Broward Sheriff's Deputy Jonathan Bleiweiss, accused of sexually assaulting at least eight undocumented residents while he was on duty, makes an appearance in Broward County Court. (Susan Stocker)
FORT LAUDERDALE - The slayings of Broward Sheriff's Deputies Paul Rein and Brian Tephford are among the dozens of felony cases under review following last week's arrest of Deputy Jonathan Bleiweiss.
Prosecutors on Wednesday released a list of 118 cases in which Bleiweiss' name is listed as either a witness or an arresting officer.
Of those cases, 56 were felonies, including first-degree murder, sexual assault and felony fraud, according to the list provided by the Broward State Attorney's Office.
Bleiweiss, 29, is accused of performing sexual acts on at least eight undocumented residents he picked up during traffic stops in Oakland Park.
His role in each of the pending criminal cases was not immediately available. Prosecutors and defense attorneys say his involvement could be as mundane as the deputy directing traffic at a crime scene; or, it could be as significant as the lead officer in an arrest.
Prosecutors have been reviewing each case to determine whether they would be able to move forward without Bleiweiss' testimony, said spokesman Ron Ishoy.
At least one felony case already has been dismissed.
Late Tuesday, prosecutors announced to Broward Circuit Judge Dale Cohen they are no longer seeking charges against Michael King, 53, arrested in March and charged with battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest.
Ishoy said Bleiweiss was the alleged victim in the case and only one of two witnesses: another deputy. Prosecutors were not able to reach the second deputy and so the case was dropped, explained Ishoy.
The two deputy slayings are the highest-profile cases on the list. Tephford was killed in November 2006 while conducting a traffic stop in Tamarac. There are three defendants.
Michael Mazza is accused of killing Rein on Nov. 7, 2007, while en route to trial for a bank robbery. If convicted, he could be sentenced to death.
Among the other cases under review are two unrelated first-degree murders, two DUIs with injuries, several robberies and stalking. The rest of the cases are misdemeanors.
Bleiweiss is being held in protective custody without bail. A bond hearing that had been scheduled for Friday has been postponed. No new date has yet been set.
Bleiweiss' attorney, Eric Schwartzreich, wants to question the alleged victims, whose names have not been released.
"My client has been sitting in a jail cell for weeks now based on their accusations. We want the ability to debunk and cross-examine these undocumented immigrants," Schwartzreich told the judge.
Ihosvani Rodriguez can be reached at ijrodriguez@SunSentinel.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false or 954-356-4605.
Copyright © 2009, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
