In a recent case, County Judge Derek Lewis sentenced Keith Devon White after he resolved three separate felony cases in Monroe County. White admitted to violating his probation in a 2011 robbery with a firearm case and entered no contest pleas in two additional felony cases involving the sale of cocaine and lewd or lascivious exhibition in the presence of an employee and threats to a law enforcement officer.
Judge Lewis revoked White’s probation and imposed a 15-year Florida prison sentence on the robbery case, along with concurrent 36-month Florida prison sentences in each of the remaining two cases.
In addition to the prison sentences, the court ordered White to pay a combined total of $2,274 in attorney’s fees, court costs, investigative costs, public defender fees and costs of prosecution. The court also suspended or revoked White’s driver’s license for six months in the two 2024 cases.
The controlling sentence resulted from White’s violation of probation in a 2011 robbery with a firearm case. According to the original investigation, White arranged for an On Time Taxi driver to pick him up in Marathon during the early morning hours of Nov. 16, 2011. After another passenger exited the taxi, White directed the driver to another location, produced a handgun, demanded the driver’s money and stole approximately $140 before threatening to kill the victim if law enforcement was contacted.
Investigators later corroborated the victim’s account through surveillance video, subscriber information connected to the telephone used to arrange the ride and a photo lineup in which the accompanying passenger identified White as the gunman. After serving approximately 12 years in prison for that offense, White was released on probation. Rather than successfully completing his supervision, he repeatedly violated the conditions of his probation by committing new criminal offenses. As a designated violent felony offender of special concern, those repeated violations ultimately resulted in the revocation of his probation and the imposition of the 15-year prison sentence.
The sale of cocaine case stemmed from a Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Special Operations narcotics investigation conducted in Marathon. Detectives used a confidential informant to conduct a controlled purchase of cocaine from White, who was known by the street name “World.” After the controlled purchase, the confidential informant turned over a plastic bag containing a white powdery substance that field-tested positive for cocaine. Investigators subsequently identified White through surveillance, investigative databases and additional intelligence gathered during the investigation.
The third case arose from an incident at the Key West Detention Center on March 22, 2024. According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office investigation, a female detention deputy observed White exposing himself while making direct eye contact with her as she conducted security rounds. After being ordered to stop, White refused and threatened the deputy after she advised she intended to pursue criminal charges. White ultimately entered no contest pleas to lewd or lascivious exhibition in the presence of an employee and threats to a law enforcement fficer.
“Keith White spent approximately 12 years in prison for an armed robbery and was then given the opportunity to successfully complete probation. Instead of taking advantage of that opportunity, he repeatedly violated his probation by committing new crimes, ultimately requiring the Court to revoke his supervision and return him to state prison,” Chief Assistant State Attorney Joseph Mansfield stated. “When a designated Violent Felony Offender of Special Concern repeatedly rejects every opportunity for rehabilitation and continues to place our community at risk, prison is no longer simply an option, it is a necessity.”
The cases were prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Jon M. Byrne.
