Latest news with #JulieSulpizio
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Yahoo
Julie Sulpizio ordered back into Lake County Jail, competency hearing scheduled
The Brief Julie Sulpizio is being returned to Lake County Jail after a judge ruled she no longer qualifies for mental health commitment. She was arrested in 2024 after her family ambushed deputies at their Eustis home, killing one and injuring two others. A court-ordered competency hearing is set for May 1 to determine if she can stand trial. LAKE COUNTY, Fla. - Julie Sulpizio is being returned to Lake County Jail after a judge ruled she no longer qualifies for mental health commitment. What we know Julie Sulpizio, 48, is being returned to the Lake County Jail following a court order signed April 15. The ruling states she no longer meets the criteria to remain in a state mental health facility, where she has been held since her arrest in August 2024. Sulpizio was previously housed at the South Florida Evaluation and Treatment Center in Miami-Dade County under the supervision of the Department of Children and Families. She is accused of luring deputies to her Eustis-area home, where her husband and two daughters ambushed officers, killing one and injuring two others. Sulpizio is the only surviving member of her household. What we don't know Key questions remain about Sulpizio's mental state and whether she is fit to stand trial. Though the court has determined she no longer meets criteria for mental health commitment, a full determination on her competency to face charges will be made during the upcoming hearing. The motive behind the ambush and the extent of Sulpizio's involvement are also still unclear. The backstory In August 2024, the Lake County Sheriff's Office responded to a call to Sulpizio's home near Eustis. Upon arrival, deputies were met with gunfire. Master Deputy Bradley Link was killed, and Deputies Harold Howell and Stefano Gargano were injured in the ambush. Sulpizio's husband and two daughters — Cheyenne and Savannah — were killed during the exchange. Sulpizio has been held in a state mental facility pending mental health evaluations. What they're saying Rajan Joshi, a criminal defense attorney not involved in the case, commented on the broader context of competency hearings. "They can use it as a tool to try and actually get the charges dropped eventually if they are found to be incompetent for a substantial amount of time," Joshi said. "So it can be used, people to malinger, people do take advantage of the system, but we have got to safeguard people who could be sick and can't stand trial." What's next A competency hearing is scheduled for May 1, 2025, at 10 a.m. STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO: Download the FOX Local app for breaking news alerts, the latest news headlines Download the FOX 35 Storm Team Weather app for weather alerts & radar Sign up for FOX 35's daily newsletter for the latest morning headlines FOX Local:Stream FOX 35 newscasts, FOX 35 News+, Central Florida Eats on your smart TV The Source This story was written based on information shared by the Lake County Sheriff's Office , and Florida's Fifth Judicial Circuit.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Yahoo
Trial on hold for now: Family matriarch charged with Lake deputy's murder ruled incompetent
The matriarch of the family that ambushed and killed a Lake County deputy in August will be sent to a state hospital for mental health treatment after a judge determined she's incompetent to stand trial. Julie Sulpizio, 49, faces the death penalty on the charge of being a principle to the murder of Master Deputy Bradley Link, who was shot leading a team of deputies into her family's Brookside Drive home in Eustis. Her husband and two daughters were waiting inside the house as she tried to lure in neighbors to kill, saying they were acting on God's behalf. A psychological evaluation of Sulpizio resulted in two diagnoses: psychotic spectrum disorder and schizophrenia spectrum disorder. In an order signed Friday to place her in the custody of the Florida Department of Children and Families, Circuit Judge Brian Welke said she is 'in imminent danger of harm to herself or others and neglect of self-care.' That means the trial is on hold — at least for now. In addition to the murder charge, Sulpizio is accused of being a principle to the attempted murder of three other deputies and conspiracy to commit murder. Deputies were called Aug. 2 to Brookside Drive after neighbors complained Julie Sulpizio was accosting people and trying to get them to go to her house. When authorities arrived, they found two dead dogs in the front yard. A group of deputies led by Link went inside only to be confronted with gunfire by her husband, 49-year-old Michael Sulpizio, and daughters Cheyenne, 23, and Savannah, 22. Link shot back as he was trapped inside, allowing other deputies to escape while he was killed in the shootout. A SWAT operation to rescue Link — whose body-worn camera continued recording as the situation unfolded — failed after two deputies, Harold Howell and Stefano Gargano, were shot multiple times. They survived their injuries. The standoff ended after the Sulpizios inside the house were found dead. According to court records, Link's recording captured one of the women contemplating suicide before three gunshots rang out. Autopsy reports obtained by the Orlando Sentinel document Cheyenne and Savannah Sulpizio were killed by gunshots to the center of their foreheads while Michael Sulpizio was shot on the side of his head — suggesting he killed his daughters before killing himself. While the medical examiner's report said the Lake County Sheriff's Office was investigating the women's deaths as homicides, it concluded manners of death for all three Sulpizios were 'undetermined.' Sheriff's Office investigators said the family claimed to have been inspired by God in their attempts to lure neighbors they believed were pedophiles to the house to kill. Inside the home they found a stockpile of weapons along with 'anti-government propaganda and conspiracy theory-related media,' Sheriff Peyton Grinnell said. The contents of that material have not been released. Link, remembered as a hero who long dreamed of working in law enforcement, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor and Purple Heart.
