Eyewitness Testimony on Presence at the Actual Time of the a Murder

In Benedith v. State, 717 So. 2d 472 (Fla. 1998), the only eyewitness testimony at trial placed Benedith at the location of the murder four to five minutes prior to the eyewitness hearing gunshots. See id. at 474. The eyewitness further noted that immediately after hearing the gunshots, he looked in the direction of where the sound originated and saw the victim's body lying on the ground and Benedith's codefendant, Taylor, quickly entering a car and speeding away. See id. The Court specifically noted that the eyewitness did not testify to seeing Benedith in the area from which the gunshots originated after the eyewitness heard the shots and looked in that direction. See id. There simply was no evidence presented at trial that Benedith was present at the actual time of the murder.