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Thread: Gary Michael Hilton - Florida Death Row

  1. #11
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    Jury urges judge to sentence killer of nurse to death

    A Florida judge will weigh a jury's recommendation to execute Gary Michael Hilton for killing a nurse in 2007 before scheduling a sentencing date.

    A jury unanimously recommended the death penalty Monday for the 64-year-old drifter jurors convicted last week in the December 2007 slaying of a nurse whose beheaded body was found in the Apalachicola National Forest in the Florida panhandle.

    Hilton previously admitted killing and decapitating a University of Georgia graduate he kidnapped Jan. 1, 2008, near Blood Mountain in North Georgia. Hilton is also a suspect in at least 3 other killings, 2 in North Carolina and 1 in Florida.

    In the Florida case, Circuit Judge James C. Hankinson has the discretion to impose his own sentence in death cases but is supposed to give "great weight" to the jury's recommendation. Judges normally follow a jury's recommendation in capital cases.

    The jury reached its recommendation Monday after about an hour of deliberations.

    "If there was ever a case for it, this was it," State Attorney Willie Meggs said of the rare unanimous decision in a death case.

    The same jury found Hilton guilty last week in the killing of 46-year-old Cheryl Dunlap of Crawfordville.

    The headless bodies of both Dunlap and 24-year-old Meredith Emerson of Buford, a UGA graduate, were found in forests where Hilton had camped.

    Dunlap's friend, Gloria Tucker of Crawfordville, expressed satisfaction with the jury's decision. But she said even Hilton's execution wouldn't bring total justice in the case of her friend, whom she called Sherri.

    "I don't think any family members got justice," Tucker said. "He's no equal for Sherri. She grew up with a bad home life and grew up to be a lovely person."

    (Source: The Associated Press)

  2. #12
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    Hilton Attorney Reassigned

    The attorney who represented Gary Hilton in his recent kidnapping and murder case will no longer be handling death penalty cases.

    Ines Suber, who has defended clients in capital cases for nearly a decade, has confirmed that she has been reassigned and will handle appeals instead.

    Hilton was convicted last month and a jury unanimously recommended a death sentence. It's the only death recommendation of Suber's career.

    Suber says she will represent Hilton at his sentencing next month, but that will be her last death penalty case.

    Suber says she loves working on capital cases and says she feels she has been successful representing clients like Coy Evans and more recently Deneilo Bradshaw and Andrea Green, all of whom were sentenced to life in prison.

    Public Defender Nancy Daniels says the reassignment has nothing to do with the verdict in the Hilton case and that this rotation was planned and announced before the trial ever started.

    Daniels says she knew the timing would raise questions, but said to assume this had anything to do with the Hilton death penalty verdict would be "completely wrong."

    "The strain on the capital team was evident," Daniels said. "This will get some fresh legs in there."

    Daniels says Steven Been, Andy Thomas and Nicole Jameson will be handling capital cases for her office now.

    http://www.wctv.tv/home/headlines/Hi...118400064.html

  3. #13
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    Gary Michael Hilton Trial - Victim Impact Statements

    Loved ones of the Crawfordville woman he's convicted of killing addressed the court one final time before Hilton is sentenced.

    Cheryl Dunlap's aunt, best friend, and cousin, all stood up inside of courtroom 3A to convey as much as they could how much the death of the FSU nurse has changed their lives.

    In February, 100 percent of the jury recommended the death penalty for Gary Michael Hilton. Hilton was convicted of kidnapping and murdering Cheryl Dunlap in December 2007.

    This morning, Dunlap's loved ones gave impact statements before the court. The first to speak was Dunlap's aunt who described Dunlap as compassionate, giving and quick to help. Dunlap's best friend and cousin also spoke on how much of an impact this has had on their lives over the past few years.

    State Attorney Willie Meggs asked the judge again today to follow the jury's recommendation of the death penalty... The defense is asking for a life sentence.

    More than two dozen letters from other friends and loved ones were submitted to the court. The defense objected to most of them because he says their expressions of hurt and pain were inappropriate. The judge agreed with the state and is allowing the letters to be considered by the court.

    The judge makes an official sentencing for Gary Michael Hilton on April 21.

