MIAMI (WSVN) - Sentencing for the man convicted of killing a tourist in front of his family enters it’s second day.
On the first day of sentencing Monday, the judge spent most of the afternoon listening to victim impact statements.
Tuesday, the defendant’s friends and family will take the stand on his behalf.
His dad took the stand around noon, calling his son mild, calm, and went on to say that he was completely shocked by what unfolded.
It has been nearly five years since the now 27-year-old Tamarius Davis shot and killed 21-year-old Dustin Wakefield as he ate lunch with his family at a South Beach restaurant in 2021.
Wakefield was on vacation with his family in Miami from Colorado, when Davis pointed his firearm at Wakefield’s one-year-old son, Elijah.
That’s when Wakefield stepped in front of the weapon and said, don’t shoot my son, he’s just a baby. Davis then pulled the trigger and shot Wakefield once.
When Wakefield collapsed, Davis proceeded to fire four more shots into his back, killing him.
Wakefield’s mother spoke Monday, and as she struggled to catch her breath, she said she forgave Davis, but is hopeful that he will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
“I forgive you. Tamarius, I forgive you,” she said in court.
“I never imagined that at such a young age I would become a widow, and I certainly never imagined that I would one day have to stand in the courtroom and speak about my husband’s murder, but I’m here today because Dustin deserves to have his story told, he deserves to be remembered for the life he lived and not just for the way he died,” said Wakefield’s wife in court Monday.
More of Davis’s friends and family are expected top speak Tuesday.
According to the judge, his sentence will be handed down no later than Thursday.
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