From Patriotism To Prison: The Other Side of Justice

By Jimmy Ates

My book is the story of the murder of my wife of twenty-seven years and my conviction of her murder. Two FDLE Crime Scene Investigators found male DNA, hairs, and fibers under her fingernails. They found a fingerprint, several bloody shoe prints, a busted master bedroom doorjamb, and an accelerant used to burn my home. All of this evidence was withheld from my defense at my first trial and none of the evidence belonged to me.

In 1998, seven years after her murder, I was found guilty of first-degree murder. In 2008, my conviction was overturned with the help of the Innocence Project of Florida. The United States Supreme Court ruled that the FBI's CBLA analysis was junk science.

In March 2011, I was tried and convicted again of murdering my wife. In December of 2009, Okaloosa County Sheriff's investigator, Mike Irwin, sent Ms. Hahn into the home of Jackie Long while wearing a wire. Jackie Long confessed to murdering my wife, saying that he, Robert Money, and Donald Courtney "entered Old Man Ates's home in a robbery that went bad." The state withheld that tape from the defense. In 2018, my conviction was overturned.

In 2018, the Innocence Project of Florida and the Exoneration Project of Chicago began representing me. On March 11, 2021, my nightmare ended!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Feb 2, 2024
• ISBN: 9798890611512

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

Liar, Liar, Tails on Fire, the Devil's Got Your Tongue!

Press Release from the Innocence Project of Florida, Inc.

In God We Trust

Schemes of the State of Florida, October 7, 2020

News Release July 22, 2019—The Ruling of the First District Court of Appeals

Corruption in High Places, September 20, 2020

News Release

New Trial in Florida Case

In the Circuit Court of the First Judicial Circuit in and for Okaloosa County, Florida

Certificate of Service

The Blessed Ones

Press Release from Innocence Project of Florida, Inc.

God Cares

Troubles

Many and Bitter

In God We Trust

cover.jpg

From Patriotism To Prison

The Other Side of Justice

Jimmy Ates

Copyright © 2024 Jimmy Ates

All rights reserved

First Edition

NEWMAN SPRINGS PUBLISHING

320 Broad Street

Red Bank, NJ 07701

First originally published by Newman Springs Publishing 2024

ISBN 979-8-89061-150-5 (Paperback)

ISBN 979-8-89061-151-2 (Digital)

Printed in the United States of America

To God be the glory for the great things He hath done! The Lord God Almighty is all-powerful. The Lord God Almighty does as He pleases. God is in complete control in the good times as well as the bad times. The Lord God provides for all those who call upon His name, even in the belly of the beast (prison).

There is a secret place in the hands of the Almighty where the wayward can reside. What the Lord God is looking for is a contrite and broken heart. For those who have known the loving-kindness of the Almighty, He stands with open arms for His wayward sons and daughters. To God be the glory for His grace and mercy. In the darkest hour, there is a ray of light for those who trust in the Lord God Almighty. In my darkest hour God, brought a ray of light more than once!

They say that I am the only person in the State of Florida who has had their conviction overturned twice. Attorney General Ashley Moody says to the First District Court of Appeals that there has never been a case like the Jim Ates case in the State of Florida.

The Lord God Almighty says, He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in Him I will trust. Surely He shall deliver you from the snares of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence." (Ps. 91:1–3 NKJV)

For twenty-two years the, Lord God Almighty provided for me in the most dire and dangerous human-made hellhole you can imagine. Believe me, prisons in these United States are no cakewalk. In prison, you eat, sleep, talk, shower, exercise, and drop your pants when you're told to. I've seen men cut, stabbed, bludgeoned, beaten, and killed for no known reason at all. Prisons are the most dangerous hellholes in these United States. I thank the Lord God Almighty for delivering me from that hellhole.

God is a gracious and merciful God who disciplines those whom He loves. We have all made mistakes, but I think that I have made more than my share. Therefore, I believe that the Lord God Almighty has loved me more than the rest of His sons and daughters since I have seen troubles many and bitter (Ps. 71:20 NIV).