    _________________________________

    April 7, 2011 - 10:10am -

    Sentencing for Gary Michael Hilton is set for April 21
    _________________________________

    April 7, 2011 - 10:05am -

    Defense is up now. The attorney has asked for a life sentence for Hilton instead of the death penalty. He says not much weight should be given to much of what the state attorney said.

    _________________________________

    April 7, 2011 - 9:55am -

    Hilton declined to speak. State Attorney Willie Meggs is giving an ending statement.
    _________________________________

    April 7, 2011 - 9:42am -

    Dunlap's aunt, Emma Blount, just finished giving her impact statement. Dunlap's best friend, Laura Walker, is now up. Both have expressed just how much Dunlap meant to them.
    _________________________________

    April 7, 2011 - 9:38am -

    The defense objected to the written impact statements from Dunlap's family and friends because he says their comments about pain, heartache, and punishment for Dunlap's killer are inappropriate characterizations of Hilton and opinions of the crime. The state says the purpose of the letters is not to inflame the court. The prosecutor says the people have a right to be heard and is asking that the letters be a part of the record. Judge agrees with the state. He has over ruled the objections and says the court has a right to consider the letters.
    _________________________________

    April 7, 2011 - 9:25am -

    State Attorney Willie Meggs says three witnesses will speak before the court today for one last opportunity to tell the court how Cheryl Dunlap's death has impacted their lives. The defense is going through a pile of letters from other loved ones who've submitted written impact statements. There were more than two dozen letters, and the defense objected to all but one.

    http://www.wctv.tv/home/headlines/119396334.html

  4. #14
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    Gary Michael Hilton sentenced to death for Florida murder

    A drifter from Georgia learned his fate Thursday morning when a judge sentenced him to death for the 2007 murder and kidnapping of a nurse in northern Florida.

    Gary Michael Hilton, 64, was found guilty in February of killing Cheryl Dunlap inside the Apalachicola National Forest.

    He is currently serving a life sentence for the January 2008 slaying of Meredith Hope Emerson in the Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area.

    Hilton escaped the death penalty in Georgia by agreeing to lead investigators to Emerson's body in Dawson County.

    When Emerson was killed, Dawson County Sheriff's Lt. Col. John Cagle was nearing his retirement as a special agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

    "For anybody here in Dawson County, some people had questions as to why we didn't seek the death penalty at that time," Cagle said. "It was the conviction we got for the murder of Meredith Emerson that was the aggravating circumstance in the Cheryl Dunlap murder."

    Cagle watched the sentencing on a live Internet feed this morning from the Leon County, Fla. courtroom.

    "The expression on his face - this was the first time that it appeared he was scared," Cagle said. "I wish we could carry out the sentence today. I'd be more than happy to assist them."

    As the lead GBI investigator in the local case, Cagle and the Emerson family became close and continue to keep in touch.

    "I think the Emersons will be pleased with the sentence. And I'm sure they, as I do, look forward to the trial in North Carolina so that that family can get some closure as well," Cagle said.

    Hilton is also suspected in the 2007 double slayings of John and Irene Bryant in Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina, though he has not been officially charged in that case.

    "I talked to the U.S. Attorney and they are certainly proceeding in that case," Cagle said.

    While no time table has been set, Cagle predicts the case will move forward this fall.

    Hilton has 30 days file an appeal.

    http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/sect...article/49369/

  5. #15
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    Hilton leaves Leon County Jail

    Killer also receives life in prison for kidnapping plus 5 years for theft

    Leon Circuit Judge James Hankinson took six minutes Thursday to sentence serial killer Gary Michael Hilton to death for the 2007 murder of Crawfordville nurse Cheryl Dunlap.

    http://www.tallahassee.com/article/2...#ixzz1KHF2nvay

  6. #16
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    Hilton checks in at Florida State Prison death row

    A day after being sentenced to death in Leon Circuit Court, Gary Michael Hilton left Tallahassee.

    The 64-year-old Hilton, convicted in the gruesome killings of Cheryl Dunlap of Crawfordville and Meredith Emerson of Georgia, was transported Friday morning from the Leon County Jail.

    He checked into the Florida Department of Corrections Reception and Medical Center in Lake Butler before going to his new cell on death row at Florida State Prison in the nearby town of Raiford, said Gretl Plessinger, a spokeswoman for DOC.

