TAMPA, Fla. — Whether Ronnie Oneal III lives or dies for the 2018 murder of his girlfriend and their 9-year-old daughter is up to a 12-person jury.
In Florida, those members must unanimously agree to a recommendation for death before a judge imposes such a sentence. That consideration is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Wednesday, June 23, during the penalty phase of Oneal's trial.
If not capital punishment, Oneal will serve life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Jurors found Oneal, 32, guilty Monday of the first-degree premeditated murder of his girlfriend, Kenyatta Barron, and his 9-year-old daughter who had cerebral palsy. He was also found guilty of the attempted murder of his 8-year-old son, who he stabbed and lit on fire.
He, too, was convicted of arson and aggravated child abuse.
"I think this will be a tougher decision for the jury to make than the guilty verdict," local defense attorney Rohom Khonsari said. He says he expects the penalty phase of the trial to last possibly between two and three days with the prosecution presenting their arguments first.
"They're going to go over yet again how serious, heinous, atrocious and cruel his actions were," Khonsari said.
The prosecution told the judge they only expect to take a half-day to present their case and only plan on calling several witnesses.
“One of the major aggravating factors in this case is that it does involve at a child under 12 and it does involve someone with a disability that being a child," Khonsari said.
Oneal's son, now 11, testified against his father during the trial, recalling his father's attack in March 2018 at their Riverview home. The child claimed Oneal tried to recruit him to help kill his mother with a 12-gage shotgun.
"My dad said, 'Come in here and come kill this B word,' and then I went in the room and he handed me a shotgun and help me shoot it," Oneal's son said during the trial. He said he never did see his father fire the deadly shot but recalled his mom coming outside afterward.
Oneal would then hit his daughter in the back of the head with an ax and stab his son several times and set him on fire, the child said.
Oneal represented himself during the trial, claiming law enforcement tampered with evidence and he had acted in self-defense. He will allow his attorneys to step in during the penalty portion of the trial.
But before the trial even began, Oneal told prospective jurors he believes in the death penalty while addressing them in court.
"When it comes to the death penalty, I just want to let you all know that, me personally, I am for it. If somebody has committed these crimes, they are worthy of death," he said.
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