The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a death row inmate’s request to overturn his conviction and sentence for a 2008 murder in Broward County.
In a unanimous decision, the high court turned away two separate filings from Darious Wilcox. He was appealing a lower court’s denial of his post-conviction motion and asking the justices for a writ of habeas corpus. Justice Jamie Grosshans wrote the opinion, which affirmed the trial court’s rulings and denied Wilcox any relief.
The case stems from the early 2008 shooting death of Nimoy Johnson. According to court records, Wilcox had been staying briefly with his cousins in a townhouse next door to Johnson. Shortly after Wilcox arrived, Johnson’s home was burglarized. Johnson blamed the people living in the cousin’s home, though the dispute was later settled peacefully.
About a week later, Johnson invited a female friend over, who brought two other women with her. When they arrived, they saw Wilcox inside the home and ran back to their vehicle in fear. Johnson called them back, explaining that Wilcox was a friend.
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Once the women came back inside, Wilcox trapped them at gunpoint, forced Johnson to tie up their wrists and ankles, and took the keys to their Chevy Tahoe. Wilcox then took Johnson downstairs and tied his wrists and ankles as well.
Records show Wilcox packed his bags into the stolen vehicle, went back inside, and shot the restrained Johnson once in the back of the head before driving away. One of the women managed to break free from her ties, found Johnson dead on the floor, and called 911.
Police later tracked Wilcox down by his cellphone use at a gas station in Miami. Following a brief car and foot chase, officers arrested him. Inside the abandoned vehicle, police found a black jacket, a bandana, fingerprints, and a Taurus Millennium pistol that ballistics experts later matched to the fatal bullet.
Wilcox represented himself during the initial trial phase. A jury convicted him of one count of first-degree murder, four counts of armed kidnapping, and one count of armed robbery. During the penalty phase, his standby attorney took over, and the jury voted 7-to-5 to recommend death. The trial judge finalized the death sentence after weighing several aggravating factors, including Wilcox’s 1993 convictions for second-degree murder and armed robbery.
In his latest appeals, Wilcox claimed his defense lawyers did not have enough time to prepare for his sentencing, failed to present adequate mental health experts, and failed to properly challenge the state’s evidence. He also argued that a change in state law regarding non-unanimous jury recommendations should apply to his case.
The Florida Supreme Court rejected all of those arguments. The justices noted that Wilcox chose to fire his attorneys and represent himself for months leading up to his trial, which directly caused the tight timeline his lawyers faced during sentencing. The court also ruled that his defense counsel made reasonable strategic choices based on the reports of the medical experts available at the time.
Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz and Justices Jorge Labarga, John Couriel, Renatha Francis, and Meredith Sasso agreed with the ruling. Justice Brad Tanenbaum did not participate in the decision.
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