Jury Finds Man Guilty of Aggravated Assault in 2020 Incident

State Attorney Melissa Nelson today announces that Jarrod Beauregard, of Jacksonville, was found guilty by a jury of Aggravated Assault. Beauregard now faces a maximum of 10 years in Florida State Prison as a Habitual Violent Felony Offender and minimum of five years as a Prison Releasee Reoffender. The Honorable Mark Borello will schedule a sentencing hearing the week of April 19, 2021.

On May 13, 2020, Beauregard was outside a Beach Boulevard discount store aggressively panhandling customers for money. The victim told Beauregard he had no money and Beauregard responded by insulting the victim’s physical appearance. A witness also was asked for money and declined, which resulted in a verbal threat of physical harm against the witness due to her ethnicity. The victim then told Beauregard to leave the store and the two argued before Beauregard pulled out a folding knife and attempted to slash the victim. The victim backed into the store, locked the door, and held it shut. Another witness helped the victim hold the door shut while Beauregard unsuccessfully tried to break it down. Beauregard then walked to a nearby fast-food restaurant and aggressively panhandled a person in the drive-thru line. The initial victim, afraid Beauregard might attack the driver with the knife, tackled Beauregard and detained him until law enforcement arrived. An investigation by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office uncovered surveillance footage and confirmed the stories of the victim and witnesses.

The case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant State Attorneys Vanessa Wheeler-Sanchez and Matthew Silverstein.