He's off death row. Renaldo McGirth now serving life in prison for 2006 Villages murder

Nearly 20 years ago, Renaldo Devon McGirth was sentenced to death after being found guilty of murdering a woman in The Villages.

But on Wednesday, after a new sentencing trial that lasted more than a week, a new jury recommended a life prison sentence.

That recommendation was greeted with tears, joy and multiple praises to God by McGirth's family members and his lawyer.

A majority of the jurors, who deliberated for nearly 2 1/2 hours, recommended life in prison. By Florida law, the judge had to follow that recommendation.

Circuit Judge Gary Sanders, who presided over the case, told the 36-year-old man he will spend life in prison without parole. McGirth will be transported to the county jail and then at some point to state prison.

"In the criminal justice system, we put our faith in the jury system, and accordingly we respect their decision in this case," Chief Assistant State Attorney Walter Forgie said.

Tampa defense lawyer Daniel Hernandez told a Star Banner reporter: "I think the jury came to the right decision."

"Life in prison is the appropriate sentence," Hernandez said while standing outside the courtroom.

State records show of the 279 men and women presently on Florida's death row, McGirth was one of seven from Marion County. Those same documents indicate the average age at the time of execution is 44.9 years, and 27.4 years is the average age at offense.

The longest tenured death row inmate from Marion County is Ian Lightbourn. He has been on death row for 43 years. Lightbourn is 64.

'Eternally grateful'

McGirth's mother, fiancée and friends were grateful for the outcome. Before commenting, the women, joined by several others outside the courtroom, held hands. Family friend Gloria Taylor prayed.

After the prayer, McGirth's fiancée, Laquanitia Webb, and his mother, Michelle McGirth, commented on the jury's verdict.

McGirth's mother said she's "eternally grateful the truth is finally shedding some light. This is just the beginning."

Standing beside McGirth's mother, Webb said: "The fight must continue to prove not only the injustice within our judicial system, but the lack of compassion for African American men in the court system. We're not only ask or seek understanding, but evidence and truth in all things criminal."

Taylor said they "need to come together as a unit and fight for our men of color. We're coming back standing and fighting for our men who have been wrongly sentenced by the judicial system."

She points to her son, Tlarence Munnerlyn Jr., presently serving 20 years in prison for a crime she says he didn't commit. She also wants law enforcement to solve the death of her nephew, Rizaki Thomas Johnson.

Here is how the case proceeded

Jury selection began July 8 and ended the next day. Originally, 14 people, seven men and seven women, were picked from 100 residents who appeared for jury duty.

Twelve people, seven men and five women, eventually heard the case.

In the trial, 127 pieces of evidence were introduced by both the prosecution and the defense. Including testimony that was read and submitted into the record, 45 people took the witness stand. McGirth did not testify.

Assistant State Attorneys Rich Buxman and Toby Hunt prosecuted the case.

About the case

In 2006, McGirth, 18, was one of three people charged in the shooting death of Diana Miller, a retired bookkeeper. The 63-year-old woman was killed inside her residence in the Marion County portion of The Villages. McGirth was found guilty at his trial two years later.

The jury recommendation for the death penalty was 11-1. A judge sent him to death row.

Miller's husband, James, was critically injured in the shooting and managed to escape. The Marion County Sheriff's Office says McGirth was the triggerman for both victims.

Authorities said the couple's daughter allowed McGirth, Jarrord Marqui Roberts and Theodore Clifford Houston Jr. into the residence. At the time of the shootings, Roberts was 20 and Houston was 17. Deputies believe the motive was robbery.

Those connected to the fatal shooting fled and eventually were caught following a high-speed car chase.

Roberts is serving life in prison. Houston, who has since been released, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after testifying against both co-defendants.

Death penalty

McGirth was eligible for a new sentencing hearing when the Florida Supreme Court ruled that all death penalty recommendations from juries must be unanimous after 2016.

Cases resolved after June 24, 2002 were cleared for resentencing.

However, McGirth's resentencing hearing never started. Years went by, and during that time the death penalty statute in the state changed again. The state now requires only an 8-4 jury recommendation for the death penalty.

Contact Austin L. Miller at [email protected]

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Ocala jury spares man from the death penalty in re-sentencing trial