JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Convicted of killing a Navy chief petty officer in February, DeAngelo Thomas will have to wait at least a few more weeks to learn whether he'll be sentenced to death or life in prison.
In a post-trial hearing Friday, attorneys talked about pushing back the date to June 24 because they are still waiting on transcripts from the penalty phase of the case.
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Prosecutors said 40-year old David Gilbert was killed in April 2010 when he came home and found Thomas burglarizing his apartment.
Gilbert was fatally shot in front of his girlfriend and 3-year-old daughter, who had to be carried out of the apartment over her father's dead body.
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The case received a lot of attention, not only because of the intensity of the crime or because two jurors were excused during the trial, but because the sentencing process has also been delayed for months after the death of Circuit Judge Jeff Morrow in February, one day before Thomas was to appear for sentencing.
The jury deadlocked 6-6 in the penalty phase of that case, which usually means the defendant will be sentenced to life in prison. Prosecutors, however, had asked Morrow to give Thomas the death penalty anyway because of the heinous nature of the killing.
Attorneys said before Morrow died, he made a comment that he was considering overriding the jury and recommending death due to the nature of the killing.
When Senior Judge Michael Weatherby took over the case, he wasn't quite sure what to do because he hadn't heard any of the evidence presented during the actual trial.