Convicted killer who murdered former Lakeland city commissioner and her husband sentenced to death

Sentencing day for convicted killer

A judge in Polk County will sentence the man convicted of killing a former Lakeland city commissioner and her husband. FOX 13’s Kellie Cowan reports. 

LAKELAND, Fla. - Convicted killer Marcelle Waldon was sentenced to death on Monday in Polk County in the killings of a former Lakeland city commissioner and her husband. 

He was sentenced to death on two counts of first-degree murder, according to Polk County's Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller. He was also sentenced to life without parole on four counts, including burglary, kidnapping and robbery. Waldon also got 15 years and five years in prison on four other counts.

The backstory:

Waldon was convicted of killing Edie Yates, a former Lakeland city commissioner, and her husband, David Henderson. The couple was found stabbed to death inside their Lake Morton home in 2020.

Prosecutors said Waldon broke into their home, terrorized and robbed the couple, then stabbed them multiple times. Investigators said the crime appeared to be random, with no known connection between Waldon and the victims.

After finding Waldon guilty in 2024, a jury recommended the death penalty by an 11 to 1 vote.

PREVIOUS: Suspect arrested in double murder of former Lakeland city commissioner and her husband

The judge decided to follow the jury’s recommendation and impose the death penalty on both first-degree murder charges. Under Florida law, the final sentencing decision rests with the judge, even after a jury recommendation.

The other side:

Over the past two years, Waldon has raised multiple legal challenges in an effort to overturn his conviction or avoid a death sentence.

Those challenges included arguments that an intellectual disability should make him ineligible for execution, that his rights to communicate with his legal team had been compromised by his correctional facility's policies, and that the jury’s capital punishment recommendation was invalid because it was not unanimous.

Judges have rejected each of those arguments.

What's next:

Now that the sentence was handed down by the judge, Waldon will have the option to pursue further appeals.