Escambia Man Sentenced To Die For Popeye’s Slaying

August 17, 2012

A Escambia County man has been sentenced to death for the brutal murder of his boss during a 1998 restaurant robbery.

Timothy Lee Hurst received the death penalty from Judge Linda Nobles. On March 9, an Escambia County Jury recommended 7 to 5 that Hurst receive the death penalty. Hurst’s conviction was upheld by the Florida Supreme Court which remanded the case back before the trial court to conduct a new penalty phase.

Hurst was convicted in 2000 for the murder of Cynthia Harrison inside the Nine Mile Road Popeye’s Restaurant on May 2, 1998. Hurst, who was then an employee at Popeye’s, stabbed Assistant Manager Cynthia Harrison approximately 60 times and placed her body in the restaurant’s freezer.

Thursday was the second time Hurst had been sentenced to die for the murder. He was first sentenced to death in 2000, but the Florida Supreme Court overturned that sentence because some evidence was not presented to the jury. That evidence included evidence of Hurst’s mental capacity.

Comments

22 Responses to “Escambia Man Sentenced To Die For Popeye’s Slaying”

  1. Christian Stevenson on May 16th, 2015 2:38 am

    I lived with timothy and Cindy Harrison. I was in their house when the sheriffs officers told Tim his wife had been killed. The anguish Tim lived through, no man deserves.the faster Timothy Hurst is put down the better. As always, cindy you are in my prayers.

  2. jason summerlin on March 16th, 2015 5:32 pm

    Hold your head Tim god got your back there’s always forgiveness stay strong….

  3. David Huie Green on August 19th, 2012 11:49 pm

    REGARDING;
    “Mr. Green: Have you proven the death penalty is right? If so, in what way.”

    No, I haven’t. But then, I’m not the one making the claim that it is always wrong. Maybe it IS always wrong.
    If so, show so, then everybody will oppose it too.

    David for reasonable requests

  4. BK63 on August 19th, 2012 8:28 pm

    Smoke him, A slow death. Or lets just feed & care for him the rest of his & our lives.

  5. mitch on August 19th, 2012 7:10 am

    Mr. Green: Have you proven the death penalty is right? If so, in what way.

  6. David Huie Green on August 18th, 2012 11:25 pm

    CONSIDERING:
    “Even tho what this man did was very wrong he shouldn’t receive the death penalty two wrong don’t make a right.”

    I agree two wrongs don’t make a right, but you haven’t proven that the death penalty is a wrong.

    David for facts

  7. Dennis on August 18th, 2012 2:04 pm

    I personally feel death is the easy way out for him and very costly for the taxpayers. But then if they could adminster the death penalty like he did this young ladies I would be all for it. Probably took him a day or two to plan it and she did not die quickly if he was using a boxcutter-cut him and let him bleed out.

  8. molinomomma on August 18th, 2012 12:19 am

    I’ve always thought what ever the criminal did should be done to them!!!!

  9. jp on August 17th, 2012 10:28 am

    Apparently Mr.Hurst didn’t feel what he did to the lady wasn’t cruel and inhuman.
    Considering this, neither he nor the appeals court should have a problem with
    him receiving the same fate he gave her. If capital punishment were administered “quick and sure” the way it should be the murder rate would be much lower.

  10. Same American on August 17th, 2012 10:06 am

    The death penalty is the right sentence for this case. Obviously this was premeditated. I was fortunate enough to work with Ms. Harrison until Tim took her life. Tremendous person to be around, you could not dislike her. I also went to school with Tim. His mental capacity always seemed fine to me. I was shocked when I first heard what he did back then. I was friends with him until that happened. It pains me to say this, but he is reaping what he sowed. Besides, our prison system, designed to “rehabilitate”, does no such thing. Petty criminals go in, hardened criminals come out. And they usually find some way to go back “home” as soon as they’re out anyway. Public display of the sentence, i.e. hangings, or whatever it may be, should be continued. That’s how you set an example that people can learn from. Locking people up out of sight and mind teaches no one anything.

  11. who cares on August 17th, 2012 7:32 am

    The only thing he will die from is old age in our prison
    system.

  12. mnon on August 17th, 2012 7:25 am

    Stabbing a girl who was downs syndrome 60x and throwing her in the freezer. Yeah… he’s getting what he deserves. Better him dead than everyone paying for him to sit in jail. “Eye for an eye”

  13. Molino resident on August 17th, 2012 7:19 am

    He got what he earned……the death penalty.

  14. PensacolaEd on August 17th, 2012 7:15 am

    Jdog is right, the way we administer the death penalty is wrong, it’s too quick and painless. This piece of garbage should die a slow, painful death.

  15. Fred on August 17th, 2012 7:02 am

    Think it’s time to bring back the town hangings with manditory attendence, at liest the death panality would again be a deterrent. While we’re at it a speedy trial by jury should be followed by a speedy execution of sentance!

  16. Otto on August 17th, 2012 6:48 am

    If you want to guage the utter brutality of the crime, then understand some of the facts.

    Hurst took the time to plan the robbery; so, this was not an act of impulse.
    The victim, Cynthia Harrison, weighed 86 pounds and was approximately 4 feet 8 inches tall. She was bound and gagged with electrical tape and when her body was found, left in the store freezer, she had more than 60 wounds made by a box cutter.

    Cynthia Harrison was Timothy Hurst’s co-worker; so, this was someone he knew and showed absolutely no compassion or empathy for.

    My sympathies are with Ms. Harrison’s family and friends. Timothy Hurst put himself on death row and there is nobody else to blame.

  17. Tdog on August 17th, 2012 6:26 am

    He can’t quit breathing out air soon enough.

  18. FLSTCI on August 17th, 2012 6:20 am

    Jdog, would you feel the same way if it was your mother or sister? Two different juries voted for the death penalty. Justice is served.

  19. Pro death penalty on August 17th, 2012 6:08 am

    He stabbed her 60 times! He’s getting what he deserves. God says we should obey the law of the land we live in.

  20. Jdog on August 17th, 2012 3:17 am

    Even tho what this man did was very wrong he shouldn’t receive the death penalty two wrong don’t make a right.

  21. 429SCJ on August 17th, 2012 2:11 am

    We may never be certain of the origins of this evil , but I sure know where it is going.

  22. Karen on August 17th, 2012 1:19 am

    So give him the 3 mix cocktail already, this scum deserves what he gave to that poor girl.