistake is upsetting to Shepherd's family members.
"Here we sit wondering if my brother is going to pull through," said Barron Shepherd. "And this guy sits in jail for 24 hours and is out on bail? It's an utter travesty."
While Norman Shepherd is improving, he still has a long way to go in recovering from his injuries.
He has multiple injuries, which include multiple compound fractures to the left leg, multiple breaks in his right arm, a broken collar bone, six broken ribs, a collapsed lung and severe cuts to his face.
A CAT scan revealed injuries to his head that caused bleeding on the back of the brain and neck.
But his doctors are optimistic that he will survive, Barron Shepherd said.
"He was on a respirator and they did take that off (Monday) night," he said.
Talking is limited. Shepherd doesn't remember the accident.
When asked by a nurse what year it was, he replied "1985," his brother said Tuesday.
"If he does pull through, we're wondering if he's going to walk normally and all of that," Barron Shepherd said. "The doctors say he is doing remarkably well. But it's going to take a long time of rehab if he's going to be able to function."
Shepherd said part of his brother's "remarkable" recovery can be attributed to his athletic training.
Norman Shepherd, who works for Polk County's traffic division, is an avid bike rider and runner.
"For being 42, he's in extremely good shape," Barron Shepherd said.
Norman Shepherd cares for his 74-year-old mother, Valeria, who lives with him in Winter Haven.
When their father, James, was dying of cancer in 2004, Norman moved in with him temporarily to care for him.
"That's just the kind of guy my brother is," Barron Shepherd said.
TROUBLE WITH THE LAW
Saturday's arrest wasn't the first for Waters, who has a long list of previous criminal convictions and traffic offenses.
Attempts to contact Waters were unsuccessful Tuesday.
At first, the Polk City man's offenses were small - minor convictions for possession of tobacco by a minor and smoking on school grounds.
But things began to get more serious as Waters got older.
Between 2005 and 2007, Waters was cited for nine different traffic violations, including knowingly driving with a suspended license, careless driving with property damage and operating a vehicle in unsafe conditions, to name a few.
In 2001, Waters approached a man in Auburndale, threatened him and stole his bicycle. He was convicted of robbery and theft, reports said.
In 2002, Waters was convicted of grand theft, uttering a forged document, forgery and uttering a forged instrument when he tried to cash two phony checks at a store in Wahneta, reports from that case said.
For that he served more than a year in state prison, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.
And in 2008, while riding a bicycle in Auburndale, Waters was found with a glass pipe that tested positive for methamphetamine. He was convicted of possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
In Saturday's incident, Waters license was already suspended for 60 months for his numerous traffic convictions.
In talking with Lake Alfred police officers and deputies after the crash, he said he had been smoking methamphetamine and drinking before he drove that day.
Waters' history has left Norman Shepherd's family with many unanswered questions.
"I'm doing what I can to make people aware of the situation," Barron Shepherd said. "We're not going to sit quietly by. ... When is enough, enough?"
"We are trying to find out what happened," sheriff's spokeswoman Donna Wood said Tuesday. "I don't have all the answers yet."
Michael S. Waters, 28, of Polk City was charged Saturday with driving on a suspended license, leaving the scene of a crash involving serious bodily injury and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, all of which stemmed from an accident that hospitalized 42-year-old Winter Haven bicyclist Norman Shepherd.
Deputies said Waters was driving his van on Cass Road near Lake Alfred when he struck Shepherd and then ran from the scene, leaving the bicyclist on the side of the road with life-threatening injuries.
Deputies arrested Waters about a mile away.
When he was booked into the jail, his charges were evaluated and a standard bail amount - established by the chief circuit judge - was assigned at $7,000, officials said.
But deputies investigating the crash wanted a higher bail for Waters, $25,000 for each charge, and Circuit Judge J. David Langford approved the higher bail.
But before paperwork could be processed, Waters posted $7,000 bail and was released from jail.
"Unfortunately, it didn't get completely through and he bonded out before first appearance for that standard bond," Wood said.
"The on-duty judge had approved it."
Sheriff's officials are investigating what will happen in the case and if Waters' bail will be raised.
Other charges will be considered after investigators receive the results of toxicology tests, officials said.
A LONG WAY TO RECOVERY
The mistake is upsetting to Shepherd's family members.
"Here we sit wondering if my brother is going to pull through," said Barron Shepherd. "And this guy sits in jail for 24 hours and is out on bail? It's an utter travesty."
While Norman Shepherd is improving, he still has a long way to go in recovering from his injuries.
He has multiple injuries, which include multiple compound fractures to the left leg, multiple breaks in his right arm, a broken collar bone, six broken ribs, a collapsed lung and severe cuts to his face.
A CAT scan revealed injuries to his head that caused bleeding on the back of the brain and neck.
But his doctors are optimistic that he will survive, Barron Shepherd said.
"He was on a respirator and they did take that off (Monday) night," he said.
Talking is limited. Shepherd doesn't remember the accident.
When asked by a nurse what year it was, he replied "1985," his brother said Tuesday.
"If he does pull through, we're wondering if he's going to walk normally and all of that," Barron Shepherd said. "The doctors say he is doing remarkably well. But it's going to take a long time of rehab if he's going to be able to function."
Shepherd said part of his brother's "remarkable" recovery can be attributed to his athletic training.
Norman Shepherd, who works for Polk County's traffic division, is an avid bike rider and runner.
"For being 42, he's in extremely good shape," Barron Shepherd said.
Norman Shepherd cares for his 74-year-old mother, Valeria, who lives with him in Winter Haven.
When their father, James, was dying of cancer in 2004, Norman moved in with him temporarily to care for him.
"That's just the kind of guy my brother is," Barron Shepherd said.
TROUBLE WITH THE LAW
Saturday's arrest wasn't the first for Waters, who has a long list of previous criminal convictions and traffic offenses.
Attempts to contact Waters were unsuccessful Tuesday.
At first, the Polk City man's offenses were small - minor convictions for possession of tobacco by a minor and smoking on school grounds.
But things began to get more serious as Waters got older.
Between 2005 and 2007, Waters was cited for nine different traffic violations, including knowingly driving with a suspended license, careless driving with property damage and operating a vehicle in unsafe conditions, to name a few.
In 2001, Waters approached a man in Auburndale, threatened him and stole his bicycle. He was convicted of robbery and theft, reports said.
In 2002, Waters was convicted of grand theft, uttering a forged document, forgery and uttering a forged instrument when he tried to cash two phony checks at a store in Wahneta, reports from that case said.
For that he served more than a year in state prison, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.
And in 2008, while riding a bicycle in Auburndale, Waters was found with a glass pipe that tested positive for methamphetamine. He was convicted of possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
In Saturday's incident, Waters license was already suspended for 60 months for his numerous traffic convictions.
In talking with Lake Alfred police officers and deputies after the crash, he said he had been smoking methamphetamine and drinking before he drove that day.
Waters' history has left Norman Shepherd's family with many unanswered questions.
"I'm doing what I can to make people aware of the situation," Barron Shepherd said. "We're not going to sit quietly by. ... When is enough, enough?"
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