Carter Pleads Guilty to Assaulting Officer, Possessing Firearm

State Attorney Melissa Nelson today announces that Joseph Carter, of Jacksonville, has pleaded guilty to Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer, and Possession of a Firearm by a Juvenile Delinquent. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the Honorable Jeb Branham sentenced Carter to six years in Florida State Prison during an April 30, 2021, hearing.

On Jan. 5, 2020, Carter was a back-seat passenger in a stolen car that a member of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office attempted to stop. The car fled at a high rate of speed, hit another car, and crashed into a concrete pole of an overpass. When the officer attempted to secure the scene and detain the suspects, Carter pointed an assault rifle-style firearm at him. The officer responded by firing his service weapon, which struck and incapacitated Carter. The ensuing investigation revealed Carter’s firearm on the floorboard of the back seat. Carter had previously been arrested more than a dozen times and adjudicated as a juvenile delinquent, thus making it illegal to possess a firearm.

The case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Tom Mangan.