    Hilton will be staying in a cell 9 feet by 6 feet and 9 and a half feet high. He will be served meals three times a day in his cell.

    Related




    "Inmates on death row shower every other day," Plessinger said.

    "They have recreation twice a week. They can have visitation on the weekend. Death row inmates can purchase a television to have in their cells. They don't have cable, but they can get any broadcast channels."

    Male inmates on death row in Florida are housed at Florida State Prison and Union Correctional Institution, which is next door. The state's two female death-row inmates are housed at Lowell Annex in Marion County.

    Altogether, there are 394 inmates on death row in Florida.

    Hilton remains a suspect in the deaths of John and Irene Bryant, who went missing while hiking in North Carolina in 2007, and the death of Michael Louis of Ormond Beach, who was reported missing in 2007 and whose body was later discovered in Tomoka State Park.

    http://www.tallahassee.com/article/2...ison-death-row

  7. #17
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    Time for Hilton to face overdue date with justice City takes smart step on trail project

    With the death sentence a Florida jury handed down Thursday to Gary Michael Hilton, it is time for federal authorities in North Carolina to finally seek justice in the murders of a Henderson County couple.

    The 64-year-old serial killer was sentenced to die for murdering 46-year-old Cheryl Dunlap, a nurse and Sunday school teacher from Crawfordville, Fla. Dunlap was found dead in north Florida’s Apalachicola National Forest, among a string of victims Hilton is believed to have stalked and murdered on public lands.

    Hilton is already serving a life sentence in Georgia after pleading guilty to killing 24-year-old hiker Meredith Emerson. But he has yet to face justice in the deaths of John and Irene Bryant, the Horse Shoe couple who disappeared while hiking in the Pink Beds area of Pisgah National Forest in October 2007.

    After an exhaustive search by authorities and volunteers, Mrs. Bryant’s body was found in November 2007 near where the couple had vanished. Mr. Bryant’s body was discovered in February 2008 along a roadside near Franklin.

    Federal prosecutors took control of the North Carolina case because the Bryants’ bodies were found on national forestlands. In February 2008, they issued a lockdown preventing local and federal authorities from answering any questions in the case.

    More than three years later, the Bryants’ children are expecting justice.

    “The Department of Justice has said they are waiting for the outcome in Florida then plan to pursue charges in North Carolina,” daughter Holly Bryant said in February. “They have promised us they will seek charges and they plan to seek the death penalty.”

    The Bryants believed strongly in the death penalty for heinous crimes, their children said. Now it is time for federal authorities to take action to bring long overdue justice and closure in this horrible case.

    http://www.blueridgenow.com/article/...ON02?p=3&tc=pg

  8. #18
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    What Did The Gary Michael Hilton Trial Cost?

    Gary Michael Hilton was sentenced to death April 21st and began serving that death sentence one day later.

    He is now on death row at Florida State Prison.

    Some questioned why the State Attorney pursued the death penalty in Florida given Hilton was already serving a life sentence in Georgia for the murder of hiker Meredith Emerson.

    After Thursday's death sentence, State Attorney Willie Meggs called it an appropriate and necessary use of taxpayer money.

    "You know, when you kill one person and you get life in prison and then everybody says "Oh, you're just wasting money, well, I can't ... I don't think murders should come cheaper by the dozen," Meggs said.

    We are trying to tally the cost of Hilton's trial.

    Lead prosecutor Georgia Cappleman says the state attorney's office spent approximately $8,000 to pay for deposition transcripts, expert testimony, a consultation with an entomologist as well as transportion and lodging for witnesses from Georgia.

    That estimate does not include the cost of paying prosecutors for the hours they worked, Cappleman said, because they are salaried employees.

    We are trying to reach the Public Defender for an estimate as well, but its bill is definitely higher.

    We know that one of its expert witnesses was paid 9-thousand dollars for her testimony. Adina Schwartz, an expert in toolmark literature, testified to her costs on the stand during the trial.

    We are also trying to estimate the cost of incarcerating Hilton in Florida.

