Markas Fishburne sentenced to death

At trial in February, Markas Fishburne pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder and one count of kidnapping for crimes that occurred in December 2019. After the criminal phase, the jury recommended that Fishburne be sentenced to death by 10 votes. -2.

Earlier this month, a Duval County trial court sentenced Fishburne to death.

The jury unanimously concluded that the State had proven all four aggravating factors beyond a reasonable doubt. In its sentencing order, the trial court agreed with that conclusion, retaining the following aggravating factors and giving each appropriate weight:

• The defendant has already been convicted of another capital crime or a crime involving the use or threat of violence against the person (significant weight);

• The capital crime was committed while the defendant was engaged in, or was an accomplice to, the commission, attempted commission, or flight after committing or attempting to commit a kidnapping (significant weight);

• The capital crime was particularly heinous, atrocious or cruel (very high weight); and

• The capital crime was a homicide committed in a cold, calculated and premeditated manner, without any pretense of moral or legal justification (great weight).

With regard to the mitigation of damages, the court of first instance found the following:

• The crime was committed while Markas Fishburne was under the influence of mental or emotional disorder (low weight);

• Markas Fishburne's father was not in love with his mother, did not marry her and had to be taken to court and placed in prison to force him to pay child support (light weight);

• Markas Fishburne's mother suffered from a mental or emotional disorder which sometimes caused her to isolate herself in her room (mild weight);

• Markas Fishburne's parents were at odds with each other while Markas was growing up (lightweight);

• Markas Fishburne is devoted to his mother despite her treatment of him (little weight);

• Markas Fishburne never had a consistent male role model (low weight);

• Markas Fishburne felt abandoned by his father, who was usually far away and largely unaware of his son's problems (a certain weight);

• When Markas Fishburne stayed with his father and stepmother, he helped around the house, including washing dishes (without weights);

• From the age of ten, Markas Fishburne and his older brother helped care for their three younger (slight) brothers;

• Through no fault of his own, Markas Fishburne was born with autism spectrum disorder, a lifelong developmental disorder that was not properly diagnosed in childhood (low birth weight);

• Markas Fishburne suffered from a severe expressive and receptive language disorder (mild weight) throughout his life;

• Throughout his life, Markas Fishburne suffered from a profound pragmatism.

  communication disorder (light weight);

• Markas Fishburne has borderline intellectual functioning (a certain weight);

• Markas Fishburne moved frequently throughout his childhood, which interfered with his special education plans and treatment (some weight);

• Markas Fishburne's mother experienced financial difficulties throughout her life (lightweight);

• Markas Fishburne was racially abused while growing up in Indiana (underweight);

• Some of Markas Fishburne's behavioral problems at school were the result of frequent racial teasing by other students (low weight);

• Markas Fishburne began using methamphetamine in his early teens and continued to use it into adulthood. Methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug that can permanently alter brain chemistry and function (light weight);

• Markas Fishburne used methamphetamine days after the murder and showed signs of paranoia while staying with Spencer Smith-Parker (lightweight);

• Markas Fishburne Learned Maladaptive Coping Strategies Throughout His Life (Lightweight);

• Markas Fishburne was in special education classes at school and was transferred to adult learning classes before dropping out of school in ninth grade (lightweight);

• Markas Fishburne never lived alone (very light weight);

• Markas Fishburne never obtained a driver's license (no weight);

• Markas Fishburne has talent as an artist (no weight);

• Markas Fishburne has a sense of humor and makes others laugh (no weight);

• Markas Fishburne has the ability to learn positive coping strategies if he receives healthy social and emotional therapy (lightweight);

• Markas Fishburne loves his son and his son loves him (small weight);

• Markas Fishburne loves his family and his family loves him (small weight);

• Markas Fishburne pleaded guilty to first-degree murder at trial (light);

Further, the trial court determined that the fact that, if Fishburne were sentenced to life without parole, he would live in prison until his death was not mitigation.

After weighing the aggravating and mitigating circumstances, the trial court concluded that the death penalty was the appropriate sentence:

The full sentencing order can be downloaded here.