Sabrina Stevenson a published poet was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the brutal killing of her boyfriend James Milliken. Stevenson was featured in a local newspaper article about her recovery from alcohol and drugs in 2005, but neighbors indicated that since that time Stevenson had succumbed to her addictions. Stevenson is being held without bail after the brutal stabbing of her boyfriend in the Tampa area.
Stevenson allegedly sliced her boyfriend's throat from ear to ear with a butcher knife. After Stevenson killed her boyfriend she hid him in the bedroom closet for days according to Lakeland police. Authorities say that once the odor from the body became noticeable Stevenson wrapped the body in a canvas tarp and bedspread and covered it in baby powder.
Stevenson had told neighbors a number of stories in an apparent attempt to cover-up the crime. She told neighbors that her boyfriend had gone away on a trip to pick fruit. She also claimed that Milliken had been vomiting blood and that the blood had soaked into her carpet and living room sofa. Stevenson used bleach in an attempt to remove the bloodstains from the carpet and used a sheet to hide the bloodstains on the couch. Stevenson also mopped Milliken's blood from the tile floor in an attempt to conceal the crime.
Eventually, Stevenson could no longer keep the body in her apartment, presumably due to the smell, so she disposed of the body in a trash bin behind their apartment. She subsequently relocated the body further from the Lakeland apartment placing it in bushes under branches and moss. The police were alerted to the crime when a neighbor from the apartment called them regarding suspicious items found in an area dumpster. A search turned up the body 6 days after the killing. The autopsy indicated that the throat wound was several inches deep and that Milliken "suffered numerous puncture wounds and abrasions about his head and face from numerous weapons, to include a socket driver and a large drill battery."
Stevenson made a statement and told police that the attack followed a heated argument. Stevenson said she used a large butcher knife to slice Milliken's throat and other weapons to stab him. She told Lakeland police that "she just snapped." A person who is accused of a homicide faces very serious consequences including the possibility of a life sentence or even the death penalty depending on the circumstance case according to Tampa criminal lawyer John Musca. "If arrested for a homicide, a person should consult an experienced Tampa criminal attorney immediately," said Musca.
Musca Law has over 100 years of combined legal experience with convenient offices located across the State of Florida. Our Tampa criminal defense attorneys will aggressively defend your rights on the State and Federal level. The prosecution is looking to punish you to the fullest extent of the law. You need a knowledgeable attorney to watch for you. Contact the Tampa criminal lawyers at Musca Law for a free, comprehensive review of your case.
