Man Sentenced to Three Years of Probation for Knife Assault, Accused of Absconding from Supervision After Less than Two Weeks

Last month, David Christ Brown, 63, was sentenced to probation for making threats with a knife. Less than two weeks later, Brown’s probation officer requested a warrant because he allegedly absconded from supervision. 

On January 16, 2026, Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) deputies arrested Brown and charged him with aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony (later amended to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon). 

According to the arrest report, Brown was in a relationship with the 27-year-old victim’s mother, and they all lived at the same residence. 

Brown saw text messages between the victim and his mom and thought he was being disrespectful. Brown got upset and started yelling at the victim before threatening to kill him. Brown then armed himself with a kitchen knife. 

The victim was in his bedroom when he heard Brown say he was going to kill someone. The victim came out and saw Brown standing with the knife. The victim’s mom got between the two men but Brown pushed past her and advanced toward the victim with the knife. The victim went back into his room and closed the door, and was able to use his body weight to keep Brown from forcing it open. 

On July 14, 2026, Brown entered into a no-contest plea agreement with prosecutors that was accepted by Judge Susanne Wilson Bullard, in which he was sentenced to three years of probation.  

On July 27, 2026, Probation Officer Carlos Perez requested a warrant for Brown’s arrest, reporting that he failed to comply with terms of his supervision and completely absconded from his probation. Perez recommended that Brown be sentenced to six months in jail followed by two years of community control with electronic monitoring. 

As of this writing, a warrant has not yet been issued, only requested, court records show. Brown's current whereabouts are unclear.

Prior Case

This all comes relatively soon after Brown was arrested, charged, and convicted in another aggravated assault case and did not receive any prison or probation time. 

On March 18, 2025, ACSO arrested Brown and charged him with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and threatening harm or death to a law enforcement officer. 

The victim told police that Brown, her ex-boyfriend, threatened to hit her with a wooden fence post. Deputy James Leber reported, “They were previously in a dating relationship, and they still live together now... The sheriff's office has responded to multiple domestic incidents with them.”

The victim explained that she was searching for Brown and found him at his friend’s residence. After this, they got into an argument about a vehicle they co-own. Brown picked up a wooden post and made a statement to the effect of, “I’ll hit you in the motherfucking head” as he raised the post above his head. 

The victim was in her vehicle during the incident. Brown approached her with the post, making her fearful that he would break the car window and strike her. Brown left the scene in the co-owned vehicle. 

Leber’s report continues:

“The Victim added that she believed [Brown] was under the influence of crack cocaine. Of note, the Victim had a stroke a couple years ago and believes [Brown] intentionally exploits this vulnerability to scare her. The Victim specifically said she is worried that [Brown] will kill her. The Victim completed a sworn statement.

On the ground at the incident location I found a wooden post, approximately 4 feet long, that matched the Victim's description.

I attempted to contact [Brown] via phone and find him at his home, with no success. Hours later, deputies found [Brown] driving the same vehicle in another area and detained him without incident. A narcotic certified K9 unit conducted a free air sniff of [Brown]’s vehicle, which resulted in a positive alert for the presence of a narcotics odor.

A probable cause search resulted in the discovery of a glass drug pipe with burnt residue and two (2) pieces of a white rocklike substance that weighed approximately 0.5 grams with plastic bag weight and field tested presumptive positive for the presence of cocaine; in the vehicle's center console area. [Brown]'s wallet and FL DL were found nearby.

[Brown] became belligerent which hindered my interview. He yelled, repeatedly called deputies ‘cracker,’ and had to be repeatedly ordered to sit and put his legs in my patrol vehicle. Post Miranda, he said he uses ‘crack’ and that there was just a ‘crack’ rock in the car. He denied striking or threatening the Victim, saying he only saw her at their home. He denied being at the incident location. [Brown] falsely claimed he and his vehicle had been at the area he was apprehended since [5:30] PM and gave a path of travel to get there that clearly contradicted information known to me. [Brown] was asked if he wanted to complete a sworn statement, but he would not give a clear answer.

[Brown] was placed under arrest. While en route to the Department of the Jail (DOJ), [Brown] spoke about a previous prison incarceration in New York and made a statement to the effect of, ‘if you ever go up there, you'll be killed.’”

Prosecutors threw out the police threats charge before filing formal charges. In September 2025, he entered a no-contest plea agreement where he was convicted of the other charges and released with a time-served jail sentence and no probation. The plea deal was accepted by Judge William Slaughter II.

Brown has further priors for misdemeanor battery, carrying a concealed weapon, contempt of court, criminal mischief (property damage), child abuse, forgery, petty theft and tampering with an electronic monitoring device, court records show.