Mother of murdered teen calls Ronny Walker a ‘natural-born killer’ as jury spares his life
TAMPA, Fla. - Just two days after finding Ronny Walker guilty of pre-meditated first-degree murder in the death of 14-year-old Nilexia Alexander, the same jury voted against sentencing him to the death penalty.
As he did on Tuesday when the first verdict against him was read, Walker showed no emotion when the court announced he would be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
What they're saying:
However, he turned to Alexander’s family and said he didn't kill her, and that "you know that."
In response, her family yelled back that he was a "natural-born killer," and that he "had been killing for a long time, but he had just been caught this time."
The backstory:
Several days ago, her family said they wished for him to get the death penalty.
They reiterated that Walker had already killed a woman, but his life sentence was overturned on appeal.
The defense put Ronnie Walker's mother on the stand, to make the case that too much went wrong in his life for him to get the death penalty.
His mother said she lost custody of him when he was under ten years old, that he lived in a drug-infested neighborhood, and that he suffered injuries to his head that impacted his behavior.
Dig deeper:
They reiterated that in this case, the jury must be unanimous if they are to recommend death.
"If you simply see even a small spark of humanity in Mr. Walker, even if no one else sees it, you can give it the weight of life," said Carolyn Schlemmer, the defense attorney. "And that is what we are asking, on behalf of Ronnie Walker and myself, to sentence him to life without the possibility of parole."
The prosecution says Walker killed Alexander in a premeditated fashion, given he picked her up at 3 a.m. and the shots were fired in an isolated area of the city within fifteen minutes.
They also say he took numerous steps to get away with it, like throwing the gun in the river, cleaning his car of her DNA, and threatening to kill people if they told.
On Thursday, they showcased testimony from Alexander's mother, who described what Walker took from her and the life 14-year-old Alexander dreamed of being as a fashion designer or a lawyer.
PREVIOUS: Witness points finger at Ronnie Walker after Nilexia Alexander's mom testifies at trial
The defense had said the other person in the car, Robert Creed, pulled the trigger.
What's next:
Walker will serve his sentence in the Florida State Prison System.
The Source: This story was written with information gathered by FOX 13's Evan Axelbank.