Suspect in DUI fatality awaits trial in jail

A circuit court judge on Wednesday ordered Joseph R. Stewart, 26, of Navarre, detained until his trial on charges related to the death of a Gulf Breeze man in an April Fools’ Day traffic accident.

Stewart faces charges of DUI manslaughter, DUI with serious bodily injury, DUI with property damage and vehicular homicide stemming from the accident that killed Bartholomew Cole, 25, and severely injured his two passengers.

At a pretrial detention hearing at Santa Rosa County Courthouse in Milton, defense attorney Eric Stevenson asked the court to set reasonable bond for Stewart, arguing that the state had failed to prove Stewart “is a danger to the community.”

State Attorney Bill Eddins and Assistant State Attorney Jay Williams reminded the court of Stewart’s numerous traffic offenses in at least seven Florida counties.

Judge Ron Swanson agreed with prosecutors, saying that Stewart “poses a real threat to the community” before issuing his detention order.

Stewart had been held without bond at Santa Rosa County Jail since his arrest. Swanson’s order will prevent his attorneys from seeking bond at a later date.

Stewart was speeding east on East Bay Boulevard shortly after 3 p.m. April 1. Bartholomew Cole, 25, of Gulf Breeze, was driving a Chevrolet passenger car east but had slowed to turn left onto Mossy Oaks Drive. Stewart, who investigators believe was driving his Ford sport-utility vehicle faster than 60 mph in a 45-mph zone, tried but couldn’t avoid the Chevrolet. The wreck killed Cole and severely injured two passengers, who were taken to Baptist Hospital in Pensacola.

Stewart’s blood-alcohol level was 0.122 more than three hours after the accident. He told investigators he had three beers while playing a round of golf at Tiger Point Golf Club.

When Stewart hit Cole’s car, he was fleeing the scene of another accident he reportedly had caused. According to a Florida Highway Patrol report, Stewart was driving east on U.S. Highway 98 shortly before 3 p.m. when he struck a van stopped for the traffic light at Nantahala Beach Road. No one in the van was injured, but Stewart drove around the van and sped away.