Mark Sievers, on death row for wife's 2015 murder-for-hire, demands hearing
A Bonita Springs man on death row for hiring two individuals to murder his wife in 2015 has filed a motion for a rehearing in hopes of reversing a recent ruling.
A jury convicted Mark Sievers, 54, on Dec. 4, 2019, in the slaying of Teresa Sievers, a 46-year-old Southwest Florida doctor. A judge denied Sievers' death row appeal last month.
Appeal denied:Mark Sievers, convicted in 2015 murder-for-hire of wife Teresa, denied death row appeal
And:Attorney in Jimmy Ray Rodgers appeal in Sievers murder case awaiting payment for services
The motion, filed Dec. 1, claims the court dismissed two 2016 interviews with co-conspirator Curtis Wayne Wright Jr. — a full video and a short excerpted clip, both exhibits in the case. Sievers asked to include an excerpt of a February 2016 meeting where Wright attempts to negotiate terms of a plea deal to spare his wife.
"And the full video shows that Wright was being coached by the investigators, which goes to how the investigation unfolded," the motion reads in part.
The exclusion of the "crucial" video evidence violated Sievers’ constitutional rights under the Fifth, Sixth,and Fourteenth Amendments, the motion argues.
The motion also addresses the exclusion of a neighbor's testimony recounting snippets of an argument she overheard between husband and wife a weeks before the murder.
Sievers' defense alleges that the court overlooked the possibility that the jury improperly used the testimony to corroborate Wright's testimony as to Sievers’ motivation.
The jury apparently discounted any motivation, which left only Wright’s testimony about Sievers’ marital problems to explain a motive, the motion says.
Sievers' lawyers claim that Wright’s testimony alone will not satisfy the Constitutional standards to justify Sievers’ conviction and death sentence given the lack of corroboration, the terms of the deal made with Wright, and his alleged propensity to lie to the police and prosecutors.
Lastly, the motion tackles the court's notice of intent to seek the death penalty.
The habitual offender provision doesn't provide for any defined time limit before sentencing, while it provides a specific purpose to be served by the notice requirement.
According to the motion, written notice should be served on Sievers and his attorney with enough time before entering a plea or imposing of sentence.
What happened in 2015?
On June 28, 2015, Teresa Sievers, left a family vacation and returned alone to her Bonita Springs home.
After she pulled into the garage, retrieved her luggage and walked into the house, Wright and Jimmy Ray Rodgers beat her in the head with hammers.
Court records indicate the plot began weeks earlier, when Mark Sievers traveled to Missouri for Wright’s May wedding.
Wright agreed to "take care of it" for at least $100,000 in life insurance proceeds, the records show. Wright later recruited Rodgers.
Kyle sentenced Rodgers to life in prison, convicted of second-degree murder and trespassing by a Lee County jury in October 2019.
On Feb. 10, 2020, Kyle sentenced Wright to 25 years for his role in Teresa Sievers' murder.
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Twitter @TomasFRoBeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Mark Sievers files motion after death row appeal denied
