FLORIDA (USA): COP KILLER DELGADO GETS DEATH SENTENCE
Circuit Judge Emmett Lamar Battles officially sentenced Humberto Delgado, 36,
Circuit Judge Emmett Lamar Battles officially sentenced Humberto Delgado, 36, Hispanic, to death, following the Nov. 17 jury’s recommendation.
A Hillsborough County jury voted 8-4 to recommend the death penalty for Delgado in the Aug. 19, 2009 killing of Tampa police officer Michael Roberts, 38, white.
Delgado was homeless and paranoid, pushing a shopping cart, when Roberts approached him that night. At some point, Delgado ran, the corporal shot a Taser and a scuffle ensued. Roberts was knocked unconscious before Delgado shot him, took his radio and ran.
His primary defense, during a 3-week trial last November, was his mental illness.
He was diagnosed as bipolar, with psychotic features. Delgado's family has said the 36-year-old former police officer in the U.S. Virgin Islands was medically discharged from the U.S. Army due to bipolar disorder and physical issues.
A Hillsborough County jury voted 8-4 to recommend the death penalty for Delgado in the Aug. 19, 2009 killing of Tampa police officer Michael Roberts, 38, white.
Delgado was homeless and paranoid, pushing a shopping cart, when Roberts approached him that night. At some point, Delgado ran, the corporal shot a Taser and a scuffle ensued. Roberts was knocked unconscious before Delgado shot him, took his radio and ran.
His primary defense, during a 3-week trial last November, was his mental illness.
He was diagnosed as bipolar, with psychotic features. Delgado's family has said the 36-year-old former police officer in the U.S. Virgin Islands was medically discharged from the U.S. Army due to bipolar disorder and physical issues.
— SOURCES
- (Source: Tampa Bay Times, 10/02/2012)