FORT MYERS, Fla — Convicted murderer Wade Wilson will have to wait until Monday for the penalty phase of his case to begin.
Wilson's attorney filed documents on Wednesday to ask the judge to postpone Thursday's hearing in part, because he would not be in the courtroom because of an illness.
Last week Wilson was convicted of killing Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz in Cape Coral in 2019. The jury will decide if he is sentenced to life in prison or if he will be put to death.
Kevin Shirley, Wilson's attorney, also needed more time to consult with his mitigation counsel. Over the last few days, doctors have been evaluating Wilson.
"We have to send that compiled data to the State's experts so he can review it," Shirley said. "Obviously we have two experts and I'm going to discuss with them what I anticipate their testimony to be."
The penalty phase means both sides will bring in their own evidence and experts. State attorneys are trying to convince a jury Wilson should be put to death.
"I anticipate openings and then go into presentation of the State's evidence portion," said Assistant State Attorney Andreas Gardiner.
Defense attorneys are trying to spare Wilson's life.
The jury will listen to all the evidence before taking the case. To recommend the death penalty, only eight out of 12 jurors need to agree, rather than an unanimous decision because of a change in the state law last year.
Ultimately the decision is up to the judge. However, he has to weigh the jury's recommendation heavily in the sentence.
The judge agreed to postpone the hearing and asked the jury to come back to court on Monday.
