Postal worker accused of stabbing lawn care worker in Lithia released from jail

LITHIA, Fla. – A postal worker accused of stabbing a lawn care worker in Lithia was released from jail Tuesday.

Mark Calloway, 60, was arrested Friday on a charge of second-degree murder with a weapon. He is accused of stabbing and killing 29-year-old Jacob Whitaker after an argument over a parking spot on the street.

“This happened over what?” said a prosecutor. “Blocked mailboxes.”

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The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said Whitaker was in the FishHawk area doing lawn work on a home while Calloway was on his regular route delivering mail. A detective testified about what happened during the incident when Calloway appeared in court Tuesday afternoon.

He said he spoke to the neighbor whose house Whitaker would come to do lawn work.

“She heard his pickup truck pull up,” the detective said. “As her mailbox is in the neighbor’s yard, she went outside to make sure it was in the right place.”

The detective said the neighbor told him when she went outside she heard a verbal argument between Calloway and Whitaker.

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“Mr. “Whitaker steps back to allow Mr. Calloway to arrive and deliver the mail,” a HCSO detective said. “When he delivers the mail, he says he forgot to deliver a package. He then gets out to deliver the package and says he can hear Mr. Whitaker screaming.”

The detective said Calloway walked to the driver's side of Whitaker's truck as Whitaker rolled down the window.

“She could see the altercation from the shoulders up because the pickup truck was blocking her view,” the investigator said. “All she could hear from there was screaming. She was unable to describe what she heard. All she could hear was loud talking back and forth and she could just see the two people moving back and forth.”

Rick Escobar, Calloway's attorney, pointed out that the neighbor had limited visibility of the incident.

“What one person says to another could be very critical in a case like this, right?” Escobar said.

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A surveillance camera on a car parked across the street captured part of the incident.

“He informed him that they were calling each other laziness, at which point Mr. Whitaker exited the vehicle,” the detective said. “He says the driver's front door hit him as Mr. Whitaker exited the vehicle, then Mr. Whitaker pushed him in the chest, and then he says he knocked him to the ground, at which point he got up and he said he felt the need to defend himself.”

The detective said Calloway stabbed Whitaker multiple times at that point. The detective said Calloway told him he didn't remember Whitaker hitting him or having any weapons.

“You don’t have to get hit before you exercise your right to self-defense,” Escobar said.

Escobar said Calloway told the detective he thought Whitaker was going to beat him up. He argued that Calloway stood his ground and acted in self-defense when a verbal argument turned physical.

“He makes physical contact, unwanted physical contact with my client,” Escobar said. “Walks straight at him, pushes his chest, his face touches my client's face.”

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Photos of scratches and bruises on Calloway's arms and chest were shown in court. Escobar also pointed out that Whitaker reportedly weighs about twice as much as Calloway and is significantly younger than him.

Escobar continued to poke holes in the investigation, which he later described as clumsy. He pointed out that the surveillance camera video only captures a portion of the interaction and that a significant portion occurs outside the frame of the video.

Escobar also said that physically assaulting a USPS employee is a federal offense.

“The justified use of deadly force contains a provision that allows someone to prevent a violent crime from being committed against them,” Escobar said.

Escobar asked the detective if they had asked Calloway if he had any physical problems during his investigation.

“Because that goes into the evaluation,” Escobar said. “The assessment of what he was going through at the time of the attack.”

Escobar said Calloway had arthritis and was taking painkillers. The state said investigators spoke to other people in the neighborhood during their investigation.

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“Several homeowners had mentioned that Mr. Calloway is known to become very upset when people block mailboxes and complications arise,” the detective said.

Escobar referred to social media posts previously written by Whitaker and read one of them in the courtroom.

“'The next old person who follows me around the garden to make sure I fertilize the whole thing is going to get body spanked,'” Escobar said.

The state maintained its position that Calloway was the one who provoked the incident.

“Mr. Calloway provoked this initiation with Mr. Whitaker, and he ends up reconnecting with Mr. Whitaker even after he is knocked to the ground,” a prosecutor said.

The judge sided with the defense and said Whitaker was the aggressor in this case.

“The contact that is ultimately made between the parties, the physical contact, in this case is at the behest of the victim,” said Tampa Judge Samantha Ward.

The judge allowed Calloway to be released from prison on his own recognizance.

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“That's certainly part of the self-defense law that allows someone to defend themselves against serious bodily harm or a crime,” Ward said.

The judge also acknowledged that Calloway had no criminal record. Escobar said the charges have not been formally filed at this time.

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