LEE COUNTY, Fla. — On August 27, a judge will decide whether Wade Wilson will be put to death or spend the rest of his life in prison.
Fox 4 Senior Reporter Kaitlin Knapp has covered the trial since the start and uncovered new court documents. People from around the country are writing to the judge, asking him to spare Wilson's life.
One person said in their seven-page letter, "please let Wade live." Another said, "he is a human being who, despite his flaws, deserves mercy and the possibility of rehabilitation."
On top of that, there are petitions online with more than 30,000 signatures, also asking to spare Wilson's life.
Watch what a lawyer says the judge has to consider, in terms of these letters:
Though it's not clear if it's legitimate, someone started a "Fundly,"- raising more than $12,000 for Wilson's "legal and medical support."
Arguably, the trial and conviction of Wilson has gone viral.
"The judge can go either way," said Pamella Seay, lawyer and FGCU professor. "He can say death penalty or he can say life without parole."
She says there's no mandate that says Judge Nick Thompson has to do what the jury recommends.
Since the recommendation, people from South Carolina, Illinois, California and as far as Canada are sending these letters to the judge — asking him to spare Wilson's life.
So how much does a judge have to take into consideration legally? Seays says he does not have to take any of the letters into account.
"The judge has to take into account the recommendation from the jury and the factual information that is available to him from the trial itself, the guilty phase and the penalty phase," Seays said.
However, there's a catch.
If the judge happens to read them and says, 'Well I haven't thought about it that way'', perhaps the judge can use it in asking questions of the prosecution and defense needing further information," Seays explained.
The judge does have the law as a baseline.
"The judge looks to the aggravating circumstances and looks to those only those aggravating circumstances that were determined unanimously by the jury," she said.
For Kristine Melton, one of Wilson's victims, jurors voted unanimously for three out of the four aggravating factors. For his other victim, Diane Ruiz, all factors were unanimous.
Thompson will also consider mitigating circumstances — what the defense presented during the penalty phase.
There's also what's called a "Spencer hearing".
That's where both sides show the judge more evidence.
"The judge will look to what does the law say when it relates to the penalty to be given for this offense," Seays said.
Wilson is expected to be sentenced on August 27.
