Ex-girlfriend says man accused of stabbing woman to death was once jailed for stabbing her, too
TAMPA, Fla. - Deputies found Matthew Terry hiding in the bushes back in May. Investigators said Terry and his girlfriend, Kay Baker argued before she was found stabbed to death.
According to acting Hillsborough County State Attorney Suzy Lopez, Baker was "nearly decapitated."
The alleged crime is a gruesome one, but public interest in the case was heightened after Governor Ron DeSantis suspended then-state attorney Andrew Warren, and the new state attorney made it her first priority to seek the death penalty in Terry's case.
Accused murderer Michael Terry could be sentenced to death is he's found guilty of murdering his girlfriend following a fight.
Putting the political back-and-forth aside, Terry's public defender, Jamie Kane, told a Tampa courtroom that her client is ready to go to trial.
The case against Terry
Prosecutors say Terry, 47, and his girlfriend, Kay Baker, were at the Landing Bar and Grill in Lithia on the night of Friday, May 27. Investigators later learned the two had been in an argument.
Shortly after midnight Saturday, Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies were called to a home on Kiteridge Drive where they found Baker's body.
Investigators said they soon found Terry hiding in an area of overgrown bushes off of Lithia Pinecrest Road.
Playing politics or tough on crime?
At the time Terry was charged, the state attorney's office said it would not seek the death penalty.
But one day after State Attorney Andrew Warren was suspended for alleged "neglect of duty," and the new state attorney, Suzy Lopez, was appointed, the outlook for Terry's case changed.
PREVIOUS: Pertinent punishment or political move? Suzy Lopez's motive in death penalty case questioned
Warren has filed a federal lawsuit against the governor to be re-instated. As Warren's case plays out in the federal courts, Lopez has made her "tough on crime" stance known.
After Lopez filed the death notice in Terry's case, the defense accused her of playing politics with the justice system.
"[A] democratic state attorney makes one decision and, 24 hours later, a Republican state attorney makes a different decision, and we’re going to say that it’s not political?" attorney Jamie Kane questioned. "How is that possible?"
Acting Hillsborough County State Attorney Suzy Lopez takes the stand ahead to defend her decision to seek the death penalty in the case of accused murderer Michael Terry.
Last week, Lopez was called to the stand for questioning about the reversal. She denied that her decision was politically motivated, calling Terry's alleged actions cruel.
"Ms. Baker was nearly decapitated with a knife that Mr. Terry plunged into her throat," explained Lopez.
Tampa judge Michael Williams sided with Lopez and kept the death penalty in play.
Terry jailed for past violence
Accused murder Michael Terry inside a Hillsborough County courtroom.
During the pretrial hearing, prosecutors presented testimony from Terry's ex-girlfriend. They want the judge to allow the jury to hear her testimony, too.
Michelle Rogers said she and Terry lived in Michigan at the time of their relationship. Rogers recalled an incident where Terry stabbed, punched and beat her.
Rogers sobbed as she relieved the ordeal for prosecutor Justin Diaz.
"I’m going to die here," she recalled thinking at the time.
"The judge eventually sends Mr. Terry to prison for this case?" Diaz asked.
"Yes," replied Rogers.
Terry was sentenced to prison in 2017 and served three years. Two years later, his new girlfriend, Kay, was dead.
A jury will decide if Terry was behind the knife and – if so – whether he should die for the crime.
The judge is expected to rule next week if a jury will get to hear from Rogers.
His trial starts Monday.