Too much doubt in Spaziano case
Dublin Core
Title
Too much doubt in Spaziano case
Subject
Capital punishment
Description
This editorial describes the case of Robert Spaziano, a murder convict on death row. The editorial points out inconsistencies in the case against Spaziano and argues that doubt cannot exist with the death sentence.
Source
"Too Much Doubt in Spaziano Case." The Tampa Tribune (Tampa Bay, FL), June 17, 1995.
Publisher
HIST 298, University of Mary Washington
Date
1995-06-17
Rights
The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source.
Format
2 JPGs
300 DPI
Language
English
Coverage
Tampa Bay, FL
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
Gov. Lawton Chiles was right to stay the execution of Joseph Robert Spaziano. The convicted murderer may actually be a victim of unreliable testimony, inept legal representation and questionable police work.
Spaziano, 49, had been scheduled to die in the Florida electric chair on June 27. He stands convicted of the murder and mutilation of Laura Lynn Harberts, an Orlando nurse whose body was found in a trash dump near Altamonte Springs in 1973.
Chiles had previously signed the fourth death warrant ordering his execution. Spaziano will remain on death row, where he has been since 1976.
In addition to granting the stay, Chiles has ordered a thorough investigation of the case by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. This is long overdue.
On the surface it sounds as if Spaziano were a perfect candidate for execution. His sentence has survived repeated appeals; he was already in prison on a heinous charge when police brought murder charges against him; and before going to prison he was the leader of an Orlando motorcycle gang.
AND YET, THERE are aspects of his case that raise serious doubts about his guilt. Spaziano's prosecution and conviction is a story that does not inspire confidence in the judicial system.
The key witness against him was a Tony Dilisio, who was 16 years old at the time of the murder. He said he had once idolized Spaziano as an outlaw biker and hoped to become a member of the gang himself.
About a year after the crime, Dilisio told police he had a vague recollection of Spaziano bragging about mutilating and murdering young women. After being placed under hypnosis, he said that Spaziano had taken him to the dump and boasted, "Man, that's my style," as they viewed the remains of two dead women.
It is a sickening account, if true. Dilisio, now 37, has said he remembers getting married at 21, but everything before that is a blank. He was 18 at the time of Spaziano's trial.
The prosecution's case rests largely on Dilisio's testimony.
Spaziano and the victim were slightly acquainted, and she was overheard telling someone on the telephone, "Hold on a minute, Joe," as she turned o speak to her roommate shortly before she was killed.
But the identity of the "Joe" on the telephone was not Spaziano. The police knew that the "Joe" on the telephone was actually Joe Suarez, a co-worker at the hospital where Laura and her roommate worked. But this was never disclosed to the jury.
Another troubling aspect of the trial is that the jury never knew Dilisio's hazy story was drawn out of him by police using hypnosis. This takes on even more significance in view of the hypnotist's credentials. Michael Mello, a lawyer who has handled appeals for Spaziano, said the hypnotist was shown to be a quack by Miami Herald editor Gene Miller in his book "Invitation to a Lynching."
Ten years ago the Florida Supreme Court held that hypnotically induced evidence was unreliable and inadmissible. The ruling was not retroactive so it did not apply to Spaziano's case.
The defense was also not apprised of another suspect the police had considered during their two-year investigation. Mello said records show that police were zeroing in on a known rapist and had a witness who placed him at the scene of the crime with several women near the time of the murder. The suspect flunked more than one polygraph test and told police "he didn't know whether he committed the murder." None of that information was given to the defense at the time of the trial.
One would expect that these omissions would get the attention of an appeals court. Gail Anderson, a state-appointed lawyer representing Spaziano, said those facts were unknown to the defense until 1989, well past a time limit for raising such objections.
Spaziano was also not helped in his trial by his friends, fellow Outlaws who turned out in full biker dress in an idiotic show of "support" for their pal "Crazy Joe," whose nickname appeared on his indictment.
Spaziano maintained his innocence but never took the stand to deny the charges. The jury twice told the judge they could not reach a verdict, and both times were sent back with instructions to be more diligent. Finally, they convicted Spaziano of first-degree murger but recommended life in prison. The trial judge overruled them and sentenced him to die.
It appears, too, that Spaziano had incompetent legal representation at the time of his trial. Mello described the inmate's defense attorney's work as "not totally abysmal," pointing out that the lawyer knew about Dilisio's hypnotically enhanced testimony but didn't bring it up or attack the credentials or methods of the hypnotist.
Laura Lynn Harberts has been dead for 22 years, and that terrible fact must not be forgotten. Society has an obligation to render justice for her death and punishment for the perpetrator of this grotesque crime.
But Florida has an equally important obligation to make sure that the state, acting on behalf of the people, does not put an innocent man to death. That could be the case with Joseph Spaziano.
CHILES AND THE STATE Cabinete have the power to grant clemency, which ranges from immediate release to a sentence of life in prison. The governor has indicated he is reluctant to interfere with judicial decisions without great cause. He is right to have such a cautionary attitude. In court, one hopes, the facts are separated from speculation and emotion. Witnesses are under oath and face perjury for lying.
