Joshua Rosa - Trial of Joshua Rosa

Trial of Joshua Rosa

The murder trial began on July 11, 2008. At trial, the State Prosecutors portrayed Rosa as the sole murderer who killed Tomlinson. Prosecutors theorized that, after a scuffle with his victim and subsequent strangulation, Rosa tried to hide the evidence by using a nail clipper to clip off Tomlinson's fingernails. The prosecutor also presented the same jogging pants that Rosa was wearing on the night of the murder and showed the jury blood stains belonging to Tomlinson within the inner sleeve of the pants. With the same pair of white gloves that were taken from Rosa, the prosecutors showed the jury that Rosa used the gloves to either suffocate or to keep Tomlinson quiet by placing the gloves in Tomlinson's mouth. The blood pattern stains on the gloves showed the position the gloves had been placed on Tomlinson's mouth.

Rosa was represented at trial by attorney Brian E. Gonzalez. At trial, Gonzalez showed that Rosa was trying to help revive Tomlinson and that he was in the park doing his nightly jog since Rosa was known to be in great shape. Gonzalez tried persuading the jury that there was more than one perpetrator who committed this crime and that Rosa is falsely being accused of the murder. Rosa did not testify on his behalf.

At approximately 11:15 AM on July 21, 2008, Joshua Rosa was found guilty of murder in the first degree and that the killing was committed during the commission of, or in the attempt to commit aggravated child abuse. Rosa was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The prosecutors office stated that the death penalty was not sought in this case since the evidence did not satisfy the requirements for a death penalty case. Once the verdict was read, Rosa spoke for the first time, still claiming his innocence, and stated that his family and his friends know who he really is. Rosa continued to state that he hopes someday the ones who really committed this crime are caught and he wishes that God have mercy upon their souls. An appeal in the verdict is likely to occur in the future.

Joshua Rosa was sentenced to life in prison on August 5, 2008, where he is currently housed in the Mayo Correctional Institution of the Florida Department of Corrections. At 22 years old, Rosa is one of the youngest people in Florida history to be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.