Possible death penalty in the trial of Wade Wilson
After five years in Lee County Prison, convicted murderer Wade Wilson could now end up on death row. The jury’s decision next week will decide his fate.
Wade Wilson, 30, of Fort Myers, has been in custody at the Lee County Jail in Fort Myers since his arrest on October 8, 2019, and is now awaiting trial.
The trial is expected to last up to two days. Starting Monday, the jury will decide whether to recommend the death penalty.
Wade Wilson was convicted on June 12 of killing Kristine Melton, 35, and Diane Ruiz, 43.. In 2019, he described the murders in a phone call with his biological father, who then handed him over to the authorities.
Who was Christine Melton?The murder victim Kristine Melton from Cape Coral was best friend and cat mom
Who was Diane Ruiz?Diane Ruiz, murder victim in Cape Coral, was a loving and hardworking mother
Who is Wade Wilson?Guilty: Wade Wilson found guilty on all counts related to the 2019 murders of Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz
If Wilson is sentenced to death, he will join eight other men from Lee and Collier counties. Although Wilson technically committed two first-degree murders, his first murder charge would automatically qualify him for death row.
How is the death penalty imposed in Florida?
According to the Florida Department of Corrections, men sentenced to death are housed at the Union Correctional Institution in Raiford. There are 276 people on death row in the state, 274 of whom are men.
In Lee County in particular, inmates go through central intake at the Lee County Jail after their arrest. From the jail located downtown by the courthouse, inmates can be transferred to the core facility on any day depending on their sentence.
The core plant provides the most important operational services.
If a prosecutor intends to impose the death penalty, he or she must announce and file the request within 45 days of the indictment.
Death penalty laws vary from state to state, but Florida’s death row allows two forms of execution: lethal injection or electrocution. Both are carried out in the Florida State Penitentiary’s execution chamber. To date, executions have been carried out by individual counties, not the entire state.
Death row inmates are placed in “Death Watch” cells prior to execution while they wait for the warden to sign their death warrant. Inmates receive meals three times a day and can request a final meal. Showers are allowed every other day and all inmates remain handcuffed unless they are in the yard, shower or in a solitary confinement cell.
Visitors must be approved in advance and can only visit during designated times.
What is life like in prison in Florida?
If the jury does not recommend the death penalty, Wilson automatically faces a life sentence.
According to Florida law section 782.04, an inmate may be sentenced to life imprisonment only if his crime is the unlawful killing of a human being.
If this is Wilson’s sentence, he would have to spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole because the crime is so serious.
How many jurors must make a death recommendation in Florida?
In Florida, a judge can impose the death penalty if eight of 12 jurors agree. In most states, a unanimous jury verdict is required for the death penalty.
“If a decision is possible and the jury has at least 8 votes for the death penalty, the recommendation must be the death penalty. If there are fewer than 8 votes for the death penalty, the recommendation must be a sentence of life imprisonment without parole,” the Death Penalty Information Center said in a statement.
Opponents of the bill said Florida has the highest number of death sentences in the country.
Tiffany Knight is a reporter for The Naples Daily News and Fort Myers News-Press. You can reach her by email at [email protected]
Club Q shooter pleads guilty in federal case | Courts
Obama-appointed judges temporarily block parts of Biden’s student debt relief
How this technology helped a Michigan farmer reduce his herbicide use by 60%
About The Author
