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Man sentenced to prison for aggravated battery

3 min read

A man who attacked his Cape Coral boyfriend with a razor has received prison time.

James Edward Cannon, 30, pleaded no contest on Thursday to one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon in a plea agreement with prosecutors. He was adjudicated guilty and sentenced.

“He was sentenced to 40 months in prison,” Samantha Syoen, the spokeswoman for the State Attorney’s Office, said Tuesday. “We has to pay the cost of prosecution and other fines.”

Assistant State Attorneys Francine Donnorummo and Bianca Bentley handled the case.

Defense attorney Robert “Kimber” Martin of Port Charlotte represented Cannon.

“I think the outcome was a favorable one for everybody,” he said Tuesday.

Martin noted that the victim agreed to the terms.

“It’s a prison sentence for the gentleman, but I think it was a good outcome for everybody,” he said.

Officials with the State Attorney’s Office expanded on that.

“The victim did not want to cooperate,” Syoen said.

At about 6 p.m., March 3, Jeffrey Linn Patterson, 54, of 1147 S.W. 47th Terrace, and his boyfriend, Cannon, were driving on First Street in Fort Myers when a verbal argument ensued, reports state. While stopped at the intersection of First and Park streets, Cannon reached over and cut Patterson’s neck with a razor.

Cannon then fled the scene on foot.

Patterson immediately headed for a hospital, running a red light at Cleveland Avenue and Victoria Avenue and colliding into a Fort Myers police vehicle. Failing to stop for the crash, he continued south along Cleveland to Lee Memorial Hospital with the Fort Myers police officer following in pursuit.

When the officer caught up with Patterson in the emergency room parking lot, Patterson exited his vehicle bleeding profusely from the neck area, according to a report. He was taken into the ER.

Patterson provided preliminary information prior to undergoing surgery.

He told police he believed that Cannon was trying to kill him when he cut his neck.

According to police, officers located witnesses, who advised that Cannon had jumped into the Caloosahatchee River and was on one of the Edison Bridge’s support beams. Following a search, Cannon was found hiding in the water on the east side of the Calusa Harbor Retirement Center.

He was taken into custody and transported to the Lee County Jail for booking.

The officer involved in the crash sustained minor injuries.

According to the report, the two men lived together until a roommate threw out Cannon for being a “disruptive presence.” The roommate told police that he heard Cannon threaten to kill Patterson several times in the home, and that Cannon called soon after the March 3 attack to ask if Patterson was OK.

Martin noted that his client is facing charges on a warrant out of Broward County.

On Oct. 20, Cannon was arrested and charged by the Fort Lauderdale Police Department with one count each of possession of heroin, possession of cocaine and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Martin said Thursday’s sentencing will run concurrent with the Broward case’s outcome.