A 20-year-old man arrested in February on Cortez Beach for possessing marijuana after setting a Palmetto fire was sentenced Oct. 1 to eight years in the Florida Department of Corrections.
Earlier that day, Michael Lynn Haynes had set fire to bedding in a home where two women, a man and a 2-year-old child were sleeping. According to the state fire marshal report, Haynes told an investigator he intended to “burn (the victims) out like roaches.”
BBPD’s arrest for the marijuana led to the arson arrest.
Haynes consented to a search on the beach, which turned up 1 gram of cannabis. A warrant check alerted BBPD to have Haynes arrested for arson at the Manatee County jail.
Twelfth Circuit Judge Deno Economou gave Haynes credit for 222 days already served in the Manatee County jail and recommended the DOC provide mental illness treatment.
Haynes pleaded no contest and was found guilty of arson in September. He faced a maximum of 30 years in prison.
In April, Haynes pleaded no contest to the February marijuana possession charged by the Bradenton Beach Police Department. Judge Doug Henderson withheld adjudication, sentencing Haynes to time served in jail plus court costs. In August, according to court records, Haynes owed $371.25 plus interest.