Tampa Jury Convicts Kessler of Second-Degree Murder; He Is Sentenced to Life in Prison
A closely watched criminal case in Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida, concluded on November 4. A Hillsborough County jury found Robert Kessler, 74, guilty of second-degree murder and abuse of a dead human body, and Judge Nick Nazaretian immediately sentenced him to life in prison, plus a consecutive 15 years on the abuse count. The jury reached its verdict at 3:13 p.m. on November 4 after deliberating nearly 16 hours over two days.
The case stems from a 2021 killing in Lutz, about 15 miles north of Tampa. The victim, Stephanie Crone-Overholts, was a former resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, who had moved to Florida in the fall of 2020. Prosecutors said Kessler killed her at his home, dismembered her body and threw the remains off a bridge; the remains were later found in the waters of Tampa Bay. Testimony in the trial began on October 27; the defense called no witnesses, and Kessler did not testify.
Before the trial, Kessler had offered to plead guilty in exchange for a Philly cheesesteak, fries and a Pepsi, an offer the judge rejected. By convicting on second-degree rather than first-degree murder, the jury found the killing was not premeditated.
(Source: Erie Times-News)
Source: Erie Times-News
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：希尔斯伯勒县中心外景（坦帕县政府中心）。Chiefmiz 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。GSM 固定图库（县包）。 / Photo: Hillsborough County Center in Tampa. By Chiefmiz, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. GSM county asset library.
