Elmo Florence: I didn't mean to KILL TK Harty (update?)

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http://onlineathens.com/stories/0902...70902061.shtml

A convicted hit man serving a life prison sentence for murdering Athens businessman Theodore "T.K." Harty in 1977 says he was never paid to kill, and he only meant to intimidate Harty when the gun accidentally went off.

"I do not remember pulling the trigger but the gun fired," Elmo Liston Florence wrote in a letter to the Athens Banner-Herald.

Florence, now 76, says he takes full responsibility for Harty's murder and insists he is a changed man.

"I caused his death. I killed him. Live with that for 30 years," Florence wrote. "How does one atone for something like that? No, I'm not the same person."

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Florence's letter, dated Aug. 20, was received by the Banner-Herald on Thursday.

Aug. 30 marked the 30th anniversary of the infamous murder-for-hire killing, when a business rival targeted Harty, owner of one of Athens' hottest clubbing spots at the time, The Station on Hoyt Street.

In reporting a story to mark the date, the newspaper sought an interview with Florence, but state Department of Corrections officials denied the request.

Prosecutors alleged during Florence's trial that after Harty gained control of The Station, he served an eviction notice on rival John Henry Mooney, whose pizzeria was undercutting neighboring T.K. Harty's Saloon by selling nickel beers.

Florence, an electrician who did work for Mooney's Somebody's Pizza, was paid by Mooney to eliminate Harty, prosecutors contended.

But Florence says in his letter that he broke into Harty's house on Cleveland Road only to scare Harty into signing a lease that would allow Mooney to stay in business.

"Stupid to the bone, I agreed to get T.K. to sign two blank lease papers," Florence wrote.

Already a convicted felon who served seven years in prison for armed robbery, Florence said he lay in wait for his victim and hid next to a washing machine when he heard Harty's car pull in the driveway.

"Without even thinking about it I cocked the gun," Florence said. "(Harty) went still as a rock and didn't take his eyes from my face. He didn't even look at the gun. ... I told him that there were some papers on his desk I wanted him to sign."

Florence said Harty sat at the desk, did as he was told, and as Florence stepped forward to pick up the signed leases Harty made a sudden movement with his hand.

"An electric shock went through my body as I jumped back," the convicted murderer wrote. "I looked at the gun and then at T.K. He lay his head on the desk and blood started dripping onto the rug from his hand. I honestly and truly thought he was shot in the arm."

Florence claims he ran from the house, thinking that Harty would use the telephone on the desk to call for help and that he didn't learn Harty had died until he read it in the newspaper four days later.

Police focused their investigation on Mooney, as his rivalry with Harty was well-known. But the 29-year-old restaurant owner had flown to Cleveland for his father's funeral and never returned to Athens. Mooney later was arrested at a friend's apartment in Smyrna, in possession of incriminating notes to himself, including one to "take care of Elmo's family" if Florence took "the whole rap and said that robbery was the motive."

Mooney also was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, although he enjoyed 10 years of freedom after escaping from prison and living with a wife and son under an assumed name in Arizona.

Before police arrested Mooney, Florence was installing ovens at another local eatery, the Prime Time Restaurant, and he spilled his guts to the restaurant's manager, bragging that he was a hit man who had killed Harty, according to prosecutors.

"He was making himself out to be this big dude," said former district attorney Harry Gordon, who prosecuted both Florence and Mooney.

"I'm telling you, baby, I'm a hit man hired by John Mooney," Florence said, according to court testimony of the man who ran Prime Time. "Mooney was going to be thrown out. ... T.K. was an (SOB) 'til the minute I killed him. He deserved to die."

Florence related details only the killer would know, like how someone broke in through a window, shot Harty with a .38-caliber revolver and swept broken glass from a Persian rug, which Florence "sure hated to mess up."

Florence now counted himself as a contract killer and thought he could drum up more business, according to Gordon.

Florence was "three-quarters" drunk when bragging, Gordon said, but the details he told Reinhold gave police enough probable cause to arrest him.

Florence does not say in his letter if money exchanged hands before he went to Harty's house.

But in an undated letter to the state Board of Pardons and Parole, Florence accused Gordon of not knowing all the facts and overly dramatizing the crime.

"Mr. Harry Gordon, naturally, put the worse spin on the case as he possibly could, conspiracy to murder," Florence told the parole board. "It was his advantage to showcase as sensational a crime as he could. I have no problem with that, all DA's need to get reelected. But, absolutely no one questioned me concerning this crime after the night I was arrested."

In the same letter, Florence said, "I was solely responsible for the death of Mr. T.K. Harty. John Mooney was not involved in a conspiracy to murder. I deeply regret the death of Mr. Harty, but at no time was I involved in planing (sic) to murder him."

Gordon said he'd heard that Florence claimed after he was convicted that he only intended to intimidate Harty into signing leases, but that claim wasn't made during the trial.

After he heard the contents of Florence's letter to the Banner-Herald, Gordon couldn't say whether Florence was trying to make amends for killing Harty or was posturing for an upcoming parole hearing this month.

"Who's to say?" Gordon said. "I don't much believe anything Elmo Florence says, but there are only two people who actually know what happened the night of the murder, and one of them is dead, so naturally, Elmo could tell it any way he wants to."

Florence has sought parole nine times and is set to go before the parole board again this month. Gordon said he will write the parole board advocating a 10th denial.

"What right does he have that Mr. Harty didn't have a right to - to live a full life, to prosper and to have a family?" Gordon said. "I just think there are people who don't have any morals, and I don't think Elmo Florence has any kind of real feelings about things."

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oh ****, after doing some research it looks like ELMO got paroled in 2007!

http://onlineathens.com/stories/1229...71229035.shtml


what a great justice system lmao

[bigsir58]

bump!!

[TheCars1986]

Bragging about being a hit man does not sound like an accidental homicide to me.

[MegtheEgg86]

Elmo Florence actually held up a bank years before he killed T.K. Harty. I'm convinced the only reason he's thus far stayed out of trouble is probably his age. Regardless, he never, ever should've been paroled. It really griped Harry Gordon, and I can certainly see why.

[Blackout]

well hopefully he's too old to murder now