An appeals court raises questions about a man's mental state and no-contest plea.
By Times Staff Writer
Published January 15, 2004
DADE CITY - A case renowned around the courthouse for the length of time it languished unresolved is heading back to Circuit Court.
An appeals court on Wednesday ruled Gene Szeremi's mental status was still in question when he pleaded no contest to a variety of violent charges.
Szeremi, 32, was arrested in 1996, accused of sexual battery, kidnapping, armed burglary and aggravated assault stemming from an attack on a Land O'Lakes woman.
His case stumbled through the courts as Szeremi went through seven attorneys and spent time in state mental hospitals. Appointed doctors reported Szeremi had at times smeared himself with feces, attempted suicide, flung toilet water, exposed himself, masturbated and shown up for an exam in nothing but a cape.
In 2001, on the day a judge ordered Szeremi to stand trial despite his objections, Szeremi got another break. The day was Sept. 11, and the day's terrorist attacks grounded airlines, stranding some witnesses needed at the trial.
Szeremi agreed not to fight the charges in 2002 in exchange for a 15-year sentence, far less than the life in prison he faced if convicted at trial.
Investigators say Szeremi attacked a Land O'Lakes woman he knew in June 1996 after climbing through her bathroom window armed with a handgun. He handcuffed her and threatened to kill her, raped her and put the muzzle of a gun against her 9-month-old daughter and threatened to shoot, authorities said.
Szeremi forced the woman into her car and told her he planned to kill her and dispose of her body, but later released her.
On Wednesday, the 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled that Judge Wayne Cobb erred when he refused to hold a hearing on Szeremi's mental state when he entered his plea.
When he agreed to the sentence, Szeremi told Cobb, "Sometimes I think I'm Jesus Christ, and sometimes I think I'm the Antichrist."
In his opinion, appellate Judge Thomas Stringer wrote, "Szeremi's responses to the court's questioning clearly demonstrate Szeremi's confusion during the proceeding."
The appeals panel ordered Szeremi's complaint returned to the Pasco-Pinellas Circuit Court for a hearing on whether he can withdraw his plea. No hearing date has been set.
