A Miami-Dade County Circuit Court judge followed a higher court’s ruling on Tuesday by formally reinstating a jury’s original guilty verdict and sentence of life in prison for Tony Brown, who was convicted in 2010 of murdering Nigel Whatley during a robbery outside the Player’s Club in Miami.
Brown, 40, was found guilty of second-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery, and attempted armed robbery, according to court records.
But after the sentencing, Circuit Court Judge John Thornton ordered a new trial “on the basis that the verdict was contrary to the weight of the evidence and that the State had improperly commented on the defendant’s right to silence,” said the Third District Court of Appeal. In a November ruling, it reversed the order for a new trail, saying the original judgment and sentence should stand – and another Circuit Court judge agreed on Tuesday.
“I am absolutely ecstatic,” said Whatley’s father, Robert Lee Whatley. “The judge has pretty much reinstated the sentence for this guy who killed my son.”
Nigel Whatley and Michael Morris left the nightclub at NW 79th Street and NW 7th Avenue in the early-morning hours of Oct. 1, 2005 and were confronted in a parking lot by Brown, who demanded their money, according to the Third District’s ruling. Morris threw his money and car keys on the floor, but Whatley told Brown “that he would have to shoot him,” and Brown pulled out a gun, according to the court.
During an ensuing fight, Whatley “was shot and fell face down to the ground,” Morris was shot in the chest as he tried to crawl away, and he saw Brown shoot Whatley again even though he was still lying face down, the court said. Morris tried to escape and was shot in the leg, but he finally made it to a nearby restaurant where he found help, the court added.
Brown, a.k.a. Andre Gonzalez, has received three life sentences and one 25-year sentence, to be served consecutively, a prosecutor said Tuesday.
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The case is pending before the Florida Supreme Court, which the defense has asked to review the decision of the Third District.
But Robert Lee Whatley, who flew into town for Tuesday’s hearing, said he does not expect anything to change.
“Now my wife, my ex-wife and I, we have closure,” Robert Lee Whatley said. “We can go on with our lives.”
