Trial in stabbing deaths of former Lakeland commissioner and her husband set for Jan. 15
Marcelle Jerrill Waldon appeared in court Friday on murder charges as his case continued its way toward a jury trial amid changes to Florida’s capital punishment laws.
Waldon, 38, was indicted by a grand jury on first-degree murder charges and other crimes on Dec. 1, 2020, in connection with the killings of David Henderson and Edie Yates Henderson in their Lake Morton Drive home on Nov. 10.
In addition, Waldon was charged with the burglary of the home of Publix heiress Julie Jenkins Fancelli, which took place two days prior to the Hendersons' deaths.
A jury trial is set for Jan. 15. Judge J. Kevin Abdoney had asked both sides appear for the status hearing on Friday. Waldon did appear in court.
The State Attorney’s Office is seeking the death penalty.
According to defense attorney Debra Tuomey, the case will be continuing toward the trial date with depositions and some motions, including filings about the potential penalty phase should Waldon be found guilty.
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“There have been a lot of death penalty phase motions that are pending and going to be filed,” Tuomey said after the hearing.
The Florida legislature has recently changed the law requiring only an 8-4 majority of the jurors to recommend the death penalty. Since 2016, only a unanimous recommendation by a jury could result in a defendant receiving capital punishment.
Waldon was indicted in connection with 10 crimes in the Hendersons’ killings, which also included burglary of a dwelling with assault or battery while armed with a firearm; kidnapping for holding Yates Henderson, a former Lakeland city commissioner, against her will; attempted arson for trying to set the Hendersons' home on fire after the crime; grand theft of David Henderson’s Audi A6; arson for setting the car on fire; and tampering with physical evidence, according to previous reports by The Ledger.
Lakeland police investigators said they think Waldon had been watching the home and walked in through an unlocked door one morning when Henderson had stepped out to pick up breakfast. Inside, he held Yates Henderson, 67, at gunpoint and forced her to write two $5,000 checks to him before stabbing her to death.
When her husband returned, police said, Waldon killed him, too.
He then tried to set fire to the house by turning all the gas burners on high before leaving with Yates' jewelry, the couple’s cellphones and at least one of Henderson’s credit cards, police said. He drove off in the Audi.
Waldon could not cash one of the checks at Amscot on Memorial Boulevard later that day when a clerk could not reach the Hendersons by phone, police said.
When he saw the intense police presence at the home on Lake Morton, police say Waldon set the Audi on fire at 449 Oregon Ave. in Lakeland.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Trial in 2020 double murder on Lake Morton is set for January
