Tommy Zeigler: New testimony clouds 50-year murder case against Florida death-row inmate

ORLANDO, Fla. - A state-hired blood spatter expert offered testimony Wednesday that further complicated the 50-year-old murder case of William "Tommy" Zeigler, the 80-year-old death row inmate accused of killing his wife, her parents and another man on Christmas Eve in 1975. 

The expert’s findings, presented in an Orange County courtroom, appeared to conflict with key elements of the state’s long-held theory while she maintained confidence in her analysis as the defense pressed her on the stand. 

What we know:

Zeigler, now 80, appeared in court wearing the same Orange County Corrections uniform he has worn for decades—now hanging loosely on his frail frame. The long-running case returned to the spotlight as both sides clashed over new testimony and the interpretation of forensic evidence.

Zeigler has spent nearly 50 years on Florida’s death row, convicted of killing his wife, Eunice; her parents, Virginia and Perry Edwards; and another man, Charles Mays, on Christmas Eve at the family’s Winter Garden furniture store. 

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Prosecutors have long argued that Zeigler shot his family members and bludgeoned Mays with a metal crank, pointing to evidence they say links him directly to the crime. 

They also cite testimony from three people who reported he asked about purchasing "untraceable" guns, along with two life-insurance policies he took out on his wife shortly before her death.

What we don't know:

Despite decades of litigation, fundamental questions remain unresolved—particularly the source and meaning of blood evidence found on Zeigler’s clothing. While both sides insist the stains support their narrative, the competing interpretations have produced no definitive, court-accepted explanation. 

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Uncertainty also persists over the sequence of events inside the store that night, including who fired which shots, and whether Mays played any role beyond that of a victim.

The backstory:

The case has cycled through multiple trials, appeals, and evidentiary hearings, with Zeigler repeatedly convicted and re-sentenced to death. 

Over the years, defense teams have sought to dismantle the state’s original theory, claiming investigators misread the crime scene and failed to consider alternate possibilities. 

Zeigler himself was shot during the incident, a fact that has long complicated both the prosecution’s narrative and the defense’s insistence that he was ambushed.