Christopher Lunz Found Guilty In Dad's Killing

CLEARWATER - A man who orchestrated his father's slaying was convicted of first-degree murder Thursday, quashing his plans for a victory celebration.

Instead, jurors return to court today to hear evidence before recommending whether Christopher Lunz should be executed for the March 2003 murder of David Lunz in his Palm Harbor home.

Lunz, 38, represented himself and was so sure he convinced jurors of his innocence that he was planning a news conference to discuss his victory, said two defense attorneys appointed to assist him.

They acknowledged - as did many watching the case - that Lunz did a remarkable job representing himself, despite having demanded that his trial be staged quickly before the defense team had a chance to examine all the evidence and interview all the witnesses.

"From an attorney's standpoint, I don't think the case was fully developed. We never followed up on his [possible] alibi," defense lawyer Keith Hammond said. "As for all the evidence on the table, he did as well as any attorney could do. But I don't think we had all the evidence and the state had three years to prepare."

Lunz and the man who pulled the trigger were charged with his father's murder late last year after a gun stolen from David Lunz's home was found on the bank of a lake near where the killers lived in North Carolina.

William Westerman, 26, quickly confessed to the crime and said Lunz ordered him to shoot his father with a sawed-off shotgun after the son attacked his father during what Westerman thought was supposed to be a friendly visit, authorities said. He testified against his former roommate and mentor and will receive a 30-year prison term in exchange for his cooperation.

Assistant State Attorney Mark McGarry told jurors Lunz hoped to inherit an estate worth nearly $400,000 from his father, whom he had not seen or visited for decades. It turned out the elder Lunz did not include his son in his will.

In opening statements earlier this week, Lunz told jurors Westerman acted alone and that prosecutors had no evidence he ever visited Florida in March 2003. The lack of evidence tying him to the murder scene turned out to be true, but Lunz apologized to the jury during his closing arguments Thursday for failing to present any alibi witnesses.

Late Wednesday, Hammond told Circuit Judge Dee Anna Farnell the defense team was awaiting word from a North Carolina couple who might have testified Lunz was visiting their home the day his father was killed. But Lunz chose to rest his case without calling any witnesses, even though Farnell offered to give him time to contact the couple.

Instead, Lunz chose to focus on the lack of physical evidence tying him to the murder scene.

His father died after a violent struggle, and there was blood all though his house, Lunz told the jury in his closing argument.

Westerman testified Lunz attacked his father and struggled with him, yet there was no DNA, not a single hair or fingerprint left behind, he said.

"There was not one single piece of evidence to put me there, but there was of William Westerman," he said.

When Lunz returns to court today, it will be under extraordinary security. Nine bailiffs surrounded him as the verdict was read Thursday, and Lunz has been wearing a harness that can deliver an electrical shock, if needed, by a bailiff.

At a hearing last week, security officials told the judge they had evidence Lunz may have been planning an escape, said Dyril Flanagan, a second defense attorney assisting during the trial. Also, the judge was told Lunz is under investigation for five other murders, although no details were provided, Flanagan said.