Dwayne F. White v. State of Florida

Dwayne F. White, who was forty-one years old at the time of the offense, was convicted of first-degree murder in the death of his estranged wife, Sarah Yvonne Rucker, who was forty-three years old at the time of her death. By a vote of eight to four, the jury recommended that White be sentenced to death, and the trial court imposed a death sentence. This is White’s direct appeal of his conviction of first-degree murder and sentence of death. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 3(b)(1), Fla. Const.

For the reasons that follow, we affirm White’s conviction of first-degree murder but vacate his…