A 72-year-old man who fled to North Carolina before being personally extradited to Florida by Sheriff Rick Staly has been convicted and sentenced to prison for attempted sexual battery.
Kermit Booth appeared before Circuit Judge Dawn Nichols on January 7, 2026, where he entered a no-contest plea to the charge of attempted sexual battery. Judge Nichols accepted the plea agreement, found Booth guilty, and handed down a sentence of 10 years in a Florida Department of Corrections prison. Booth will also serve 20 years of sexual offender probation following his release and must register as a sexual predator.
The case required significant effort from Flagler County law enforcement to bring Booth to justice. After initially being arrested in North Carolina, Booth was released on bail. He was subsequently arrested again, and Sheriff Staly personally traveled to North Carolina in September 2025 to extradite him to Flagler County.
Sheriff Staly commented on the outcome of the case. “Despite the hurdles that North Carolina made us jump through, we brought this pervert back to Florida so he could face justice for his crimes and we could get justice for the victim he abused,” Staly said. “Thanks to the hard work of our great detectives and the steadfast, resolute determination of the victim, we can call him what he is: a convicted sex offender.”
The sheriff also addressed the impact on the victim in the case. “We hope our victim can continue her recovery knowing this pervert that took her innocence away will spend the next decade, frankly, very likely the rest of his life, behind bars where he can’t be a danger to any more children,” Staly said.
Booth is currently being held at the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility in Flagler County while awaiting transfer to Florida Department of Corrections custody to begin serving his prison sentence.
This case marks the third update released by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office regarding Booth’s prosecution.
The post Flagler County Fugitive Extradited from North Carolina Sentenced to 10 Years for Sex Crime first appeared on Flagler County Buzz.
