Florida State News by Betty Smith
A judge has sentenced a Florida man to life behind bars without parole for the murders of his girlfriend and their special-needs daughter.
Ronnie Oneal III's sentence was a foregone conclusion when a jury did not recommend the death penalty. It was tragically determined that Oneal, 32, had committed murder, attempted murder, arson, and aggravated child abuse.
According to trial testimony, he shot and beat to death Kenyatta Barron, his girlfriend, and killed her daughter, who had autism and cerebral palsy, with a hatchet. Oneal also stabbed and wounded his son, then eight, and set fire to their family home.
According to the Florida judge, she had never seen a case like this before.
Judge Michele Sisco said, "I've been at this job for 19 years. Throughout my life, I have witnessed people in every conceivable way murdered by others. This is the worst case by far. It will haunt me for the rest of my life."
Oneal, who represented himself throughout the trial and frequently yelled at the jury, spoke extensively at the sentencing hearing. After he had claimed self-defense, he underwent psychiatric testing that showed he was mentally fit to proceed.
Previously, Oneal had said he was not sorry for the things he did and did not do, he replied, turning to the members of Barron's family. “But you have my sincere condolences for your loss.”
Barrons mother, Carrie Lloyd, was unsparing in her remarks in court.
"I wish you had received the death penalty”, Lloyd said.
How do you feel? What do you think?