The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the death sentence of Michael Harrison Hunt, the man convicted of orchestrating a violent home invasion under the guise of a pizza delivery that left a young woman dead and three others wounded.
In a decision released December 18, the high court rejected Hunt’s appeal, which argued that new state laws allowing non-unanimous jury recommendations for death sentences shouldn’t apply to his case. The ruling cements the conviction stemming from the chaotic April 2019 attack in Panama City.
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The “Pizza Delivery” Ambush
According to court records, the violence began with a knock at the door around 10:30 p.m. on April 4, 2019. Inside the home was Alexandra “Lexie” Peck, her family, and several friends. When Lexie’s stepfather, Danny, opened the door, a man holding a pizza box claimed he had a delivery.
Danny, insisting no one had ordered food, tried to close the door. The man—later identified as Hunt—forced his way in, shoving a gun under Danny’s chin. While Hunt’s face was partially covered, Danny recognized him and his “very distinctive” voice.
As Danny shouted for everyone to run, Hunt opened fire, striking Danny in the neck. Chaos ensued as Hunt’s accomplice stormed the back of the house. The accomplice, apparently mistaking Lexie for the intended target due to her hair color, shot her in the head. He also shot two other young men, Brentley and Izac, in the back.
Lexie died at the scene. The others survived serious injuries.
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“No Witness, No Case”
The Supreme Court’s opinion detailed the chilling motive behind the attack: a desperate attempt to silence a witness in a human trafficking investigation.
Investigators discovered that Hunt was days away from being arrested for sexually battering and trafficking a young woman identified in court documents as “P.O.,” who was dating Lexie’s brother. P.O. had been hiding at the victims’ home after escaping Hunt’s control.
Upon learning of the looming arrest warrant, Hunt fled to Atlanta with his girlfriend, buying untraceable phones and black clothing along the way. During the trip, Hunt reportedly told his girlfriend he would “do what he had to do,” using the phrase “no witness, no case.”
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The attack was meant to eliminate P.O. Although she was in the house during the ambush, she hid and survived physically unharmed. The court ruled that the doctrine of “transferred intent” applied—meaning Hunt was just as liable for Lexie’s murder as he would have been for his intended target.
Challenging the Death Penalty Standard
A major prong of Hunt’s appeal focused on Florida’s shifting death penalty laws. Hunt was sentenced under Senate Bill 450, a 2023 law that allows a judge to impose a death sentence if at least eight out of twelve jurors recommend it. In Hunt’s case, the jury voted 10-2 for death.
Hunt’s defense argued that applying this lower threshold to a crime committed in 2019 violated constitutional protections against ex post facto laws—essentially changing the rules of the game after the fact to his disadvantage.
The Supreme Court disagreed. Relying on the precedent set in Dobbert v. Florida, the justices ruled that the changes were procedural, not substantive. They noted that the punishment for first-degree murder—death or life in prison—remained the same; only the method of jury recommendation had shifted.
“The statute does not constitute an ex post facto law,” the court wrote, affirming that the 10-2 vote was sufficient to send Hunt to death row.
Evidence of Other Crimes
Hunt’s legal team also argued that the trial court allowed too much evidence regarding the sex trafficking allegations, claiming it prejudiced the jury. The Supreme Court rejected this, stating the evidence was “inextricably intertwined” with the murder. Without understanding the trafficking charges, the jury would not have understood why Hunt stormed a house to kill a teenager he barely knew.
With the affirmation of the judgment and sentence, Hunt remains on death row. The accomplice who pulled the trigger on Lexie had not been arrested at the time of Hunt’s trial.
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