25 March 2019 :

Anthony Welch was re-sentenced to 3 consecutive life terms in prison. Welch, now 40, White, was 22 when on Dec. 14, 2000, he used a souvenir samurai sword to stab and hack his 2 neighbors to death before going on a date. He murdered 69-year-old Rufus Johnson and 60-year-old Kyoko Johnson. According to reports, Welch tied up the couple, tried to extort money, tortured and killed them. Welch pleaded guilty in 2005 to the double murder and was sentenced to death in 2006. The sentence was overturned on appeal in 2008. Welch had been waiting for his re-sentencing trial ever since. The Florida Supreme Court issued new guidelines in late 2016 requiring a unanimous jury recommendation for a death sentence. They were implemented prior to Welch's penalty phase hearing that began March 4. The new guidelines meant Welch was spared the death sentence when the Brevard County jury came back split Thursday evening.