Stepfather accused in Florida of raping and killing Madeline Soto faces the death penalty

Andrew Bain, the state prosecutor leading the case in Florida against Stephan Sterns, is evaluating whether he will seek the death penalty against the man, accused of raping and murdering his stepdaughter Madeline Soto.

Before deciding whether to request this punishment against Sterns, the Prosecutor’s Office must carry out the corresponding statutory analysis.

“If it was a previous cruel and heinous crime in which the victim suffered; if it was a previous violent crime. There are different factors that go into those different legal analyzes that go with what we consider aggravating factors. And in what has to do with mitigating factors of the accused, which may be childhood education, previous trauma or different things that we can know about the accused, mental health, mental capacity,” Bain explained as quoted by WESH television.

Prosecutors must make a determination in the next 45 days on whether or not they will seek the death penalty for the defendant.

Sterns, 37, faces charges of sexual abuse and first-degree murder following the disappearance and death of the 13-year-old.

Before she was murdered, the young woman was subjected to a pattern of sexual assault for years. The agents have material from the cell phone of the man who would support the accusations of sexual crimes.

The pre-trial hearing is scheduled for July 10, and the trial could begin on the 16th of that same month.

Sterns did not attend the hearing scheduled for Tuesday and it was canceled. The reasons are not clear. Last week, the man waived his appearance at an initial hearing. The reasons are not known either.

Defendants may request not to attend hearings. The issue now is whether the accused can avoid being present at the trial.

Madeline was reported missing on February 26, after her mother did not find her when she went to look for her at school.

Sterns was supposed to take her to the compound in the morning.

Although that was the man’s argument to the authorities, the Police have evidence from security cameras that show him driving a car in which the lifeless body of the minor was supposedly found. Cameras also captured Sterns throwing belongings, which were believed to be the teenager’s, into a dumpster at a housing complex. In other images, Sterns is seen near Old Hickory Tree Road in St. Cloud later that day. Madeline’s remains were found on March 1 in that area.

Keep reading:

Madeline Soto’s stepfather is accused of having killed her in Florida

Madeline Soto’s father on the rape and murder of the minor in Florida: “Every father knows what I’m thinking right now”