Ryan Holle
| Ryan Holle | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
November 17, 1982[1] Pensacola, Florida, United States |
Criminal penalty | Life imprisonment |
Criminal status | Incarcerated at Graceville Correctional Facility |
| Conviction(s) | first degree murder, armed burglary, armed robbery[1] |
Ryan Joseph Holle (born November 17, 1982) was convicted in 2004 of first-degree murder for lending his Chevrolet Metro to a friend, who used the car to drive others to a house in order to commit a burglary, during which a murder was committed.[2][3][4] A former resident of Pensacola, Florida, United States, he is now serving a sentence of life without the possibility of parole at the Graceville Correctional Facility.[2]
Details of murder
On the early morning of March 10, 2003, after a night of partying, Holle lent his car to a friend and housemate,[2] William Allen, Jr.[5] Allen used the car to drop three men off at the house of a known drug dealer, Christine Snyder, where they removed a safe containing a pound of marijuana and US$1425.[5] During the burglary, one of the men, Charles Miller, Jr., used a shotgun he had found in the house to bludgeon to death the drug dealer's 18-year-old daughter, Jessica Snyder.[2][5] Holle was a mile and a half away.[2]
Convictions
Prosecutors sought the death penalty for Charles Miller, Jr., who confessed to the killing, but he was sentenced to life without parole on May 12, 2005.[4] The two men who entered the Snyders' home with him each received the same sentence, as did the driver, William Allen, Jr.[2]
Christine Snyder was sentenced to three years in prison for marijuana possession.[2]
Application of felony murder rule
Holle, who had given the police statements in which he seemed to admit knowing about the burglary, was convicted on August 3, 2004,[3] of first-degree murder under a legal doctrine known as the felony murder rule.[2] The doctrine broadens murder liability for participants in violent felonies to include a killing by an accomplice.[2] As the prosecutor David Rimmer explained: "No car, no murder."[2] The victim's father, Terry Snyder, concurred: "It never would have happened unless Ryan Holle had lent the car. It was as good as if he was there."[2]
Statements in defense
Allen said in a pretrial deposition that all Holle did "was to say, 'Use the car.' I mean, nobody really knew that girl was going to get killed. It was not in the plans to go kill somebody, you know."[2]
Holle had no criminal record.[2] He had lent his car to Allen countless times before.[2]
In a 2007 interview with The New York Times, Holle stated that "I honestly thought they were going to get food" adding that "When they actually mentioned what was going on, I thought it was a joke."[2] He explained that he was naive, and had been drinking all night, so he "didn't understand what was going on."[2]
Trial
Holle was the only involved person to be offered a plea bargain that might have led to only 10 years in prison but he refused the deal.[2] Holle's trial lasted one day, including testimony, jury deliberations, conviction, and sentencing.[2]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Inmate Population Information Detail - Ryan Holle". Florida Department of Corrections. Retrieved February 7, 2010.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 Liptak, Adam (2007-12-04). "Serving Life for Providing Car to Killers". The New York Times.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Pensacola Man Convicted in Teen's Drug-Theft Murder". Associated Press. 2004-08-04.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Fifth suspect sentenced to life in prison without parole in Pensacola teen's killing". St. Augustine Record. 2005-05-14. Retrieved 2007-12-09.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Around the state: 2 convicted of murdering teen". St. Petersburg Times / wire services. 2004-06-11. Retrieved 2007-12-08.