SUMMERFIELD, Fla. – A woman called 911 and said her “boyfriend was chasing her and she wrecked her vehicle into a fence.”
Deputies in Florida responding to the “suspicious incident call” found “a black Ford Focus with heavy front end damage.”
The crash happened nearly 10 years ago, on the evening of April 6, 2015, and ironically justice has been at a stand-still for most of the time since then.
A deputy at the scene spoke to the victim and wrote,
“She has not been staying at her home because she is scared of her ex-boyfriend Matthew Neusbaum. She stated that he had been calling her phone all afternoon and left her a voicemail that stated he was looking for her.”
Then, she went to check on her home.
“She stated that she was leaving,” the deputy continued, “she observed defendant Neusbaum pass by, going northbound driving a white GMC pickup. She stated as she passed, she was able to see his face and was 100% certain that it was him.
“She stated he then turned around and began to follow her. She stated she was in fear for her life and began to drive even faster.”
A short time later, “He was still behind her” when “she attempted to turn,” but “was traveling too fast and left the roadway, striking a fence. She stated she was then able to dial 911. She also advised me that there was an active domestic violence injunction in place.”
The arrest report did not mention any injuries, or what happened to the car.
The deputy “confirmed that there was an active domestic violence injunction with no contact in place, with victim [name] as the protected person and defendant Neusbaum as the respondent. The injunction was served on 9/18/2014,” almost a year earlier.
“While I was speaking with her,” the deputy continued, “a male, later identified as defendant Neusbaum, walked onto the scene.
“As he approached, approximately 20 feet from where I was standing with the victim, he stated, ‘What’s going on? That’s my ex-girlfriend right there.’
“I then observed the victim began to cry and run northbound from my location. He continued to walk towards us, and I approached him and asked him to walk towards my patrol vehicle with me.
“I asked him what was going on and he stated he did not know. I also asked him for his name and he identified himself as Matthew Neusbaum. I asked him about calling her today and he stated that he did call her several times and did leave her a voicemail earlier today.
“He denied following her in the vehicle.”
The deputy didn’t believe him.
“Defendant Neusbaum violated the domestic violence protection order,” he concluded, “by calling her several times via telephone, following her in the vehicle, and by walking onto the traffic crash scene, knowing that she was at the location.”
Neusbaum was arrested for the misdemeanor violation, and, the deputy reported, “He asked me several times to talk with victim [last name] and even screamed ‘[first name]’ while he was being put into the patrol vehicle.
“After I put him into the patrol vehicle, he asked if he could give her his cell phone because they share a business and he wanted her to handle it.
“I then spoke with the victim again in advised her that he had a cell phone on his person and she stated it is a business phone, and requested it. I then gave her the phone and she then began showing me all the times that he called her throughout the day. She then asked me to look at it, and handed me the phone. I could see on the phone where her cell phone number was dialed.”
The arrest report listed a dozen calls between 2:56 p.m. on April 5 to 8:53 p.m. April 6.
“She also played the voicemail on her phone from 4/6/15 at 2003 hours of a male voice saying, ‘I’m trying to find you… I’m looking for you…’
“With no way to get the voicemail off of her phone at the time, I advised her to save the voicemail in case we needed it for court purposes.”
Finally, the arrest report said, “[Neusbaum] stated that he did call her several times and left her the voicemail. He also admitted that he knew that she was at the crash scene and still showed up. He also denied driving behind her, but stated that his white GMC pickup was at her neighbor’s house.”
Neusbaum was taken to jail.
Neusbaum's First Appearance Findings and Orders, April 7, 2015 by Lenny Cohen on Scribd
The next day, his bond was set $10,000 and he signed paperwork regarding “Special Conditions of Bond,” restraining him “from threatening, assaulting, harassing, or abusing the alleged victim,” not having “any contact with the alleged victim directly or indirectly, by mail, telephone, email, or through third parties,” and not going within 500 feet of where she “lives or works, nor go to the places where the alleged victim frequents on a regular basis,” nor “come within 100 feet of” her car.
He got out of jail after two days, but this was far from case closed.
“Information” charging Neusbaum with 2 counts, April 29, 2015 by Lenny Cohen on Scribd
Court records show on April 29, prosecutors charged Neusbaum with a second count of violating the protective injunction, and he pleaded not guilty to both counts.
Court Minutes, June 15, 2015 by Lenny Cohen on Scribd
But on June 15, he failed to appear in court for a hearing.
The same day, prosecutors requested his bond be revoked. Interestingly, their motion did not mention his absence at all. Instead, it alleged some shocking behavior.
The motion said that back on April 17 – which was 11 days after Neusbaum’s arrest and nine days after his release from jail – he violated the court’s orders “by shooting and killing two baby lambs that belonged to [the victim].”
Bench Warrant for Matthew Paul Neusbaum, June 15, 2015 by Lenny Cohen on Scribd
No documents mention any additional charges against Neusbaum from the deadly shooting allegations, but the judge signed a bench warrant for him that day, June 15, 2015.
Page 2 shows when it was returned by the sheriff’s office as executed: last month, on Oct. 8, 2024.
What happened over the period of more than nine years until Neusbaum was arrested again is not specified.
This time, he spent two weeks behind bars before the judge granted him bond.
Neusbaum’s Motion for Bond, Oct. 15, 2024 by Lenny Cohen on Scribd
His lawyers wrote in their motion that Neusbaum “has been living a productive life since the 2015 transgressions,” providing home care for an elderly woman, even though he would plead not guilty again.
It worked.
Neusbaum, 47, paid a much lower amount than he originally did – $2,000, down from $10,000, which he lost by not appearing in 2015 – and he was released after 15 days in jail.
Conditions this time include not possessing or consuming alcohol, illegal drugs, or medication without a valid prescription, plus not having contact with the victim.
In the meantime, the judge set some court dates before his trial, now scheduled for Jan. 13, 2025.
There’s no word on what became of his ex-girlfriend, the victim, or what Neusbaum did back in 2014 before she requested and was granted the protective order in the first place.
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