Investigators later added a second aggravated battery charge tied to a reported hammer attack.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Police in Daytona Beach have opened an internal review after a man accused of slashing a 13-year-old boy’s throat was previously contacted by officers twice on Valentine’s Day, including after a reported sledgehammer attack near a convenience store, authorities said.
The suspect, Jermaine Long, is now jailed without bond while facing aggravated battery charges in two separate cases. The police department said the review is standard for complex investigations and comes as questions grow about why Long was not taken into custody earlier on Feb. 14, before the teen was hurt later that night.
Police said the day began at about 7:58 a.m. on Feb. 14, when officers were called to a property in Daytona Beach where the owner wanted Long removed. Officers issued a trespass warning and released him because there was not enough evidence to arrest him, the department said. A resident, Joanne Payne, said Long had stayed with her husband, who is friends with him, and had been kicked out the night before. Payne said a neighbor called 911 after Long returned. “She said he came back with a sledgehammer and was hollering that he was going to make some noise,” Payne said.
Later that morning, at about 11:30 a.m., officers responded to a disturbance at a 7-Eleven at 35 S. Atlantic Ave., police said. Investigators said Long was accused of hitting someone in the head with a hammer after an argument. Officers spoke with both parties, but the alleged victim did not fully cooperate and there was not enough evidence to legally justify an immediate arrest, the department said. A store clerk asked officers to trespass Long from the business because of a prior retail theft report, police said, adding that the reported victim did not have major injuries.
Hours later, police said the case turned far more serious. Officers responded to a stabbing report at 18 S. Ocean Ave. on the night of Feb. 14. Police said witnesses gave statements, the victim fully cooperated, and officers saw physical evidence at the scene. Based on that information, officers located Long and arrested him on an aggravated battery charge, the department said. The victim was identified by WESH 2 as 13-year-old Sullivan Clarke, who was injured on the boardwalk during race weekend in Daytona Beach.
Clarke’s family has said the attack was unprovoked and happened as they walked near the beach. The teen received 13 stitches, and a doctor told the family the wound could have been much worse if it had been slightly deeper, according to accounts shared by the family in television interviews. In a separate court proceeding, Long entered not guilty pleas in both cases, and his attorney said Long maintains he did not commit the crimes. “My client has indicated that he’s innocent,” the attorney said during an interview aired by WESH 2.
After the slashing arrest, police said investigators took another look at the earlier hammer report. The department said investigators worked with the State Attorney’s Office and determined there was enough overall evidence to file an additional aggravated battery charge tied to the hammer case, even without the victim’s cooperation. Once that second charge was added, Long was ordered held without bond, police said. Before the added charge, bond had been set at $50,000 in connection with the stabbing case, according to the police statement.
The Valentine’s Day incidents were not the only cases involving Long in recent weeks. Police and WESH 2 reported that Long has a criminal history that includes drugs and battery, and that he is a registered sex offender. In January, he was accused of chasing two men with a wooden pole and cutting one in the face with a knife, according to WESH 2 reporting and police statements. The State Attorney’s Office declined to pursue charges in that January case at the time, and Long was released. After the February attacks, the State Attorney’s Office said it is reviewing that earlier file, WESH 2 reported.
Police said they will not release body-worn camera video for now because the cases remain active and under prosecution. In its statement, the department cited exemptions under Florida public records law for information tied to ongoing criminal investigations and pending prosecutions. The department said its internal review has begun and that no further details will be released until that process is complete.
As the review moves forward, investigators are expected to continue compiling reports and evidence for prosecutors while the criminal cases proceed in court. Long remains held at the Volusia County Branch Jail, and the department has indicated the next public update will come after the internal review is finished or as court filings allow.
Author note: Last updated February 20, 2026.