Today in Charlotte County Michael Clemons pled guilty to one count of Taking or Possessing
More Than One Turtle Per Day and one count of Transporting More Than One Turtle or Turtle
Eggs. He was adjudicated guilty on both counts and sentenced to 6 months of probation on each
count to be served consecutive to each other. The defendant will also have to complete 100
community service hours, make a $250 donation to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission’s Wildlife Alert Fund, and pay court costs.
In May 2019 the defendant was driving a truck that was pulled over for running a stop sign.
Clemons informed the deputies that he and his passenger, co-defendant Marchan Le Quire, had
been trying to collect frogs and snakes from a nearby underpass.
When deputies from the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office searched the truck they found 42
striped mud turtles and a softshell turtle in a “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle” character backpack
between the passenger’s feet. When the deputies asked if they had anything else they needed to
know about, Le Quire pulled a live foot-long alligator out of her yoga pants. The Charlotte
County Sheriff’s Office contacted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to
assist in the investigation due to the animals involved.
The co-defendant in this case was adjudicated guilty and sentenced in August on four related
counts and one Failure to Appear.
Assistant State Attorney Christopher Ryan and Assistant State Attorney Sara Schmidt handled
the cases.
Samantha Syoen
Communications Director
State Attorney’s Office
ssyoen@sao20.org
239-533-1125