ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A new crime-fighting program to catch the worst of the worst criminals in Central Florida is starting to catch on. It's been such a success in Orange County, it's getting attention state-wide.
Just over a year ago, an Orange County jeweler was held up at gunpoint. He got in a gun battle with the suspect, who officers said was Dontavion King.
At 19 years old, King had been arrested 21 times, three times in a two-week period. He became a target for Florida Department of Law Enforcement's Worst of the Worst (WOW), an initiative that targets violent repeat offenders.
King is serving 30 years and is about to go to trial for the jewelry store robbery. He's just one WOW success story.
One 27-year-old suspect had 42 charges, five felony convictions and served only two years in prison, until he became a WOW target.
"Currently, he's incarcerated on a no-bond status facing 10 years in prison," said Michael Giddens, FDLE.
Special Agent Supervisor Michael Giddens says WOW's successes have put 11 criminals behind bars for 130 years, criminals like Jeffrey Mack, who was getting arrested six, seven and eight times in one year.
A judge gave Cotrell Farrington one-year in jail for failure to appear, a crime that normally holds a month-long sentence.
"Someone representing law enforcement is at every hearing, VOP status, or sentencing," said Giddens.
The initiative has grown to include countless police agencies, Brevard, Lake, Hillsborough and Seminole counties.
"We're doing everything we can to focus our efforts on people we think are committing the most crimes and the worst of the crimes," said Chris White, Seminole County State Attorney's Office.
In Orange County, one state attorney is assigned to all WOW suspects. Seminole says it has one attorney that focuses on repeat offenders and, as the WOW initiative grows, it could assign an attorney in the near future.