CLAY COUNTY, Fla. — Opening statements got underway Tuesday morning in the trial of ex-Clay County Sheriff Darryl Daniels. He's charged with evidence tampering after allegedly having his mistress arrested for stalking in 2019.
The first witness to testify was Cierra Smith, Daniels' former longtime mistress and the woman at the center of the case. The two began having an affair when the then 48-year-old Daniels was the director of the Duval County Jail, and she was his 21-year-old subordinate, employed as a corrections officer.
The second witnesses was Clay County Deputy Sgt. Christopher Ruby, one of the two officers who responded to Daniels' call for police assistance in May 2019 and who detained Smith for hours on stalking allegations before releasing her.
Former Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams is also in court and expected to testify. Williams was Sheriff when Daniels was arrested in 2021.
Daniels faces two felony charges related to evidence tampering and five misdemeanor charges of lying to law enforcement. The six jurors were selected Monday out of a pool of 200 and include four white women and two Black men. The trial is predicted to last until the end of the week.
Former mistress takes the stand
Daniels' former longtime mistress Cierra Smith took the stand for more than two hours Tuesday.
Her testimony followed opening arguments by Assistant State Attorney Toby Hunt, who said Smith went to meet Daniels for a pre arranged meeting, and was not stalking him.
Daniels lawyer Matt Kachergus countered that there is no evidence the meetup was pre-arranged, and that the pair had broken up by the day of the incident. He called the investigation "a witch hunt."
Smith testified that she had an affair on and off with Daniels since 2014. She said he gave her money through CashApp and paid for trips, jewelry and plastic surgery.
Smith testified Daniels planned to tell his wife about the affair and he promised he was "never going to leave [her] side." She denied the relationship was over the day of the incident, despite Daniels' claims otherwise. She said the pair were meeting so she could give him a copy of a recorded conversation between Daniels and Smith's ex-husband. At the time, Smith was being investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, an investigation sparked by her ex-husband. The conversation on the disk was part of the investigation.
According to Smith, after Daniels arrived, his' wife, Denise Daniels showed up, blocked her car in and began "yelling and screaming" at her, as well as taking pictures with her phone.
When Clay County deputies arrived -- summoned by the then-sheriff -- Smith testified Daniels told a deputy to "go ahead and make an arrest."
Smith said the was told she would be arrested for "aggravated stalking" because she had a gun in her glove compartment. She testified that she only had the gun because Daniels bought it for her and stored it in the car.
Smith was taken to jail, but was never booked and was eventually driven home by a deputy.
Sgt. Ruby testifies
CCSO Sgt. Christopher Ruby was the second witness called to testify.
He testified Daniels told him his life was in danger that day. According to Ruby, Daniels admitted having an affair with Smith for seven years, but said they had broken up and she was now stalking him. Ruby testified the sheriff claimed he'd attempted to get an injunction to prevent Smith from being near him but was unsuccessful.
Ruby said that Daniels story made sense at the time, and when he asked Smith if she sensed he was trying to avoid her, since he kept driving away, "She said no, she wasn't getting the hint at that time," Ruby said.
Ruby said he treated Daniels like any other victim in a stalking case, and therefore gave credence to his fear that his life was being threatened.
"Due to those facts and circumstances and the things the sheriff was telling me, I felt like there was enough probable cause for an arrest," Ruby said.
He corroborated Smith's testimony that Denise Daniels was screaming at her throughout the incident. "She was yelling at Cierra Smith the entire time, it was bad," Ruby said. "I actually went to the sheriff's vehicle and asked him to get his wife under control."
He testified that the sheriff seemed ashamed. "I'd never seen the sheriff in this type of light. He's always been a proud man and an honored person."
Ruby testified that Daniels said he did "not want [Smith] in his jail," and asked to have her jailed in Duval County. Ruby told him that was a call he would have to make then-Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams, who is expected to testify in the case.
Ruby also called Smith "a very sweet woman," and said she was "very nice... very cooperative."
Ruby also testified that he had a disciplinary history with Daniels. "He hammered me a couple times," he said. Daniels once suspended Ruby for 20 days without pay and threatened to demote him, telling him to "stop f***ing with me."
A striking piece of testimony from Ruby: he says that Daniels told him to "charge [Smith] with everything you can."
State's third witness: Cesia Cruz
Cecia Cruz was a 911 dispatcher on May 6, 2019. She took the stand around 3 p.m. Tuesday afternoon.