Florida

Davie Waffle House Killer Gets New Sentencing Hearing

Gerhard Hojan was sentenced to death in the 2002 killings

A man sentenced to death for the execution-style killings of two Davie Waffle House workers will have another chance to avoid death row.

The Florida Supreme Court has granted a new sentencing hearing for Gerhard Hojan, who was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted first-degree murder, three counts of armed kidnapping, two counts of armed robbery in the 2002 killings.

A jury recommended the sentence of death for Hojan by 9 to 3, but the state Supreme Court later ruled last year that a unanimous decision is required.

Hojan and another man, Jimmy Mickel, robbed the Waffle House in the early morning hours on March 11, 2002. Hojan ordered three employees working the overnight shift into a freezer, then returned and shot each, killing 17-year-old waitress Christina Delarosa and 18-year-old cook Willy Absolu.

But 37-year-old waitress Barbara Nunn regained consciousness. Bleeding from a gunshot to the head, she walked to a gas station next door. When police arrived, she told them that Hojan and Mickel, a former Waffle House cook, robbed them and that Hojan shot the employees.

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