    A Spokesman with the Leon County Sheriff's Office says it costs $64.61 per day to house an inmate at the Leon County Jail, not including any medical costs. According to court records, Hilton spent 1050 days in the Leon County Jail while awaiting trial and sentencing. That's a total of $67,840.50

    A Florida Department of Corrections Spokeswoman says there are too many variables to provide an estimate of the cost of housing Hilton on death row.

    http://www.wctv.tv/news/headlines/Wh...120605959.html

  9. #19
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    Serial killer indicted in slayings of Henderson County couple

    Federal prosecutors in North Carolina will seek the death penalty for a convicted serial killer charged with slaying a Henderson County couple who were out for a hike.

    A grand jury sitting in Charlotte indicted Gary Michael Hilton in the kidnapping, robbery and murder of John and Irene Bryant.

    Hilton, 65, already sits on Florida's death row for a murder in that state, and he was sentenced to life in prison for the slaying of a hiker in Georgia. Authorities say those cases have similarities to the killings of the Bryants.

    The Bryants were hiking in the Pink Beds area of Pisgah National Forest in Transylvania County when they disappeared Oct. 21, 2007. Irene was beaten to death, and her body left in the woods near the couple's car.

    Authorities said John Bryant was kidnapped and forced to withdraw money with an ATM card. His body was found three months later in an illegal dumping area in Macon County.

    The couple's son, Bob Bryant, said he's glad Hilton was indicted and is looking forward to the trial, which authorities said would be held in Asheville.

    “My mother and father were murdered,” he said. “Law enforcement has evidence against him, and I want to see it. I'm interested in seeing whoever did it get justice.”

    Transylvania County Sheriff David Mahoney said he was confident Hilton would eventually be indicted for the Bryants' murders.

    “I'm so glad to see that we are finally at this stage, that we can now move into the next chapter of this tragic case,” he said.

    It's difficult to understand why someone would want to harm the Bryants, who their friend and attorney, Bob Haggard, described as gentle, kind and loving.

    “It was cruel, it was cowardly, and it was senseless,” he said. “My feelings go out to the members of the Bryant family, particularly their children, who have had to live with this nightmare for the last 3 1/2 years.”

    The indictment includes a Notice of Special Sentencing Factors to be considered for imposition of the federal death penalty. In seeking a death sentence, prosecutors must submit information for a review by a committee of the U.S. Department of Justice.

    The document notes that Hilton was sentenced to death in April in a Florida courtroom following his trial in the death of a 46-year-old nurse and Sunday school teacher.

    The beheaded body of Cheryl Dunlap was found by a hunter in north Florida's Apalachicola National Forest in 2007. Attorneys for Hilton appealed the conviction.

    Hilton had already been sentenced to life in prison in Georgia after pleading guilty in 2008 to killing 24-year-old hiker Meredith Emerson. The headless bodies of both women were in wooded areas where Hilton had camped.

    Authorities say Hilton was spotted in Transylvania County shortly before the killing of Emerson. Mahoney said the license plate found by Georgia authorities on the suspect's van was stolen in Brevard.

    Searchers found the body of Irene Bryant, 84, near a trail off Yellow Gap Road in the national forest north of Brevard. She died of multiple blows to the head and had her right forearm severed, according to an autopsy.

    Someone used the Bryants' ATM card in Ducktown, Tenn., the day after she was killed.
    The skeletal remains of John Bryant, 80, were found by a hunter about 30 yards down a bank off a U.S. Forest Service road near Old Murphy Road near Franklin. An autopsy determined that he died of a gunshot wound to the head.

    http://www.citizen-times.com/article...xt%7CFrontpage

  10. #20
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    Convicted Murderer Gary Hilton Scheduled To Be In Federal Court

    ASHEVILLE, NC -- Convicted murderer Gary Michael Hilton will be in Federal Court in Asheville later this month to face charges in the 2007 murders of John and Irene Bryant.

    Hilton is schedule to appear in court at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, July 25. He has been indicted on two counts of first-degree murder, kidnapping and robbery.

    Currently, Hilton is incarcerated in Florida for the murder of Cheryl Dunlap. Earlier this year, Hilton was found guilty of Dunlap's murder and sentenced to death. He is also serving a life sentence for the murder of University of Georgia student Meredith Emerson.

    Following the July 25 hearing, Hilton will be transported back to Florida, according to court documents. If convicted for the murders of the Bryant's, Hilton could face life in prison or the death penalty.

    http://www2.wspa.com/news/2011/jul/0...ra-ar-2087089/

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