The book of Hebrews says,

My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline. And do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and punishes everyone He accepts as a son, Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. (Heb. 12:5–7 NIV)

I thank God He considers me a son. I have made some stupid mistakes. I left First Assembly of God in Pascagoula, Mississippi, discouraged and defeated. The church was the second-largest church in the State of Mississippi. The church was debt-free and had over $100,000 in its checking account. The membership had just voted to keep me as their pastor. I had just been elected as the presbyter for the eighteen churches in the district, and I walked away from the church, the presbytery, and the Lord God Almighty. I made a very foolish mistake. I resigned even though my dear wife, Norma, was encouraging me to stay! It's a dangerous thing to fall and walk away from the living God.

In 1985, I took a teaching job at Baker High School in Baker, Florida. After six years of teaching and farming, my wife of twenty-seven years was murdered. I was devastated and stupid! In December of 1991, I made a very serious mistake. I began dating a young lady that I had taught at Baker High School. As God knows, I was not having an affair with anyone. No one has ever testified otherwise.

After seven years, in September 1998, a jury in Okaloosa County found me guilty of first-degree murder. I began serving a life sentence in Malone State Prison. I quickly discovered that prison was hell on this earth.

On May 29, 2005, I read the twenty-two chapters of the Revelation while waiting for my wife and daughter's visitation at Malone State Prison. In my prayers, I began complaining to the Almighty God that I did not understand the Revelation. I had taken a three-hour semester course on the Revelation at Central Bible College and had read many books on the Revelation, but I still did not understand it. At that very moment, God said in a very clear and compelling voice, Why don't you read it?

Even though I had just read it, I replied, I will read the Revelation a hundred times.

When I went to the visiting park, I told the officer about my experience, and he said, Ates, you have lost your ever-loving mind.

As I visited my wife and my daughter, I told them about my experience, and my wife said, You have lost your ever-loving mind.

That night, I read the twenty-two chapters of the Revelation again. The next day, I read the twenty-two chapters of the Revelation twice. Day after day, I began reading the Revelation every day without missing a day. I became very excited about fulfilling my promise to read the Revelation a hundred times.

While reading Revelation, I began to recognize and understand the special promise of the Almighty God Himself saying,

"Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is near." (Rev. 1:3 NKJV; emphasis added)

Once I recognized and took God's promise to heart, I became excited about fulfilling my promise to read Revelation a hundred times. Soon, the day came, and I had fulfilled my promise to read Revelation a hundred times. The next day, I read the Revelation 101 times. Then I read the Revelation the 102nd and 103rd time and again and again. To date, I have read Revelation 4,930 times.

While in prison, I began to call myself the blessed one. For twenty-two years, no one laid a hand on Jim Ates to harm him. They put me in H housing which was called the house of hell. It was a prison inside of a prison. It housed the worst of the worst inmates. Special Prosecutor Rod Smith wanted me to be killed in prison.

In Century CI, they put me in the worst gang dorm for five years. I've seen inmates stomped, cut, bludgeoned, beaten, and killed, but no one ever laid a hand on Jim Ates. Why? Because Jim Ates lived under the protection of the Most High God and stayed in the shadow of the All-Powerful God (see Ps. 91:1 CEV). I was blessed!

All my state and federal appeals were denied by the courts. I was serving a lifetime in prison with no hope of ever getting out of prison. Then the Lord God Almighty performed a miracle of miracles.

On a mundane, uneventful day in prison, my name appeared on a legal mail callout. The FBI was investigating my case, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement decided to release seventy-two pages of lab tests and investigating reports they had withheld from my defense. They had withheld male DNA, fingerprints, hair, cloth fibers, the use of an accelerant on the fire, a taped confession of Jackie Long, videotapes, and an eyewitness of Jackie Long and Robert Money leaving my home.

