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From Florida, this news (http://www.news-press.com/news/local_state/031218motelupdate.html):
Motel robber gets life sentence
By MIKE HOYEM
December 18, 2003
A Fort Myers man convicted Oct. 2 of breaking into a nun’s motel room and robbing her at gunpoint will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Ernest Major — who was also involved in a motel robbery that ended in a deadly shootout — was sentenced Wednesday by Lee Circuit Judge Lynn Gerald Jr.
Major, 23, was convicted of home-invasion robbery for forcing his way into the hotel room of Sister Carol Andrew, who is an episcopal nun and priest at a convent in Augusta, Ga.
Sister Carol was staying at a Motel 6 in North Fort Myers and visiting relatives in Southwest Florida on Aug. 11, 2002, when Major knocked on her door, forced his way into the room and robbed her.
The heist was one of a string of motel robberies in the summer of 2002 that ended on Aug. 24 with a shootout at a Howard Johnson Express in North Fort Myers.
The shootout left Major’s alleged accomplice, Phillip C. “New Wave†Nelson, dead. Major fled with several bullet wounds but was arrested a few hours later.
Assistant State Attorneys Jean-Paul Galasso and Marie Doerr prosecuted the case.
“It was well deserved,†Galasso said of the life sentence.
The robbery at the Howard Johnson Express went awry when motel guest Steven D. Robey pulled a pistol from under his pillow and began shooting at Nelson and Major.
Nelson collapsed and died at the scene.
Major faces several charges in connection with that case, including attempted first-degree murder and attempted robbery.
He’s also charged with second-degree felony murder for allegedly causing Nelson’s death.
In Florida, a person can be charged with murder if they commit a felony and someone dies while it’s being committed, even an accomplice.
Galasso said he plans to proceed with a trial in that case, probably in February.
Assistant Deputy Public Defender Kenneth Garber, who represented Major, declined comment.
Motel robber gets life sentence
By MIKE HOYEM
December 18, 2003
A Fort Myers man convicted Oct. 2 of breaking into a nun’s motel room and robbing her at gunpoint will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Ernest Major — who was also involved in a motel robbery that ended in a deadly shootout — was sentenced Wednesday by Lee Circuit Judge Lynn Gerald Jr.
Major, 23, was convicted of home-invasion robbery for forcing his way into the hotel room of Sister Carol Andrew, who is an episcopal nun and priest at a convent in Augusta, Ga.
Sister Carol was staying at a Motel 6 in North Fort Myers and visiting relatives in Southwest Florida on Aug. 11, 2002, when Major knocked on her door, forced his way into the room and robbed her.
The heist was one of a string of motel robberies in the summer of 2002 that ended on Aug. 24 with a shootout at a Howard Johnson Express in North Fort Myers.
The shootout left Major’s alleged accomplice, Phillip C. “New Wave†Nelson, dead. Major fled with several bullet wounds but was arrested a few hours later.
Assistant State Attorneys Jean-Paul Galasso and Marie Doerr prosecuted the case.
“It was well deserved,†Galasso said of the life sentence.
The robbery at the Howard Johnson Express went awry when motel guest Steven D. Robey pulled a pistol from under his pillow and began shooting at Nelson and Major.
Nelson collapsed and died at the scene.
Major faces several charges in connection with that case, including attempted first-degree murder and attempted robbery.
He’s also charged with second-degree felony murder for allegedly causing Nelson’s death.
In Florida, a person can be charged with murder if they commit a felony and someone dies while it’s being committed, even an accomplice.
Galasso said he plans to proceed with a trial in that case, probably in February.
Assistant Deputy Public Defender Kenneth Garber, who represented Major, declined comment.
