Florida man suspected of murder mistakenly released from jail

BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. — A Florida man who is charged with first-degree murder was mistakenly released from jail after a lesser homicide charge was dismissed.

Now Broward County officials are trying to find Eric Alexander Vail Jr. and find out who should be blamed for letting him go free, CNN reported.

Police said Vail shot and killed a man in October.

He had been charged with second-degree murder, but a grand jury indicted him on first-degree murder in April. Vail was ordered to be held without bond, officials at the clerk of courts office told CNN. He pleaded not guilty to the charge on April 9.

Last week, however, prosecutors moved to dismiss the second-degree murder charge so they could proceed with the first-degree murder case.

The sheriff's office said when the second-degree murder case was dismissed, the office had no paperwork saying that Vail should continue to be held, CNN reported.

The "jail had not received any documentation from the Clerk of Courts stating the subject was to remain in custody to face another charge," sheriff's spokeswoman Keyla Concepcion told CNN in a statement.

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But the state attorney said the sheriff’s office and the clerk of courts were both told that Vail had a pending first-degree murder charge.

The state attorney provided documentation of the indictment filed with the clerk of courts, a notification that Vail was being held on no bond. Prosecutors also said the sheriff’s office had an electronic file and a receipt showing they received the notification of the first-degree murder charges.

The clerk of courts office maintains that they followed procedure and gave the correct documents to those who needed them. The clerk also said that a “directive from the judiciary” is needed for the release of a prisoner and no order was filed to release him.

Vail was allegedly last seen by family members at a graduation on Friday, WSVN reported.

Vail's grandmother, Judy McGowan, told WSVN, "He's innocent until proven guilty."

But the family also wants him to do the right thing, but it is up to him.

"As a mother, I can say what is best, as far as turning yourself in, but it's your choice. It's your choice. It's your life. It's all up to you," Vail's mother Lakeisha Wallace told WSVN.

Cox Media Group