Page 41 - Florida Sentinel 7-1-22

Crime
Convicted Murder Suspect Wants ‘Death Penalty’ Taken Off The Table
Suspect Charged
With Stomping
Elderly Man To Death
STEPHANIE WILLIS AND SON, RICKY ... were fatally shot
TYRONE JOHNSON
.. was found guilty of mur- dering the mother and son.
Willis. Deputies responded to 4302 Mariners Cove Court in Tampa before 7 p.m. and found the victims inside the apartment where the three lived. Both were dead.
Judge Sabella is set to rule on Johnson’s sentence next month. If he imposes a death sentence, the defense says they will go forward with their request to seek a new sentencing hearing.
Police have arrested a 39- year-old man and charged him with second-degree mur- der. He is accused of causing fatal injuries to an elderly man by repeatedly stomping him.
According to the Tampa Police Department, early last Friday, officers were dis- patched to a local 7-Eleven Store, 4943 E. Busch Blvd., in reference to an attack on an elderly man. When officers ar- rived, they discovered that the elderly Black man in his 70s, was unconscious and had been repeatedly stomped.
When patrol officers ar- rived at the location shortly after 1 a.m., Friday, they dis- covered the victim in the parking lot unconscious and suffering significant upper body trauma. Officers imme- diately began CPR, providing life-saving measures until Tampa Fire Rescue arrived. He was transported to a local hospital, where he later died as a result of his injuries.
During the investigation, detectives reviewed the sur- veillance video and developed
TARON CRINER
... Charged with murder
a suspect. He was identified as 39-year-old Taron Criner, of Tampa. At approximately 7:08 a.m., officers spotted Criner walking near the roadway of E. Busch Blvd in front of the 7-Eleven and ap- peared to be wearing the same clothing as seen in surveil- lance video.
Apparent blood spatter was observed on Criner’s clothing. After positive identi- fication, Criner was arrested and charged with second-de- gree murder.
He was transported to Ori- ent Road Jail. His bond was set at $500,000.
In October 2018, a Tampa man was arrested for killing his life-in girlfriend and her 10-year-old son. The quarrel that preceded the double murder was over what to watch on television.
Last year, a Hillsborough County jury recommended the death penalty in the case. However, Judge Christo- pher Sabella has not an- nounced his decision in the case.
Meanwhile, the attorney representing Tyrone John- son is asking for life in prison, stating that one of the witnesses lied to the jury.
Johnson was convicted of first and second-degree murder for shooting Stephanie Willis and her young son, Ricky, to death in October 2018.
On the day of the killings, Johnson called 911 claim- ing he was being attacked by
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