Killer Sentenced to Life in Prison, Witness Statements Suppressed in Fear of Jury Nullification
A man was sentenced to life in prison Thursday after a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder, unlawfully carrying a concealed weapon, possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and resisting an officer without violence.
William Walter Murphy, 37, was arrested by Gainesville Police Department officers on November 3, 2023, for killing Nathaniel Foye.
According to the arrest report, witnesses told officers that Foye was purchasing crack-cocaine from Murphy when the shooting happened.
A few days before the trial, Assistant State Attorney Ryan Nagel made a motion to exclude "any argument regarding rumors or claims that [Foye] was ‘touching' or ‘messing with’ [Murphy's minor relative], and that [Murphy] was advised to respond, or that [he] shot [Foye] because of these rumors."
The motion states that two witnesses gave depositions and said that Foye's girlfriend, who is also the mother of Murphy's child, told Murphy to "do something about" Foye in retaliation for touching his minor relative.
According to the motion, one witness said that she had a conversation with a man who was with Foye's girlfriend the night of the shooting. He reportedly said Foye's girlfriend called Murphy and told him to "do something about it." The witness said the victim's girlfriend was referencing Foye "touching" Murphy's minor relative.
Nagel reported that the man who was with Foye's girlfriend appeared "non-verbal" on body camera footage from the night of the shooting.
The motion states another witness said he had a conversation with the Foye's girlfriend after the shooting. Foye's girlfriend reportedly told the witness "[Murphy] thought [Foye] was messing with [his minor relative] and was going to take her away... so I told him to man up and do something about it... to get rid of both of them."
Nagel reported that the victim's girlfriend "denied the conversation took place, and further advised that it was only after the [Foye's] shooting that people started anything bad about [him]."
Nagel called the witnesses' reports "unreliable hearsay statements" and argued that Murphy "would have to first admit to shooting the victim before these statements could even be considered relevant.... Assuming [he] chose to make such an admission, then the statements would only exist to inflame the passions of the jury and would serve as an invitation to jury nullification."
Judge James Colaw granted the motion to suppress and later sentenced Murphy to life in prison after his jury conviction.
