坦帕陪审团裁定凯斯勒二级谋杀罪成：判处终身监禁
位于佛罗里达州希尔斯伯勒县坦帕市的一桩刑事案件在11月4日尘埃落定。希尔斯伯勒县陪审团当天裁定，74岁的罗伯特·凯斯勒二级谋杀罪和虐待尸体罪成立，法官尼克·纳扎雷蒂安随即判处他终身监禁，另就虐待尸体罪加判连续执行的15年刑期。陪审团经过两天近16小时的商议，于11月4日下午3时13分达成裁决。
案件涉及2021年发生在坦帕以北约15英里的卢茨市的一起命案，受害者斯蒂芬妮·克龙-奥弗霍尔茨原为宾夕法尼亚州伊利市居民，2020年秋移居佛罗里达州。检方指控凯斯勒在家中杀害受害者后肢解尸体并抛弃于桥下，遗体后来在坦帕湾水域被发现。审判自10月27日开始，辩方没有传唤任何证人，凯斯勒本人也没有出庭作证。
值得一提的是，凯斯勒此前曾表示愿意以一份费城芝士牛排三明治套餐作为交换认罪，但遭到法官拒绝。法庭最终以二级谋杀罪而非一级谋杀罪定罪，意味着陪审团认定案件不构成预谋杀人。
（来源：伊利时报）
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)
来源：伊利时报
发布：GSM·美国（发布链接）
图片来源：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.
GSM Global · 本篇英文版 English edition of this story
