The Commission on Capital Cases updates thisinformation regularly. This information; however, is subject to changeand may not reflect the latest status of an inmate’s case and should not berelied upon for statistical or legal purposes.
HURST, Timothy Lee (B/M)
DC# 124669
DOB: 12/12/78
First Judicial Circuit, Escambia County Case # 98-1795
Sentencing Judge: The Honorable Linda Nobles
Attorney, Trial: R. Glenn Arnold – Private
Attorney, Direct Appeal: W.C. McLain – Assistant PublicDefender
Attorney, Collateral Appeals: Harry Brody – Registry
Date of Offense: 05/02/98
Date of Sentence: 04/26/00
Circumstances of Offense:
Cynthia Harrison was an assistant manager of a Popeye’s fastfood restaurant in Pensacola, Florida. Timothy Hurst was a morning prepperson at the same restaurant, and his responsibility was to make rice andbiscuits and wash dishes. On 05/02/98, Harrison and Hurst were scheduledto work at 8:00 a.m. The two were scheduled to be the only workers in therestaurant until another worker arrived at 9:00 a.m.
On the morning of May 2nd, Davis Kladitis, an occasionalcustomer at Popeye’s, was standing outside a feed store near the restaurantwhen he saw Harrison drive by and waved to her. Kladitis also saw anothercar behind Harrison’s, being driven by a black man. Kladitis lateridentified the car as the one belonging to Timothy Hurst. Carl Hess, whoworked at a nearby Wendy’s restaurant, reported seeing Hurst being let into thePopeye’s restaurant by Harrison.
At 7:55 a.m. on May 2nd, Jeanette Hayes, an employee ofanother Popeye’s restaurant in Pensacola, called the restaurant that Harrisonand Hurst worked at and informed her that a delivery truck was en route. Hayes noted that Harrison did not sound scared.
Tanya Crenshaw, another assistant manager at the restaurant,arrived at the restaurant at 10:30 a.m. to find two employees and a deliverytruck driver waiting outside the restaurant. Hurst was nowhere to befound, but Harrison’s body was found in the freezer.
Harrison’s body was bound and gagged with black electricaltape. The body had over sixty incised slash and stab wounds, all of whichwere consistent with having been made by a box cutter, which was found by theback door of the restaurant.
Lee Smith, a friend of Hurst, testified that Hurst hadstopped by his house on the evening before the murder and told Smith that he[Hurst] planned to rob the Popeye’s restaurant where he worked. At 8:30a.m. on May 2nd, Hurst returned to Smith’s house, carrying a clear plasticcontainer with money in it and a bank bag. The amount of money taken byHurst was later determined to be $1751.54 of the store’s proceeds and $375 insmall bills and change, all taken from the restaurant’s safe. Hurst toldSmith that he had killed “the manager” and put her in the freezer. Smithwashed Hurst’s pants, which had blood spots on them, and he also helped Hurstdispose of Harrison’s wallet and Hurst’s shoes and socks. Hurst, Smith,and Hurst’s brother then went to a Wal-Mart store and bought a pair of shoesfor Hurst. The three then went to a pawn shop, where Hurst bought three ringsfor $300.
Lee Smith’s parents were out of town at the time of themurder, but when they returned and found the clear plastic container and moneyin Smith’s room, they called the police. Police interviewed Smith and searcheda garbage can, where they found a coin purse with Harrison’s driver’s licensein it, a bank bag marked with “Popeye’s” and Harrison’s name on it, a bankdeposit slip, and a bloody sock and shoes that belonged to Hurst.
Trial Summary:
05/26/98 Indicted as follows:
Count I: First-Degree Murder
03/23/00 Jury returned a guilty verdict on the sole count of the indictment
03/23/00 Jury recommended death by a vote of 11-1
04/26/00 Sentenced as follows:
Count I: First-Degree Murder – Death
Appeal Summary:
Florida Supreme Court – Direct Appeal
FSC# 00-1042
819 So.2d 689
05/12/00 Appeal filed
04/18/02 FSC affirmed conviction and sentence
06/03/02 Rehearing denied and Mandate issued
U.S. Supreme Court – Petition for Writ of Certiorari
USSC# 02-5912
537 U.S. 977
08/20/02 Petition filed
10/21/02 USSC denied Petition
Circuit Court – 3.850 Motion
CC# 98-1795
10/16/03 Motion filed
09/30/04 Motion supplemented
01/24/05 Motion amended
05/23/05 Motion amended
09/29/05 Motion amended
08/23/07 Motion denied
Florida Supreme Court – 3.850 Appeal
FSC# 07-1798
09/24/07 Appeal filed
09/17/09 Appeal Granted. New Penalty Phase
Factors Contributing to the Delay in Imposition ofSentence:
The case progression appears to be within acceptable time parameters.
Case Information:
Hurst filed a Direct Appeal with the Florida Supreme Courton 05/12/00, citing the following errors: finding the avoid arrest aggravatingcircumstance, failing to consider mitigating circumstances, disproportionalityof the death sentence, and failing to notify the jury of the aggravatingcircumstances to be considered. On 04/18/02, the FSC affirmed theconviction and sentence.
Hurst filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari with the U.S.Supreme Court on 08/20/02 that was denied on 10/21/02.
Hurst filed a 3.850 Motion with the Circuit Court on10/16/03, supplemented the motion on 09/30/04, and amended the motion on01/24/05, 05/23/05, and 09/29/05. The motion was denied on08/23/07.
On 09/24/07, Hurst filed a 3.850 Appeal in the FloridaSupreme Court. On 9/17/09, the Florida Supreme Court granted the appealand remanded for a new penalty phase proceeding before a jury, which mayconsider available evidence of aggravation and mitigation.
Institutional Adjustment:
THE FOLLOWING ENTRIESREFLECT DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS AGAINST THE INMATE FOR VIOLATION OF THE RULE CITEDAND INDICATE THE GAIN TIME DAYS LOST.
DATE DAYS VIOLATION LOCATION
05/07/06 30 FAILURE TOCOMPLY UNIONC.I.
________________________________________________________________________
Report Date: 06/02/04 JFL
Approved: 06/07/04 EW
Updated: 04/27/10 CAR