A guilty verdict late Wednesday afternoon will send a second man to prison for the execution-style murder of an FSU student, but Timothy Thomas was not found guilty of murder, he was found guilty of manslaughter instead, a verdict which left the victim's mother in tears.
Timothy Thomas sat expressionless as the clerk read the verdict: Timothy Thomas is found guilty of manslaughter and armed robbery in the death of FSU student Jonathan Enrile back in the spring of 2000.
The victim's mother cried quietly in the front row and prosecutor Jack Poitinger rocked back and forth, clearly agitated when the verdict wasn't murder one.
"You're disappointed any time the jury finds for a charge that's less than what you were seeking, sure," says Jack Poitinger.
Thomas was the second of three men to go on trial for the murder. His attorneys contend he pleaded with friend Caed Brawner not to shoot Enrile that night at Cash Hall, but Brawner pulled the trigger anyway. He's already been sentenced to life in prison. The jury deliberated a total of nine hours over two days before reaching this verdict.
"I began to suspect there would be a compromise verdict when the jury deliberated more and more. It's clear that this manslaughter verdict was a compromise," says Armando Garcia, Thomas’ attorney.
Thomas could face 25 years to life in prison, but that's not likely given that this is his first felony conviction. He'll be sentenced in October. Ulysses Thomas will be the last man to stand trial for Jonathan Enrile's death. A date hasn't been set for that yet.
