The Story Of The Man Who Murdered His Family For A Woman He'd Never Even Met

Publish date: 2024-05-05

Grant Amato was found guilty of all three counts of first-degree murder. Although he was facing the death penalty, The Cinemaholic reports he was ultimately sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. According to the Florida Department of Corrections, at this writing he is serving his sentence at the Okeechobee Correctional Institution.

In a telephone interview with a producer working on a documentary about the case (via WESH2), Amato maintained his innocence. He also suggested it was difficult to adjust to being in prison. Amato said, "You know, it's not so much the ... the verdict that came back, it's just ... coming to terms with ... the time that I'm going to have to wait." Amato also discussed his fellow inmates, saying, "You know, you are surrounded by a lot ... of people that are doing ... either a lifetime of crimes and they're terrible people, or they are people in my situation who are innocent and they're just trying to get through it as fast as they can."

As reported by Spectrum News 13, Amato's public defender, Jeff Dowdy, filed an appeal of his conviction, citing several procedural issues with the trial. Dowdy said there were concerns with the jury selection procedure, certain evidence that was allowed, and the inclusion of a theory about the murder weapon, which was never found.

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