Opinion ID: 1735417
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Comment Regarding Richardson's Murder Being Torturous.

Text: ś 160. The comment was proper because it was supported by the evidence presented at trial. The jury was instructed on the definitions of the words heinous, atrocious and cruel in Sentencing Instruction No. C-18, which was properly given. ś 161. There was evidence presented at trial that this killing was torturous and caused extreme pain. It is undisputed that Walker stabbed and slashed Richardson twenty-five times, from the top of his head to the abdominal area and that Richardson did not die immediately. ś 162. We find that there is ample evidence presented to establish that the crime committed by Walker fit squarely within the definition of heinous, atrocious and cruel. We hold that the State's comment that this murder was torturous was not only a proper comment, it was factually true. Thus, it was supported by the evidence presented at trial. Therefore, the prosecutors's closing argument at the sentencing phase describing the murder as torturous was a fair comment on the evidence, Burns, 729 So.2d at 228, and did not deprive Walker of a fundamentally fair trial.