29 May 2023 , 15:31
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A jury in Florida has recommended the death penalty for a child killer who killed a young girl in 1990.
Joseph Zieler, 62, killed Robin Cornell, 11, and her babysitter Lisa Story, 32 in 1990. He was convicted after an unrelated assault charge he was jailed for in 1996 matched his DNA to the unsolved murders.
The Lee County jury voted 10 to two in favour of the recommendation following around five hours of deliberations after Zieler was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder.
A judge will not make the final decision on sentencing.
A new law introduced by Governor Ron DeSantis means unanimous jury verdicts are no longer required and a decision of eight to four is now the minimum.
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Little Robin was discovered with Lisa at the home in Cape Coral, Florida by Robin's mum who returned to find the suffocated bodies.
Both victims had been sexually assaulted.
Robin Cornell (Wink News)The convicted killer argued his DNA was only at the flat because he had slept with Jan Cornell, whom he shockingly branded a "pig" in court.
Zieler's claims the two had slept together were baseless.
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CBS affiliate WINK-TV reported that Zieler said: "I thought the only way my DNA could have got there was from me sleeping with Jan Cornell.
"She's calling me a rapist and a murderer, and I'm calling her a pig because she doesn't wash her sheets."
Lisa Story (Wink News)After the jury’s recommendation, Jan Cornell said: "It ensures that he will never walk another free day of his life to inflict his torture.
"And he’s an evil man. I don’t even like to call him a man. He’s evil to the core. Because you watch this. There was not one shred ever of any remorse."
Last year, Lee County prosecutors dropped one count each of sexual battery with a deadly weapon or great force, first-degree burglary with assault or battery and sexual battery of a child less than 12 years of age.
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Zieler was convicted after he was jailed for assault in 2016 (Wink News)In 2016, the state said the murders were "committed in a cold, calculated, and premediated manner, without any pretence of moral or legal justification".
WINK-TV also reported Zieler's attorney Lee Hollander said the defendant's behaviour on the stand did not help. He made vulgar gestures while on the stand and also screamed at the jury, reports say.
Mr Hollander said: "I mean, everyone's talking about the finger. His conduct on the stand did not help. If you're in a hole, stop digging. That's what I wanted to say right then and there."
He continued: "I'm back behind counsel table. And he's up in the in the witness chair. And it was like, sitting down watching a train wreck."