THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 2, 1996 TAG: 9602020390
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: METRO BRIEFS
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Short : 36 lines
The Florida Supreme Court has declined to review the murder case of former Virginia Beach lawyer and developer Thomas E. Smolka, who spent four years behind bars before being acquitted in December on charges that he killed his wife.
Although prosecutors in Florida have 90 days to file a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court, it appears unlikely that they will.
``I'm not optimistic that we're going to find the right posture to get them to take notice,'' said prosecutor Rebecca Wall. ``It looks like this will be the end of the . . . case.''
William Whipple III, Smolka's brother-in-law and a spokesman for the family, said they are happy with the state Supreme Court decision. Smolka has been free since the December ruling.
``We expected it to come out this way,'' he said. ``But it's nice to have it over.''
A jury found Smolka guilty in March 1993 of the murder of his wife, Betty Anne, in Ocala, Fla. But a state appeals court in Florida overturned that conviction in August, ruling that the circumstantial nature of the case against him did not justify the conviction.
Prosecutors never provided any physical evidence to link Smolka to the crime. Instead, they focused on Smolka's desperate financial situation and the fact that he had insured his wife's life for $500,000.
KEYWORDS: MURDER DOMESTIC VIOLENCE FLORIDA SUPREME COURT by CNB