Patrick Nobles
| Patrick W. Nobles | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | September 1, 1984 |
| Occupation | Convicted felon |
| Parents | William Nobles III |
Patrick Webb Nobles (b. 1984) is a Pensacola man who was responsible for an August 20, 2003 crash that killed his passenger, Todd Currie. Nobles, 18 at the time, was driving under the influence of alcohol when his Mercedes flipped and hit an electric pole in the East Hill neighborhood. Currie, 17, was thrown from the vehicle and died immediately.
At the request of Currie's family, Nobles was not sentenced to prison. Instead, he was ordered to serve two years of house arrest and an addition 13 years of probation, the terms of which included a complete ban on the consumption of alcohol or illegal drugs. His driver's license was also permanently revoked.
On February 10, 2007, Nobles received an unexpected visit from his probation officer, Onoymi Williams. Williams reported that she saw beer cans and an empty vodka bottle through his window and that Nobles, who had bloodshot eyes and smelled of alcohol, confessed to drinking at a party the previous evening.[1] After meeting with another probation official, Frank Keels, Nobles signed an admission that he had been drinking, but never took a Breathalyzer test.
Nobles later denied that he had been drinking, and claimed that he had been tricked into signing a confession. He accused Williams, who is black, of racist motivations. "She was very clear that my daddy's money wasn't going to save me. … She was very clear that she would be happy to put a rich white boy in jail."[1]
On August 2, 2007, Nobles was found guilty of violating the terms of his probation. His ex-girlfriend Savannah Poinor, with whom he attended the February 9 party, testified for the prosecution, producing photographs of Nobles apparently purchasing alcohol and playing the drinking game Beer Pong.[1] Defense attorney Jerry Allred called the photographs circumstantial, but Nobles admitted that even his association with underage drinkers constituted a violation of his parole.
On August 31, he was sentenced to ten years in state prison. Prosecutor Tim Register said Nobles was given "a second chance that the victim, Todd Currie, never got," but that Nobles "drank it away."[2]
Patrick is a member of the prominent Nobles family. He is the son of William Nobles III and the nephew of Pensacola City Council member Jack Nobles and 1st Circuit Court Judge Linda Nobles. Because of the latter relationship, Judge William Wright of the 14th Circuit Court in Marianna was assigned to Nobles's case to avoid a possible conflict of interest.
[edit] References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Nobles guilty of probation violation." Pensacola News Journal, August 3, 2007.
- ↑ Mark O'Brien. "He had a second chance at freedom, but Nobles 'drank it away.'" Pensacola News Journal, September 2, 2007.
