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On the lam for 15 years, man finally sentenced

A man who was supposed to plead guilty in 1990 in a sex abuse case gets 35 years as his daughters beg for mercy. While on the lam he assumed his missing brother's identity.

By CHRIS TISCH
Published June 7, 2005

	Richard Fisher raised children while authorities continued searching for him.
	Jack Fisher went missing in Mississippi in 1994 and has never been found.

LARGO - Richard Fisher awaited sentencing on child-sex abuse charges when he fled Pinellas County 15 years ago. At one point, he assumed his brother's identity and returned to the area.

While on the lam, Fisher raised three children and lived a crime-free life. His run from the law ended when he was arrested in Dunedin in March.

On Monday, Fisher's two high school-age daughters, their cheeks streaked with tears, begged a judge to be lenient as their father once again faced a prison sentence.

"He's a great dad. He's an awesome person," said Fisher's 13-year-old daughter. "I love him so much."

McGrady acknowledged that Fisher had done well over the years, but said he had to pay for his crime. He sentenced Fisher to 35 years, which was part of the original plea deal Fisher had agreed to 15 years ago.

"For 15 years, you had a chance to turn yourself in," McGrady told Fisher. "For 15 years you had a chance to accept responsibility. We can't tolerate people just taking off."

At 46, Fisher probably won't be out of prison until he's in his 70s. He likely will miss his daughters' graduations and perhaps their weddings.

He probably would be out of prison, or close to it, had he gone to prison years ago, when gain-time rules were much more generous than today. Because Fisher had agreed to a 35-year sentence years ago, he could not withdraw his guilty plea.

In March, Pinellas detectives received a tip that he was living in Dunedin under the assumed identity of his brother, Jack, who disappeared in 1994.

Richard Fisher initially denied his true identity, but fingerprint records told the truth.

The unusual case prompted prosecutors to launch an investigation into the whereabouts of Jack Fisher. He vanished while working in the mobile home business in Mississippi.

Prosecutors have since closed that investigation after finding no evidence of Jack's whereabouts, nor any indication that Richard was involved in the disappearance.

"His trail is totally cold as far as we can tell," Prosecutor Beverly Andringa said of Jack Fisher. "People rarely vanish off the face of the Earth like that voluntarily, so there may be foul play ... but we don't think Richard Fisher did it."

Noticeably absent from the hearing Monday was the female victim of the sex abuse, who was 6 years old at the time of the crime.

Prosecutors tried to reach her - she would now be about 23 - and her mother, but they could not be found. The mother is wanted in Pinellas County on probation violation charges.

The girl and her family were neighbors of Richard Fisher in 1988 at an Oldsmar apartment complex. The girl said she was sexually abused and a medical test backed up her story. She identified Fisher as her abuser. Pinellas deputies said Fisher admitted to them that he abused the child.

He was arrested on Dec. 29, 1988. That same day, Fisher and his family hired the Clearwater Bonding Agency to bail him out of jail. The agency put up $25,000 and Fisher was released.

A year later he agreed to plead guilty to two reduced charges of attempted sexual battery and accept a 35-year sentence. Even with the lesser charges, it was a break from the maximum term of 60 years in prison. Sentencing was set for Jan. 16, 1990.

Judge Horace Andrews allowed Fisher to remain free on bail until his sentencing date. He warned him not to flee.

"I want you to understand that should you not come back here on Jan. 16th or should you actually get into some criminal activity involvement between now and then, that this deal is off as far as the court is concerned," Andrews said.

Fisher answered: "Yes, sir."

But he vanished instead. Police looked for him, as did the bail bondsman, who was out $25,000. Fisher's parents later paid them back.

The bail bondsman heard reports that Richard Fisher was out of the country. At some point, he returned to Florida and settled in Ocala.

In 1994, Jack went missing. The family filed a missing persons report in Mississippi, but Jack has never been heard from again. "We as parents did everything we could to find our other son," mother Betty Fisher said in court Monday.

Though the brothers don't look a lot alike, Richard got a driver's license in Jack's name and began using his Social Security number.

Not too long ago, Richard Fisher moved to Dunedin, back to the county where he was a wanted man.

He rented a brown and beige duplex and lived with his daughters. He worked as an electrician. Everyone knew him as Jack and he was regarded by friends as a kind and gentle man.

Fisher's family members said the example he had set over the last 15 years should have earned him leniency this time around.

Though his home wasn't far from various family members, they have provided "lukewarm denials" of knowing his whereabouts, Andringa said.

Even if they did, blood relatives cannot be charged with harboring a fugitive family member. "I have no proof that anyone knew of his location," Andringa said.

But someone knew.

Earlier this year, an anonymous tipster called the Sheriff's Office to report Richard Fisher's true identity and whereabouts. A detective confronted Fisher at his workplace. He claimed to be Jack, but couldn't dispute the prints taken from his fingers matched those in the 17-year-old case file on Richard Fisher.

[Last modified June 7, 2005, 02:15:48]