Steven Lorenzo, who represented himself in court, fought for the death penalty -- and, in a bizarre statement to the court, said "the sooner I get euthanized ... the faster I can fetch myself a new body and come back again."
A man who admitted to the brutal murders of two gay men back in 2003 expressed his gratitude in court on Friday when he was given the death penalty by a Florida judge.
Both Steven Lorenzo and Scott Schweickert stood accused of luring Jason Galehouse and Michael Wachholtz, separetely, to Lorenzo's home in 2003. First, the pair killed and dismembered Galehouse, before scattering his remains throughout Tampa dumpsters. They then invited Wachholtz to the home, drugged and killed him before leaving his body wrapped in a sheet in the trunk of his own car in a random parking lot. Galehouse's body was never found.
Schweickert pled guilty to two counts of first-degree murder in 2016 and was given life in prison in exchange for testifying against Lorenzo. While Lorenzo previously fought the charges, he changed his tune last November, changing his plea to not guilty while, representing himself, asking for the death penalty.
Throughout Lorenzo's sentencing trial, the mothers of both victims gave testimony in which they both agreed he should be sent to death row.
Galehouse's mother, Pam Williams, said (via Law&Crime), "I don't have a grave. I don't have a tombstone. All I've got is ground-up hamburger meat in the ground because of you, you scumbag. That's exactly what you are. You should be dead already, as far as I'm concerned. You put me through holy hell."
"What he did to my son before murdering him should be done to him, eye for an eye," added Michael's mother, Ruth Wachholtz. "For 20 years he lived, and Michael hasn't. At taxpayers' expense, no less. It's time to end this."
Before his sentencing was announced Friday in court, Judge Christopher Sabella gave the oddly upbeat Lorenzo a chance to make a statement.
Lorenzo first thanked his defense team, before saying he had "no animosity" toward the prosecution. "This lifetime, I'm the bad guy, you're the good guy. Maybe in the next lifetime, the role will be reversed," he told his opposition, before also thanking the judge for his patience throughout the process as well.
"I'm seeking the death penalty. It's in my best interest. I'll be living a lot more comfortable than I would in the federal system, living on death row, believe it or not," he then said. "That may sound selfish, but I've lived in a private cell for the last 5 years and I'm gonna have a private cell on death row. At my age, I want to be comfortable, I want my privacy, that's what I want. It may sound selfish, but that's the way it is. You live for today, you don't live for the past."
"I know I could be on death row for about 10-15 years, which I think is crazy, but as far as I see it, it's just euthanasia," he continued. "I already have a death sentence, everyone in this room has a death sentence."
Lorenzo said he planned to "try and speed up this process" so he wouldn't "have to wait 15 years, because I got better things to do with my time."
"The sooner I get euthanized, as far as I'm concerned, the faster I can fetch myself a new body and come back again, a fresh body, that's how I look at it," he continued. "We're eternal beings. I've got better things to do with my time than to hang out and spend 15-20 years on death row or in any prison system."
The judge, however, made it clear he was putting no weight on Lorenzo's statement.
"I don't know if what you say is perhaps some form of reverse psychology nor do I care, I will not consider what you want in issuing my sentence," he said, before Lorenzo replied, "I'm looking forward to getting this over with. It's been 5 long years."
Judge Sabella then brought up the testimonies of the victims' mothers, noting that "the thing that was consistent in their testimony was that they had been waiting 20 years for justice. Today, that long wait ends."
"In the words of Ms. Pam Williams, from one Italian to another, 'Ti condanno a morte,' that translates to I sentence you to death," said Sabella. "That is the punishment you deserve for these horrific crimes."
"Thank you, your honor, I appreciate it," said Lorenzo ... while the judge concluded, "May God have mercy on your soul." The session ended with the murderer responding, "My soul is fine, thank you sir."
Lorenzo still has 30 days to appeal his sentence.
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