When I saw the massive amount of evidence the Florida Department of Law Enforcement had withheld, I was sick! Sick with anger and unbelief! Immediately, I began, along with some jailhouse lawyers, to write a handwritten appeal and sent it to Chief Judge William Stone in Okaloosa County. Weeks later, the Innocence Project of Florida came to the prison and offered to represent me! Of course, I agreed. Chief Judge William Stone overturned my conviction and ordered a new trial using my handwritten appeal.

When Special Prosecutor James Colaw got the lab results that my DNA did not match the male DNA under Norma Ates's fingernails, he offered me time served if I would plead guilty. Of course, I refused, and in March 2011, I was found guilty a second time of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. I must say I was depressed, discouraged, and in disbelief. My mind was saying, How can any jury find me guilty with all of that evidence that did not belong to Jim Ates?

I wrote all my state and federal appeals with the help of the jailhouse lawyers. They were all denied, and I found myself again in prison with no hope of ever getting out of prison, a lifetime of a human hell.

Again, on an uneventful day, my name was placed on a legal mail callout. When the officer opened the legal mail, there were a tape and several investigation reports inside. I found out later that the tape was a confession of Jackie Long saying, He, Robert Money, and Donald Courtney entered old man Ates's house in a robbery that went bad.

Immediately, I sent a handwritten appeal to Judge Michael A. Flowers in Okaloosa County.

A few days later, Seth Miller, the executive director from the Innocence Project of Florida and Krista Ann Dolan, came to Century Prison and offered to represent me in my appeal. This time, they decided to write an appeal themselves. For the second time, Judge Michael A. Flowers overturned my conviction.

To God be the glory for the great things He has done! Through it all, I believed that the Lord God Almighty was in control. Through it all, I was reading the Revelation every day for over four thousand times. Through it all, I believed that God would bless the one who read the Revelation every day. At that time, I had not missed a day for over two thousand days.

Again, the Lord God Almighty says, Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the Words of this prophecy (Rev. 1:3 NKJV).

I was blessed! I was blessed! Every day for twenty-two years, I was blessed! In the darkest hours and the most difficult and hellish times, I was blessed; I was betrayed; I was antagonized; I was threatened; I was cursed; I was mocked; I was belittled; and yet God said, I will bless him!

They say that Jim Ates is the only case that has been overturned twice in the State of Florida. Attorney General Ashley Moody told the First District Court of Appeals that there has never been a case like the Jim Ates case in the State of Florida. The Special Prosecutor, James Colaw said to the court that the good character of Jim Ates cannot be revealed to the jury according to Florida law. How pathetic is that?

Again, Judge Michael A. Flowers overturned my conviction for the second time and ordered my return to the Okaloosa County Jail for a third trial. My attorneys, Seth Miller and Krista Ann Dolan from the Innocence Project of Florida, continued to represent me. Not only did the Innocence Project of Florida represent me, the Exoneration Project of the Chicago Law School decided to take my case. The Exoneration Project of Chicago was going to be my primary legal team. Even the After Innocence in California called and offered their help.

The State of Florida, the governor, Rick Scott, Attorney General Ashley Moody, the First District Court of Appeals, and Judge Michael A. Flowers committed the most atrocious and abominable acts of lies and deception to keep Jim Ates in jail. They violated my Constitutional rights of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, a speedy trial, and excessive bail. They kept me in the dungeon of the Okaloosa County jail in an eight-by-ten-foot four-man cell for three years. Their motive was to silence me and keep me away from the press. They tried to murder and kill me! They should be charge and exposed of their evil acts!

Judge Michael A. Flowers ruled that I could not have any contact with the news media to protect Governor Rick Scott from bad press in his run for the United States Senate. Twice, the Florida Courts took away my freedom of speech to protect politicians!

Judge Michael A. Flowers and the First District Court of Appeals refused to give me my Constitutional right to a speedy trial. I spent three years in jail and I never had a date set for my trial. Even in March 11, 2021, when I was released, there was no trial date set for Jim Ates.

