Gamble v. State

In Gamble v. State, 659 So. 2d 242 (Fla. 1995), both codefendants planned and executed the bludgeoning and strangulation murder of their landlord. See id. at 244. Both co-defendants were at the murder scene at the time of the murder, and there was some question as to which was responsible for actually killing the victim. See id. The jury recommended the sentence of death for Gamble by a ten-to-two majority, and the trial court followed that recommendation. See id. After the close of Gamble's penalty phase, Love, Gamble's codefendant, pled guilty to first-degree murder in exchange for a life sentence. See id. at 245. The Court rejected the assertion that the distinction between the sentences rendered Gamble's death sentence disproportionate. See id.