Judge Jerome O. Herlihy reaffirmed the death sentence for Chauncey Starling.

Judge Jerome O. Herlihy reaffirmed the death sentence for Chauncey Starling.
After an October 2003 trial in which a jury found Starling guilty of 2 counts of 1st-degree murder, jurors voted unanimously in favor of the death penalty.
Judge Herlihy affirmed that decision in June 2004 and imposed the death penalty, noting that a recent state Supreme Court ruling "directed" him to give the jury's finding "great weight."
In August, the Delaware Supreme Court said that wording was a mistake because by that time the Delaware General Assembly had passed a new law that no longer directed judges to give the jury recommendation great weight. Instead, the new standard was for judges to give the recommendation "such consideration as deemed appropriate."
In its August ruling, the Supreme Court found no other fault with the trial or with Herlihy's jury instructions or rulings, but reversed the death sentence and sent it back to Herlihy for re-sentencing.
So, on Wednesday, Herlihy changed one paragraph in his 2004 ruling, dropping the words "directed" and "great weight." In its place, Herlihy said Wednesday that the jury's recommendation was an "important factor" in his decision.
Starling, black, was convicted (see November 4, 2003) of the March 9, 2001 killing of Darnell Evans, 28, and Damon J. Gist Jr., 5.