The criminal justice system failed a Kentucky family when it released a child murderer after half his sentence.
Florida officials weren't about to make the same mistake.
And one convicted child killer just learned he can't hide from the law in the Sunshine State.
The System That Let a Child Killer Walk Free
Ronald Exantus murdered 6-year-old Logan Tipton in December 2015 when he broke into the family's Versailles, Kentucky home while they slept.¹
The former dialysis nurse from Indianapolis drove to Kentucky in the middle of the night and stabbed little Logan to death in his own bed.²
He also attacked Logan's father Dean and stabbed two of the boy's sisters.³
"When I got to the top of the stairs, he attacked me with a knife," Dean Tipton told reporters at the time. "He stood up with me on top of him, just stood up and threw me 10 to 15 feet across the room and went after my daughter."⁴
Logan's sister Dakota recalled watching in horror as Exantus killed her little brother. "He stabbed me in the back, and then stomped on my head. I remember waking up across the room… and he was killing Logan and Logan was screaming."⁵
A jury found Exantus not guilty of murder by reason of insanity but convicted him on multiple assault charges for attacking the rest of the family.⁶
He got 20 years in prison – 10 years each for two counts of second-degree assault and one year for fourth-degree assault.⁷
https://twitter.com/realTJRoberts/status/1976456300340052370
Exantus served less than 10 years behind bars before Kentucky's Department of Corrections released him early on good behavior and educational credits.⁸
The Kentucky Parole Board actually voted to keep Exantus locked up for the remainder of his sentence, but a provision in state law forced the Department of Corrections to release him on Mandatory Reentry Supervision anyway.⁹
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the Trump administration was looking into the case after Exantus walked free. "It's wholly unacceptable for a child killer to walk free after just several years in prison," Leavitt wrote on X.¹⁰
Florida Catches What Kentucky Let Loose
Exantus moved to Marion County, Florida to serve out his mandatory supervision period.
That's where he made his first mistake.
Under Florida Statute 775.13, any person convicted of a felony must register with the local sheriff within 48 hours of entering any county in the state.¹¹
The law applies to anyone who's been lawfully released from incarceration or other sentence for a felony conviction within the last five years.¹²
Exantus apparently thought he could just slip into Florida unnoticed and start fresh.
Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods wasn't having it. His Intelligence Unit confirmed that Exantus failed to register as required by law.¹³
Deputies located Exantus at a home in Marion Oaks on October 9, 2025 – less than two weeks after his early release from Kentucky.¹⁴
The residence sat immediately adjacent to Sunrise Elementary School and just blocks from Horizon Academy.¹⁵
A child killer living next door to an elementary school. If that doesn't make your blood boil, nothing will.
"This case and arrest are the perfect example of how the collaborative efforts of our judicial system should work," Sheriff Woods said. "This is why the state of Florida is a cut above all others when protecting citizens and the state from true evil in the world."¹⁶
Trump's Florida Shows How It's Done
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier made it clear that child killers aren't welcome in his state.
"Today, this child murderer is on his way back to Kentucky – where he belongs," Uthmeier announced at a press conference. "I want to thank Statewide Prosecutor McVay, State Attorney Gladson, Sheriff Woods and Department of Corrections Secretary Dixon for their vigilance and decisive action. I encourage all violent criminals to stay far away from Florida."¹⁷
https://twitter.com/AGJamesUthmeier/status/1983232406648668533
Exantus was booked into Marion County Jail with no bond before his extradition back to Kentucky to face a judge for violating his probation.¹⁸
The contrast between Kentucky's soft-on-crime approach and Florida's no-nonsense law enforcement couldn't be starker.
While Kentucky's broken system let a child murderer walk free after serving less than half his sentence, Florida's law enforcement caught him violating the conditions of his release within days.
This is exactly the kind of coordination between state and federal authorities that President Trump has championed since taking office.
Florida leads the nation in cooperating with Trump's immigration enforcement efforts, with agencies from all 67 counties signing agreements to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement.¹⁹
That same vigilance extends to tracking violent felons who try to hide out in the Sunshine State.
The Trump administration has made protecting American communities from violent criminals a top priority, designating dangerous gangs like MS-13 and cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.²⁰
Florida's aggressive enforcement of felon registration requirements shows how serious officials are about keeping dangerous criminals off the streets and away from schools.
Logan Tipton's mother Heather spoke at Exantus's sentencing years ago about the lasting damage his crime inflicted on their family. "When you killed Logan, you slaughtered my entire family."²¹
Dean Tipton told reporters after Exantus's release that the family is still living that horrific night over and over. "There's no moving on when your child was taken like that."²²
Florida's swift action won't bring Logan back, but it sends a clear message – child killers who violate the terms of their release will face immediate consequences.
The registration requirement exists for exactly this reason – so law enforcement can track violent felons and respond quickly when they violate the conditions of their supervised release.
Exantus thought he could start over in Florida by ignoring the law and living next to an elementary school.
Florida officials had two words for that plan: Hell no.
¹ WKYT, "Man convicted in 2015 stabbing death of Ky. boy released from prison," October 1, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Ibid.
⁴ True Crime Avenue, "Ronald Exantus: Kentucky Man Released on Parole Seven Years After Killing 6-Year-Old Logan Tipton," October 2025.
⁵ Ibid.
⁶ WKYT, "Man convicted in 2015 stabbing death of Ky. boy released from prison," October 1, 2025.
⁷ Ibid.
⁸ WHAS11, "Man who killed 6-year-old Logan Tipton in 2015 stabbing released on parole," October 1, 2025.
⁹ WLKY, "White House reviewing release of man convicted in death of 6-year-old Kentucky boy," October 6, 2025.
¹⁰ Ibid.
¹¹ Sammis Law Firm, "Attorney on Registration as a 'Convicted Felon' in Florida," January 2025.
¹² Ibid.
¹³ Fox News Digital, "Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier and Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods press conference," October 28, 2025.
¹⁴ WDRB, "Man who killed Kentucky child in 2015 extradited from Florida for failing to register as a felon," October 28, 2025.
¹⁵ Fox News Digital, "Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier and Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods press conference," October 28, 2025.
¹⁶ Ibid.
¹⁷ Ibid.
¹⁸ WDRB, "Man who killed Kentucky child in 2015 extradited from Florida for failing to register as a felon," October 28, 2025.
¹⁹ U.S. News & World Report, "Florida leads as state and local governments sign on for Trump's mass deportations," May 1, 2025.
²⁰ The White House, "Donald Trump – On the Issues," 2025.
²¹ True Crime Avenue, "Ronald Exantus: Kentucky Man Released on Parole Seven Years After Killing 6-Year-Old Logan Tipton," October 2025.
²² Ibid.
