A Florida death-row inmate convicted of abducting and murdering 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford in 2005 has died, prison officials said Wednesday.
John Evander Couey was sentenced Friday to death for abducting, raping and killing a 9-year-old Florida girl by burying her alive in 2005.
Couey sentencing reaction
Killer eligible for death
Looking directly at the man who murdered his 9-year-old daughter, Mark Lunsford told John Evander Couey, "I hope you hear her cry as you try to sleep at night."
Jurors on Wednesday recommended the death penalty for John Evander Couey, who was found guilty last week of kidnapping, sexually assaulting and murdering 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford.
John Evander Couey was found guilty Wednesday of murder, kidnapping, sexual assault and burglary in the abduction and death of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford.
Court documents indicate that family members of sex offender John Couey recently told police he sexually abused their daughters years before he was arrested for murdering 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford.
A Florida man's confession that he kidnapped, raped and buried alive a 9-year-old girl may never be heard by a jury because, according to documents, he previously asked for a lawyer but was not given one.
John Evander Couey, the drifter arrested in the rape and murder of a 9-year-old Florida girl, admitted to investigators he buried her alive three days after he abducted her, according to newly released prosecution documents.
New details emerged Wednesday on the last moments in the life of slain 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford, while Florida lawmakers moved forward on a bill named for her that would impose tougher penalties on sex offenders.
A convicted sex offender facing capital murder charges in the killing of a 9-year-old Florida girl told investigators he buried her alive, law enforcement sources told CNN Friday night.
The man accused of sexually assaulting and murdering a 9-year-old Florida girl has entered written pleas of not guilty following a grand jury indictment.
Family and friends of Jessica Lunsford gathered Saturday for a public memorial service for the 9-year-old girl killed after being abducted from her home last month.
The man charged with killing 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford confessed in 1991 that he tried to molest a 5-year-old girl, telling police "I need help," according to a tape obtained by CNN.
John Evander Couey made his first appearance in court Tuesday on charges of murdering 9-year-old Jessica Marie Lunsford, with the judge telling the 46-year-old his alleged crimes are "beyond words."
The 9-year-old Florida girl whose body was found last Saturday buried in a neighbor's yard was asphyxiated, a medical examiner's report said Monday.
Jessica Marie Lunsford, the 9-year-old Florida girl whose body was found Saturday near her parents' home, was kidnapped from her bedroom, and there is evidence from a medical examiner that she was sexually assaulted, the Citrus County sheriff said Sunday night.
The 46-year-old convicted sex offender who police say confessed to abducting and killing a 9-year-old girl was booked into the Citrus County jail early Sunday morning.
Three weeks after 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford disappeared from her home, authorities said Friday a convicted sex offender who had fled to Georgia confessed to kidnapping and killing her.
A convicted sex offender in custody in Georgia has not told investigators anything significant to help the investigation into the disappearance of a missing 9-year-old Florida girl, law enforcement sources said Friday.
Authorities have sealed off the Homosassa Springs, Florida, home where convicted sex offender John Evander Couey was staying when 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford disappeared three weeks ago.
Florida investigators said Wednesday they are seeking convicted sex offender John Evander Couey for questioning in last month's disappearance of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford.
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