The Commission on Capital Cases updates this information regularly. This information, however, is subject to change and may not reflect the latest status of an inmate’s case and should not be relied upon for statistical or legal purposes.
LARZELERE, Virginia (W/F)
DOB: 12/27/52
Volusia County, Seventh Judicial Circuit, Case # 91-2561 CFAES
Sentencing Judge, Trial: The Honorable John W. Watson, III
Attorney, Trial: John Wilkins, Private
Attorney, Direct Appeal: Christopher S. Quarles, Assistant Public Defender
Attorney, Collateral Appeals: Richard Kiley, CCRC-M
Date of Offense: 03/08/91
Date of Sentence: 05/11/93
Circumstances of Offense:
Virginia Larzelere was married to the victim, Norman Larzelere, who was a dentist. Virginia was the office manager for Norman’s practice. During the afternoon of March 8, 1991, a masked gunman entered the dental office. The gunman chased Norman down and shot him with a shotgun and then fled. Norman died shortly after being shot. A patient, a dental assistant, and Virginia were all present in the office at the time of the shooting.
Virginia and her son, Jason, were charged with the murder. The State theorized that Virginia and Jason conspired to kill Norman in order to cash in a $2 million life insurance policy and $1 million in assets.
The following evidence was presented by the state at trial. Two different men presented testimony stating that they had engaged in affairs with Virginia and that she had asked them to assist her in killing her husband. Two additional witnesses, Steven Heidle and Kristen Palmieri, after receiving immunity, testified to various incriminating statements and actions made by Jason and Virginia concerning the murder. Heidle and Palmieri testified that the night before the murder, Virginia sent Jason to pick up documents from a storage unit. Those documents included Norman’s life insurance policies and will. They also said that Virgina said to Jason after the murder, “Don’t worry, you’ll get your $200,000 for taking care of business.” Heidle and Palmieri said that Virginia told both of them that Jason screwed up by showing up at Norman’s practice half an hour late. If Jason had arrived on time, it would have been 12:30 p.m. and the dental assistant, as well as the patient, would not have been present. The two witnesses said that Virginia told them to get rid of a .45 handgun and a shotgun by encasing them in concrete and disposing of them in a creek. In the days after the murder, the two witnesses said that Virginia and Jason reenacted the murder, with Virginia playing the role of the victim and Jason playing the role of the gunman. The shotgun was recovered from the creek, but no conclusive determination was made as to whether it was the weapon used in the murder.
Virginia gave several different versions of the murder in her testimony to the police. Both the descriptions of the gunman and the getaway car changed. The patient who witnessed the murder heard the victim say just after he was shot, “Jason, is that you?”
Over the six years before the murder, Virginia took out seven different life insurance policies on the victim. In the six months before the murder, she doubled the amount payable from $1 million to $2 million. The victim helped to obtain these policies, but Virginia was dominant in pursuing the policies. Virginia also gave false statements and information in order to get the policies. Additionally, Virginia filed a fraudulent will designating her as the sole heir to the estate shortly after the murder. The will was submitted on the same day that one of the biggest insurance policies went into effect.
Codefendant Information:
Jason Larzelere was acquitted of the charge of First-Degree Murder.
Trial Summary:
05/24/91 Defendant was indicted as follows:
Count I: First-Degree Murder
08/17/92 Defendant found guilty of First-Degree Murder
(Jury recommended Death by a vote of 7-5)
05/11/93 Defendant was sentenced as follows
Count I: First-Degree Murder – Death
Appeal Summary:
Florida Supreme Court – Direct Appeal
FSC #81,793
676 So. 2d 394
05/21/93 Appeal filed
03/28/96 Conviction and sentence affirmed
07/11/96 Rehearing denied
08/12/96 Mandate issued
United States Supreme Court – Petition for Writ of Certiorari
Case #96-6345
519 U.S. 1043; 117 S. Ct. 615; 136 L. Ed. 2d 539
10/09/96 Petition filed
12/16/96 Petition denied
State Circuit Court - 3.850 Motion
CC #91-2561
(pending)
11/25/97 Motion filed
Factors Contributing to the Delay in Imposition of Sentence:
The 3.850 Motion has been pending in the Circuit Court for 5 years.
Case Information:
The Direct Appeal was filed with the Florida Supreme Court on 05/21/93. Issues that were raised included whether the trial judge improperly limited the defense’s impeachment of a witness and whether the trial judge erred in admitted selected portions of taped statements and in refusing the request to introduce the complete statements. The Florida Supreme Court found all of the issues either harmless or without merit and affirmed the conviction and sentence of Death on 03/28/96. A Petition for Writ of Certiorari was filed with the United States Supreme Court on 10/09/96 and denied on 12/16/96.
A 3.850 Motion was filed with the Circuit Court on 11/25/97 and is currently pending.
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Report Date: 12/03/02 cc
Approved: 12/15/02 ws
Updated: 12/10/03 cc