Judge Michael A. Flowers chose to murder me by keeping me in a COVID-19–infested jail when he set my bail at $1,500,000. When my attorney, Krista Ann Dolan, requested a reasonable bail, Judge Flowers denied her request. The court records will show he chose to kill Jim Ates in a COVID-19–infested jail.

Attorneys Carl Leonard, Joshua Tepfer, and Tara Thompson from the Exoneration Project of Chicago Law School told me several times that any competent constitutional scholar would agree that the State of Florida had severely violated my Constitutional rights. These attorneys along with Seth Miller and Krista Ann Dolan have fought diligently for my Constitutional rights but were denied and turned down in all the courts of Florida.

For three years, they housed me in the dungeon of the Okaloosa County Jail, feeding me food that most dogs would not eat. For three years, I read the twenty-two chapters of Revelation every day. For three years, I believed that the Lord God Almighty was all-powerful, omnipresent, and omniscient. I continued to believe that the Lord God Almighty was in control of everything! For three years, I believed that God was real and that he rewards everyone who searches for him. I continued to believe that God was going to deliver me from that hellhole.

I've had three spiritual experiences in my lifetime. One, the Lord God Almighty said in a very overpowering voice, Why don't you read it (the Revelation)?

I was so impressed that I have read the twenty-two chapters of the Revelation 4,930 times.

Two, after three years, I was lying awake at night on my bunk in the dungeon of the Okaloosa County Jail when I saw what looked like a TV scene of a newswoman on the wall, and she said to me, You are going home! A few days later, on March 11, 2021 I was released and left the State of Florida.

After three years in the dungeon of the Okaloosa County Jail, the State of Florida and its leaders did not want to be exposed of its corrupt and lawless acts of lies and deceptions. The State of Florida did not want to face competent attorneys, such as Seth Miller, Karl Leonard, Joshua Jepfer, and Tara Thompson from the Innocence Project of Florida and the Exoneration Project of Chicago Law School. I thank God they agreed to represent me free of cost. Because I was broke!

It is very difficult to stay positive when you are living in a dungeon, being physically threatened and losing battle after battle in the courts. It's very difficult and depressing when you haven't seen the sun in three years. Believe it or not, I was dying! Then God said, in the darkest hour, It's over. God said, My son, your days of bondage are over.

On March 11, 2021, God set me free! It has taken me almost two years to overcome that dungeon and to feel normal enough to try and write a book.

To God be the glory for the great things He has done. Praise be unto the Lord God Almighty for delivering me from that hellhole!

The Word of God says, Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of host. This mountain shall be removed by My Spirit sayeth the Lord of host. (Zech. 4:6 NIV)

There is one thing I will always say: it was God who delivered me all three times when I was destined to a life in prison. I thank God for all those who supported and helped me, but to God be the glory for His deliverance. Thank God Jesus did not reject the prodigal son. One thing I know, God knows how to break a rebellious spirit.

The Psalmist says, The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and Contrite heart. O God, You will not despise (Ps. 51:17).

I spent twenty-two years in prison. Joseph spent thirteen years in bondage and prison. I am not no Joseph, but I must believe that God had a plan and a purpose. God honors those who trust and obey.

The writer of Hebrews says,

Without Faith, it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. (Heb. 11:6)

All I have to say is, I believe in God! Although I have made mistake after mistake, I still believe in the supernatural God! I believe in angelic beings! I believe in miracles! I believe in a heaven and a hell! I believe in God's grace and mercy! I believe in a personal commitment!

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood

And sorry I could not travel both.

And be one traveler, Long I stood.

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth,

Then took the other.

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I

I took the one less traveled by.

And that has made all the difference

In closing, the road you travel will make all the difference. I've made my mistakes. I've traveled the straight and narrow and I've traveled the broad and destructive and I can tell you the difference.

The narrow road is the way of the cross of Jesus Christ that leads to life. The broad and destructive is the way of this world which leads to an eternal hell. Choosing the cross will make all the difference. Please take my advice and choose the way of the cross.

