GAINESVILLE, Fla. – James Todd Short, 62, was arrested Wednesday night after he allegedly threatened a man with a knife inside a dorm at GRACE Marketplace.
Gainesville Police Department officers were called to GRACE Marketplace, located at 3055 NE 28th Drive, at about 11:24 p.m. on October 15. A witness told officers that the victim had reported seeing Short with a knife inside the dorm. The witness said he entered the dorm, saw Short holding the weapon and ordered him to drop it, but Short refused. The witness also gave officers a description of the knife.
According to the victim, he entered the dorm to go to bed and saw Short sitting upright in the bunk beside his while holding a knife. The victim said Short made threatening remarks and that he feared Short would get out of bed and stab him. He told officers he had never spoken with Short and did not know what prompted the alleged behavior.
Officers found Short walking away from the dorm. Police said he tensed up and pulled away when they attempted to take him into custody, prompting officers to place him on the ground and handcuff him. A search conducted after his arrest reportedly uncovered a knife matching the witness’s description.
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After being read his Miranda rights, Short reportedly told officers he had been lying on his bunk when he suffered a leg cramp and began yelling and cursing. He said the outburst was directed at the situation rather than any specific person. Short said his pocketknife fell from his pocket as he climbed down from the bunk and that he picked it up. He denied threatening anyone or holding the knife in his hands.
Short faces charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and resisting an officer without violence. His record includes six felony convictions, including one violent felony, and six nonviolent misdemeanor convictions. He has served one state prison sentence and was released on August 11, 2026. He also has an unspecified criminal history in Georgia dating from 1987 through 2025. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $52,500.