Sometimes, though, the system fails. This could be one of those times.
We trust the governor and Cabinet will weigh the evidence and do what is right. There are some serious holes in the case and nagging doubts about the guilt of this man. There should be no room for doubt when the penalty is death.
Spaziano, 49, had been scheduled to die in the Florida electric chair on June 27. He stands convicted of the murder and mutilation of Laura Lynn Harberts, an Orlando nurse whose body was found in a trash dump near Altamonte Springs in 1973.
Chiles had previously signed the fourth death warrant ordering his execution. Spaziano will remain on death row, where he has been since 1976.
In addition to granting the stay, Chiles has ordered a thorough investigation of the case by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. This is long overdue.
On the surface it sounds as if Spaziano were a perfect candidate for execution. His sentence has survived repeated appeals; he was already in prison on a heinous charge when police brought murder charges against him; and before going to prison he was the leader of an Orlando motorcycle gang.
AND YET, THERE are aspects of his case that raise serious doubts about his guilt. Spaziano's prosecution and conviction is a story that does not inspire confidence in the judicial system.
The key witness against him was a Tony Dilisio, who was 16 years old at the time of the murder. He said he had once idolized Spaziano as an outlaw biker and hoped to become a member of the gang himself.
About a year after the crime, Dilisio told police he had a vague recollection of Spaziano bragging about mutilating and murdering young women. After being placed under hypnosis, he said that Spaziano had taken him to the dump and boasted, "Man, that's my style," as they viewed the remains of two dead women.
It is a sickening account, if true. Dilisio, now 37, has said he remembers getting married at 21, but everything before that is a blank. He was 18 at the time of Spaziano's trial.
The prosecution's case rests largely on Dilisio's testimony.
Spaziano and the victim were slightly acquainted, and she was overheard telling someone on the telephone, "Hold on a minute, Joe," as she turned o speak to her roommate shortly before she was killed.
But the identity of the "Joe" on the telephone was not Spaziano. The police knew that the "Joe" on the telephone was actually Joe Suarez, a co-worker at the hospital where Laura and her roommate worked. But this was never disclosed to the jury.
Another troubling aspect of the trial is that the jury never knew Dilisio's hazy story was drawn out of him by police using hypnosis. This takes on even more significance in view of the hypnotist's credentials. Michael Mello, a lawyer who has handled appeals for Spaziano, said the hypnotist was shown to be a quack by Miami Herald editor Gene Miller in his book "Invitation to a Lynching."
Ten years ago the Florida Supreme Court held that hypnotically induced evidence was unreliable and inadmissible. The ruling was not retroactive so it did not apply to Spaziano's case.
The defense was also not apprised of another suspect the police had considered during their two-year investigation. Mello said records show that police were zeroing in on a known rapist and had a witness who placed him at the scene of the crime with several women near the time of the murder. The suspect flunked more than one polygraph test and told police "he didn't know whether he committed the murder." None of that information was given to the defense at the time of the trial.
One would expect that these omissions would get the attention of an appeals court. Gail Anderson, a state-appointed lawyer representing Spaziano, said those facts were unknown to the defense until 1989, well past a time limit for raising such objections.
Spaziano was also not helped in his trial by his friends, fellow Outlaws who turned out in full biker dress in an idiotic show of "support" for their pal "Crazy Joe," whose nickname appeared on his indictment.
Spaziano maintained his innocence but never took the stand to deny the charges. The jury twice told the judge they could not reach a verdict, and both times were sent back with instructions to be more diligent. Finally, they convicted Spaziano of first-degree murger but recommended life in prison. The trial judge overruled them and sentenced him to die.
It appears, too, that Spaziano had incompetent legal representation at the time of his trial. Mello described the inmate's defense attorney's work as "not totally abysmal," pointing out that the lawyer knew about Dilisio's hypnotically enhanced testimony but didn't bring it up or attack the credentials or methods of the hypnotist.
Laura Lynn Harberts has been dead for 22 years, and that terrible fact must not be forgotten. Society has an obligation to render justice for her death and punishment for the perpetrator of this grotesque crime.
But Florida has an equally important obligation to make sure that the state, acting on behalf of the people, does not put an innocent man to death. That could be the case with Joseph Spaziano.
CHILES AND THE STATE Cabinete have the power to grant clemency, which ranges from immediate release to a sentence of life in prison. The governor has indicated he is reluctant to interfere with judicial decisions without great cause. He is right to have such a cautionary attitude. In court, one hopes, the facts are separated from speculation and emotion. Witnesses are under oath and face perjury for lying.
Sometimes, though, the system fails. This could be one of those times.
We trust the governor and Cabinet will weigh the evidence and do what is right. There are some serious holes in the case and nagging doubts about the guilt of this man. There should be no room for doubt when the penalty is death.
Original Format
Newspaper
Contributor of the Digital Item
Skibinski, Nicholas
Student Editor of the Digital Item
Dickinson, Terra
Files
Citation
“Too much doubt in Spaziano case,” HIST299, accessed March 12, 2026, https://hist299.umwhistory.org/items/show/173.