JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – For the second time, the man convicted of first-degree murder in the death of Delores Futrell has been sentenced to death.
Randall Deviney's initial conviction and sentence in the 2008 death of his 65-year-old neighbor was overturned by the Florida Supreme Court last year.
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In July, a jury convicted Deviney, 25, of first-degree murder and voted 8 to 4 to recommend the death penalty. Judge Mallory Cooper formally sentenced him Wednesday morning.
Florida's law that allows a death sentence recommendation to be less than unanimous is currently under review by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The state said Deviney, who was convicted of slitting Futrell's throat after attempting to rob her, deserves to pay the ultimate price. The responding officer found her in a "sexual position," and Deviney later told a psychologist that he placed her that way to make it look like someone else killed her.
Deviney's defense team never denied he was responsible for Futrell's death, but was hoping to have the death penalty taken off the table when deciding Deviney's fate.
The defense claimed Deviney was raped by family members, abused and neglected. His own father, Michael Deviney, admitted to the jury Thursday that he had sex in front of Randall and his brother when they were growing up.