Hours after a jury returned a guilty verdict against one of two teens in connection with the shooting death of 15-year-old Kayla Rincon-Miller, Cape Coral’s top policeman reflected on the path to justice.
Jurors unanimously found on May 4 that Thomas Stein, 18, of North Fort Myers, did not intend to kill Rincon-Miller, but that he carried and possessed a firearm March 17, 2024.
The 12 people responsible for determining his guilt took about five hours of deliberations. They convicted him of one count of first-degree felony murder and three counts of attempted robbery with a firearm.
“I had the solemn honor, privilege, and responsibility of sitting alongside Kayla’s family, along with the Violent Crimes Detectives who tirelessly worked this case, as the verdict was read and justice was delivered,” Cape Coral Police Chief Anthony Sizemore wrote in a May 5 statement. “It was a powerful and emotional moment — one that brought accountability, but not closure. The reality remains that Kayla cannot be brought back, and a family will forever carry the weight of that loss.”
Sizemore said moments like this remind of the “profound responsibility we carry in this profession.”
Sizemore said the conviction represents the teamwork between the first responding officers who arrived on scene and immediately rendered life-saving aid, to their forensic personnel who meticulously processed the evidence, to the detectives who built this case piece by piece and to the prosecutors at the State Attorney’s Office who carried it forward in court.
“Last night, justice was served for Kayla. That matters,” Sizemore wrote. “It matters to her family, it matters to this community, and it matters to every one of us who wear this badge or support this mission. We stand with Kayla’s family and remain committed to seeking justice for all victims.”
Judge Nicholas Thompson will issue Stein’s sentence on July 10.
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@usatodayco.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Threads @tomasfrobeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran, Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews and Bluesky @tomasfrodriguez.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Cape Coral Police chief: Murder verdict was ‘powerful and emotional’
Reporting by Tomas Rodriguez, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
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