Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Lorenzo Keandre Smith, 28, was arrested yesterday after allegedly throwing a large paver through the glass door of an occupied downtown restaurant.

The responding Gainesville Police Department officer reported that at about 1:47 p.m. on May 25, Smith picked up a stone that looked like the corner portion of a stone paver (about 12 inches by 6 inches, weighing over 11 pounds) and threw it into the glass door of The Florida Room (2 W. University Avenue), which was open and occupied at the time.

The paver reportedly shattered the glass door, and the officer noted that the paver was “obviously large and heavy enough to be capable of causing death or great bodily harm, had it struck a patron inside the business.”

Post Miranda, Smith reportedly said he would make statements in court about why he threw the paver at the business. When asked if he knew there were people inside, he reportedly said he did and that he saw people behind the glass before he threw the paver. He then refused to say anything else.

Smith, whose address is listed as GRACE Marketplace, has been charged with throwing a deadly missile into an occupied building. His full criminal history is unavailable, but he has served two state prison sentences; the first was for four felonies (three violent) out of Orange County, and the last was for battery on a detainee in the Alachua County Jail; he was released on February 10, 2025, after serving a sentence of a year and a week in state prison. Judge Luis Bustamante set bail at $50,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.