Jimmy L. Ates

Just a few facts to remember about my case:

Ashley Moody, Attorney General of the State of Florida, said to the First District Court of Appeal, There has never been a case like the case of Jim Ates in the State of Florida.

The news media says, The Jim Ates case is the only case in the State of Florida that has been overturned twice!

The special prosecutor made a motion to the courts, saying: The good character of Jim Ates cannot be brought before the jury in the State of Florida.

The special Prosecutor also made this motion: The State's witnesses are liars, thieves, teenage rapists, KKK hit men,' false witnesses, criminals, inmates, perjurers.

Their bad character cannot be identified to the jury! You will read what the State of Florida has done to Jim Ates is unconstitutional and unbelievable. How pathetic! How ridiculous!

In June of 1964, Jim Ates graduated with honors from Baker High School in Northwest Florida. The next month, he was employed with the Vitro Corporation at Eglin Air Force Base. They were testing bombs and missiles for the Vietnam War. On October 3, 1964, I married my high school sweetheart, Norma Jean Kotarba.

On January 20, 1966, at the peak of the Vietnam War, Jim Ates enlisted in the United States Navy as a Kitty Cruiser and served his country with honors. As a United States Navy airman, he attend the NAS Navy Photographic School in Pensacola, Florida. I graduated at the top of my class. Jim Ates served as a United States Navy Photographer and made Second-Class Petty Officer (E5) in one year and eleven months, which was a United States Navy record for promotions.

On January 19, 1969, Jim Ates was discharged with honors from the United States Navy. On January 23, 1969, I was employed as a photographer with Automation Industries at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. For five years, I worked as their publicity photographer and a high-speed photographer, photographing air-to-ground bombs and missiles. For five years, I worked at Eglin Air Force Base, the largest air force testing facility in the world, and Norma Ates worked for Dr. Currington as a dental assistant.

During those five years, Norma and I were very dedicated members of the Holt Assembly of God Church where I grew up and served as Christ Ambassador leader during his teenage years. I also served as a leader in the Student Council Christian Club at Baker High School. I also played football with my brother, Luther Ates, who was an outstanding athlete and quarterback of the Baker High School football team.

At the end of 1972, Jim and Norma were debating over moving to Springfield, Missouri, where Jim would attend Central Bible College. Several years earlier, we had bought twelve and a half acres on the airport highway in Crestview, Florida, with a beautiful spring in the back. We had planned to build a new home on it. At the end of 1972, we sold our home that we bought in January 1969 after leaving the Navy. Norma wanted to build a new home on Airport Highway, and I wanted to use my GI Bill to attend Central Bible College in Springfield, Missouri. After months of praying and debating, we agreed to move to Springfield, Missouri.

In December of 1972, Norma and I decided to travel to Springfield, Missouri, to enroll in the fall semester of Central Bible College and to rent a house. Norma went to the Gospel Publishing House and the headquarters of the Assemblies of God and applied for a job. After renting a small house on Grant Street, near Central Bible College, and registering for the fall semester, we quickly left Springfield, Missouri. The Weather Bureau was saying a severe snowstorm was going to hit Springfield the next day.

After returning to Crestview, Florida, we resigned from our jobs and spent Christmas with our family and moved to Springfield, Missouri. After loading our furniture on a moving van, we headed to Central Bible College in Springfield, Missouri. Upon arrival, Norma called the Gospel Publishing House the day we got into Springfield, and they told her they had been holding for her a job. Norma served as the purchasing agent for the Assembly of God bookstores in the United States for all the years we spent in Springfield, Missouri.

The first semester at Central Bible College was one of the most difficult times in my life. I had injured my back while serving in the Navy. For years, my back would hurt off and on, but while moving the furniture to Springfield, my back began hurting with severe pain. After the first semester, I had to have back surgery. One year later, I had to have a second back surgery. I was placed on Social Security disability at that time.

In the summer of