MACCLENNY, Fla. – Ruben Ebron, who began serving a 20-year sentence last week for crimes connected to the death of toddler Lonzie Barton, was back in court in Baker County Tuesday trying to avoid spending even more time in prison.
Ebron's defense attorneys said Ebron was willing to plead no contest to four of six drug charges against him in exchange for a two-year sentence to be served concurrently with his current prison sentence in Duval County.
When Circuit Judge James Colaw denied that request, the defense offered the same no contest plea in exchange for 13 months of additional prison time. The judge said that wasn't enough.
A March 14 trial date remains in the case, although prosecutors said they still needed to depose two additional witnesses and the defense said it was preparing a change-of-venue motion to move the trial out of Baker County.
The judge also ordered that Ebron be kept in the Baker County jail until the case is resolved over the objection of Sheriff Joey Dobson because Lonzie's parents, Lonna and Chris Barton, are also in custody in Baker County on separate drug charges.
"Can we do it? We absolutely can," Dobson said. "It just presents problems we wouldn't normally have. We said it would be better, logistically, for the Baker County Sheriff's Office detention staff to not have Mr. Ebron in one section, Barton in another and Mrs. Barton in another."
Records show that by the end of the day, Baker County had transferred Chris Barton out of the jail. He is now in the Bradford County Jail. News4Jax learned he is also facing a new charge of battery in a detention facility for an altercation with Ransom Barefoot, who has publicly claimed to be Lonzie's father.
Ebron's mother, Wandra Ebron, said Tuesday that she was concerned about her son's safety in the Baker County Jail.
“Why is he in Baker County? What are they trying to do?” Wanda Ebron said. “I want to make sure that he is treated right, and the way they treated us on the phone is indicative of how they will treat us in person.”
Ruben Ebron's defense team said he needs to be in Baker County so that he's available for upcoming court hearings ahead of his trial.
“I'm interested in his safety,” Wanda Ebron said. “We can't take back what has already happened. All we can do is just move forward. He's got to pay for his crime. He said it was an accident. They accepted it as an accident. They also said everything went together.”
Ruben Ebron was out on bail on the Baker County charges when Lonzie disappeared on July 24. After six months in jail and on the eve of his trial, he led police to the toddler's skeletal remains.
He told police the boy drowned in a bathtub after he and Lonna Barton locked the child in a room while they had sex.
“The trial has taken it's toll on me today, and I had to go through a grieving process for Lonzie and I'm still grieving,” said Wanda Ebron, who has lost a lot of weight over the course of the case.
She said his family didn't even know the Baker County hearing had been scheduled for Tuesday, and she still has many questions for his defense team.
“He's got to pay something and maybe if they had come out before then maybe it would be a different outcome,” Wanda Ebron said. “I'm not exonerating him. He has to pay for what has happened.”
The sheriff said he could also understand why Ruben Ebron's defense attorney doesn't want the case tried in Baker County.
"I understand that there has been a lot of publicity about Mr. Ebron's case, and the Bartons' cases that are going on," Dobson said.
One of the witnesses prosecutors still need to depose is Chris Barton. They will then decide if he will be a witness in Ruben Ebron's drug case, if it goes to trial.
In addition to the Baker County drug charges, Lonna Barton is awaiting sentencing on Duval County charges of child neglect and lying to police in the Lonzie case.
Wanda Ebron said she wants to share a message with youth in Jacksonville.
“If you want fairness in the system, you need to stay out of the system,” Wanda Ebron said. “I don't have anything else to say about the sentence. If you want fairness, stay out of the system.”