Charges dropped, but damage done

Palm Coast Observer
News

Merchant Dan Ferrena was jailed Sept. 30. The state exonerated him thanks to video evidence.

In the United States, a person is innocent until proven guilty. But accusations can be costly in and of themselves, according to Dan Ferrena, owner of Palm Coast Gold Buyers.

Ferrena has had a pistol license for 25 years. He said he never had to use it until Sept. 30, when, according to a report from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, Joshua Newby had a dispute with him at the store, in European Village.

Newby said Ferrena threatened him. Ferrena said Newby charged at him from behind. Ferrena pulled his gun. The result: Ferrena was arrested and taken to jail.

However, contradictory testimony from witnesses, as well as a review of the footage from surveillance cameras at the store, led the State Attorney’s Office to file an announcement of no information. According to the Public Information Officer Klare Ly, “the video did not corroborate the victim/customer’s claims.”

Thus, a new result: Charges dropped, case closed.

But regardless of the favorable outcome, Ferrena said, the incident was costly — and not just because of having to spend several thousand dollars in legal fees.

“Our reputation has been tarnished,” Ferrena said. “I don’t want to say irreparably, but I don’t know. People look at us funny.”

He has been accused of using the store as a front for terrorist funding, “just because of the way I look,” said Ferrena, who is from India. “In the firestorm of public opinion, I’m guilty. That’s why I need to shout out loud to get my name cleared.”

Ferrena’s wife and Palm Coast Gold Buyers Co-owner, Edith Ferrena, said that without the surveillance footage to confirm her husband’s side of the story, the situation could have turned into a nightmare.

“Dan could have gone to jail for years,” she said. “What would have happened to our family?”

Because it’s a jewelry store, Palm Coast Gold Buyers has several cameras to record everything that happens inside, as well as outside the entrance of the store, where Ferrena said Newby charged at him from behind. The door is also locked, even during business hours; the only way to enter is for Ferrena to push a button in a remote that he carries in his pocket.

The Ferrena incident recalls another case in Palm Coast, in which the son of Cynthia Burnett was arrested for a misdemeanor. His charges were also dropped, but the arrest was enough to potentially cost him a college scholarship.

Maj. David O’Brien, of the Sheriff’s Office, said the system is a two-edged sword. On the one hand, Florida’s public records laws keep everything in the sunshine — agencies can have no secrets. On the other hand, that allows anyone to find out about virtually every arrest the agency makes, regardless of whether the accused is ultimately found guilty.

That’s one reason following procedures is essential, O’Brien said. Deputies determine at the scene whether there is probable cause to make the arrest, based on testimony from witnesses and other evidence. In the Ferrena case, there were multiple witnesses who said Ferrena threatened Newby. Deputies were unable to watch the surveillance footage at the time.

“We don’t charge just anybody,” O’Brien said. “There has to be probable cause.”

O’Brien added that in his tenure with the agency, there has never been a deputy who has had to be reprimanded for making arrests without probable cause. The agency’s job is to make the arrest and let the State Attorney’s Office continue with the investigation. By law, those attorneys have a higher standard: They need to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

“If the state attorney doesn’t think he can prove the case, he’ll drop the charges or try to get a plea agreement,” Ly said.

O’Brien said that in general, the arresting agency is informed when the state drops a case, but that information is usually not passed on to the press.

Fortunately for the Ferrenas, they could offer more information to the State Attorneys Office than just testimony. As Edith Ferrena said: “It’s very scary to think what would have happened had all of this not been recorded. … We just happened to have it in our store because we’re a jewelry store.”