Craig Wall of Clearwater was officially indicted by a grand jury last week on charges of murdering his girlfriend, Laura Taft, and their baby, Craig Wall Jr.

Now prosecutors in Pinellas County will review the case to decide whether to pursue the death penalty. (more…)

A Hillsborough County jury reached an impasse last week when trying to decide whether Ronnie Tremel Walker killed Elaine Lanier Caldwell during a 2003 home invasion. After deliberating for five hours, jurors told the judge they were hopelessly deadlocked. The judge declared a mistrial due to the deadlock.

Prosecutors quickly announced that they plan to retry Walker for first-degree murder, burglary and robbery. He faces life imprisonment if convicted. (more…)

Dexter Bell, 21, was sentenced to 35 years in prison last week for the shooting death of 16-year-old Torie McDuffie. McDuffie was killed three years ago on a corner in a neighborhood near Clair Mel when two cars drove by, guns firing from both. Bell had been convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder for his role.

Those in the cars were targeting a group of people who had thrown cinder blocks at one of their cars. McDuffie, an honors student at Blake High School, was not the instigator of the conflict and had just walked to the corner when he was struck in the head by a bullet. (more…)

Dee Dee Moore of Plant City has been charged with first degree murder in relation to the death of Abraham Shakespeare last year. Shakespeare won an estimated $30 million in the Florida Lottery in late 2006. His remains were found in January 2010, buried behind a home in the Plant City area owned by Moore and her boyfriend.

According to law enforcement, Moore approached Shakespeare in 2007, telling him that she was interested in writing a book about his life. She ultimately become something of a financial advisor to Shakespeare. Within a few months, she had control over $3.5 million of his assets.

Shakespeare went missing last April, although his family did not report him missing until November.

Police now say that Moore went to extreme lengths to make it seem that Shakespeare was still alive. She even had someone call Shakespeare’s mother, pretending to be Shakespeare. Shakespeare’s mother didn’t think it sounded like her son and police traced the phone number back to Gregory Todd Smith. They found Smith the next day, meeting with Moore. (more…)

Late last week, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Richard Luce sentenced John Lee Hampton to death for murdering Lashonda McKinnes in Clearwater in 2007.

Hampton was convicted of the murder back in June 2009. After returning a guilty verdict and hearing additional evidence and testimony related to sentencing, the jury voted 9-3 vote in favor of giving Hampton the death penalty.

Although Hampton gave police several different accounts to explain the incriminating evidence, including blood on his clothing, he ultimately said that he accidentally killed McKinnes because she came after him while he was going through her apartment looking for cocaine. Prosecutors aid Hampton raped McInnes and slit her throat, before trying to wash his DNA off her body with cleaning chemicals and lighter fluid. (more…)

Despite years of appeals and several last minute pleas to the Florida Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court, Martin Grossman was executed at the Florida state prison in Starke on Tuesday. A court issued the death penalty to Grossman almost 25 years ago.

In his final statement, Grossman expressed remorse to the family of Peggy Park, the Florida wildlife officer he beat and shot to death in 1984. “I would like to extend my heartfelt remorse to the victim’s family,” Grossman said. “I fully regret everything that happened that night, everything that was done, whether I remember everything or not. I accept responsibility.”

He then said a Jewish prayer before the execution commenced. (more…)

Yesterday, the Florida Supreme Court upheld a Pinellas County trial court’s ruling not to set aside the death sentence of Martin Grossman.

Grossman’s appellate attorneys claimed he was entitled to a new hearing to determine whether his trial lawyer was ineffective for failing to have him examined by a competent mental health professional. According to the supreme court’s opinion, Grossman was examined, but the doctor said his testimony would not assist the defense.

Grossman’s lawyers also claimed the state’s death penalty statute was arbitrarily applied because jurors didn’t hear all the available mitigating evidence. They also said an inmate who testified for the state lied about conversations he had with Grossman.

The trial court in January denied Grossman’s first two claims and dismissed the third. The Supreme Court upheld that denial. (more…)

On Thursday, a Pinellas County jury convicted Cordaro Hardin of first-degree murder in the 2007 shooting deaths of two St. Petersburg men. The penalty phase of the capital murder trial occurred on Friday. The jury declined to recommend that Hardin by sentenced to death, instead recommending the only other alternative sentence – life in prison.

Hardin himself communicated to the jury through the song he wrote. From the witness stand, Hardin sang, “God, I need a little assistance, will you be with me? By my side when I leave here, where do I go from here?”

Hardin was represented by Tampa Bay area capital murder defense attorney Bjorn Brunvand. At Friday’s hearing, Brunvand called the killings senseless but argued that Hardin should be spared from execution. Brunvand pointed out that Hardin had no previous criminal record and was only 18 at the time of the shootings. Hardin maintains his innocence. (more…)

In January 2008, Damian Eagan of Pinellas County was shot in the hand and arm by a man with dreadlocks who was attempting to steal $4,000 in cash. Eagan later identified Mariuntay Murray in a photo lineup as the person who shot him.

Eagan and Murray knew each other. Murray’s brother had dated Eagan’s sister.

Prosecutors charged Murray with attempted first-degree murder and robbery. The case went to trial this past week.

Eagan was the first witness called to the stand by prosecutors. Under direct examination by the assistant state attorney, though, Eagan testified that he wasn’t “100% sure” who shot him.

“Were you 100 percent sure when you (identified him) back in February 2008?” the prosecutor asked. (more…)

Christopher Taylor, a 26-year-old St. Petersburg man, pleaded guilty this week to second-degree murder for the 2007 shooting death of James Lasseter. Taylor was represented by Tampa Bay area criminal defense attorney Bjorn E. Brunvand.

Taylor entered a guilty plea in accordance with a plea agreement with prosecutors. Under the agreement negotiated between the state and the defense, Taylor was sentenced to 25 years in prison. He will be required to serve each day of the sentence but will receive credit for time already served in jail post-arrest.

Authorities alleged that Taylor shot Lasseter because he believed Lasseter sold him fake cocaine. Taylor was originally charged with first-degree murder which carries a mandatory life sentence upon conviction.

Local news reported that Assistant State Attorney Bill Burgess said he was pleased that the arrangement would take Taylor off the streets for 25 years. Taylor’s attorney Brunvand said the arrangement does provide “an opportunity for him to become a member of society again.”