TAMPA — A judge has ruled that Hillsborough prosecutors will only need to convince eight jurors, not 12, that Tampa rapper Billy Adams III should receive the death penalty if he is found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Alana Sims. In a three-page order issued last week, Hillsborough Circuit Judge Mark Kiser rejected arguments from Adams’ defense that a new Florida law, which .
TAMPA — If Billy Adams III is found guilty of murder, should Hillsborough prosecutors have to convince 12 people that he deserves the death penalty? Or will eight be enough? A judge is weighing that question as lawyers and other Florida judges also grapple with what to do in the wake of the latest change to the state’s ever-evolving death penalty system. This spring, the Legislature and Gov. .