26 June 2024 :
June 24, 2024 - Florida. Judge sentences Bessman Okafor to death in connection with killing
Judge Lisa Munyan handed down a death sentence Monday in the case of Bessman Okafor, who is convicted in connection with the 2012 killing of Alex Zaldivar and originally sentenced to capital punishment based on an 11-to-1 jury recommendation.
Zaldivar was a witness during a home invasion about 12 years ago and was expected to testify against Okafor, who was later convicted on charges that he had Zaldivar killed.
A year after the jury sentence, the Florida Supreme Court in 2016 issued a ruling requiring death sentences to be unanimous.
But last year, though, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a new law allowing juries to impose the death penalty with as few as 8 out of 12 votes.
On January 31, a new jury once again recommended the death penalty for Okafor, this time by a 9-to-3 margin.
