Convicted murderer again faces possible death sentence for 1991 sword slaying in Daytona
For the fourth time since 1992, a man is facing a possible death sentence for the sword-slaying of a man in a Daytona Beach motel three decades ago.
A Volusia County jury last week recommended in a 12-0 vote that James Guzman, 59, be put to death for killing David Colvin, a 48-year-old businessman from Norfolk, Virginia, more than three decades ago.
The decision on whether Guzman will return to death row or spend the rest of his life in prison rests with Circuit Judge Dawn Nichols. A sentencing date has not been set yet.
Guzman had been free from prison less than four months for killing a woman in Miami-Dade County when he killed Colvin.
After a week-long resentencing hearing on Friday, a Volusia County jury voted 12-0 in favor of the death penalty for defendant James Guzman for the brutal murder and robbery of a Virginia businessman he chauffeured.
More: https://t.co/Ffc6SCMNWJ pic.twitter.com/1YBh2TkKXN— State Attorney, Florida's Seventh Judicial Circuit (@SAO7FL) March 25, 2024
Guzman inflicted 19 sword wounds on Colvin on Aug. 10, 1991, in a room at what was then the Imperial Motor Lodge on South Ridgewood Avenue.
Guzman had been chauffeuring Colvin. But Guzman killed Colvin to rob him and had told his former girlfriend that if he ever robbed someone he would kill the person because dead witnesses can't talk, according to court records.
Guzman stole cash and a diamond ring from Colvin. He sold the ring for cash and used some of the money to buy crack cocaine.
Guzman was found guilty in 2016 of first-degree murder and robbery with a weapon in Colvin’s killing and sentenced to death. The jury then voted 11 to 1 to recommend Guzman’s death.
But the Florida Supreme Court in 2018 struck down the death sentence because it had not been unanimous.
But last year, state law changed requiring only eight out of the 12 jurors to recommend death.
Guzman's previous two convictions and death sentences in Colvin's murder were overturned on appeal.
“The jury spoke loudly with a 12-0 death recommendation,” State Attorney R.J. Larizza stated in a release. “We are one step closer to reaching a final disposition in a case that has eluded justice for too long.”
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida man faces possible 4th death sentence for Daytona Beach slaying
