the Florida Supreme Court reduced the death sentence of Christopher Offord...

the Florida Supreme Court reduced the death sentence of Christopher Offord, 31, who has a history of severe mental illness, to life in prison without parole. Offord met Dana Noser, 40, at a bar in April 2004, married her four days later and killed her on July 31, 2004, because he wanted to watch sports on TV and she wanted him to come to bed. The high court unanimously found the death penalty was a disproportionate punishment in Offord's case due to his mental disabilities.
"In fact, Offord's case is notable because it is one of the most documented cases of serious mental illnesses this court has reviewed," the justices wrote in an unsigned opinion.
Medical records show he suffers from schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and has been in and out of institutions since he was 5 or 6 years old.
Offord pleaded guilty to 1st-degree murder to the murder on March 23, 2005 and then a jury unanimously recommended death.
Circuit Judge Dedee Costello imposed that sentence although she found he committed the murder under the influence of extreme mental or emotional disturbance and lacked the capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct. She ruled the heinous nature of the attack - the victim suffered more than 30 hammer blows - outweighed those mitigating factors.