Vickie Lynn Williams (left) allegedly murdered Sharon and Darryl Getman at the couple’s Florida home. [Mugshot of Williams via Lake County Jail; image of the Getmans via Mount Dora Police Department]
Authorities in Florida will pursue the death penalty against a 50-year-old woman accused of butchering an elderly couple inside of their retirement community home before robbing them and stealing their car on New Year’s Eve, according to court documents obtained by Law&Crime.
Prosecutors with Florida’s Fifth Judicial District State Attorney’s Office last week formally filed a Notice of Intent to Seek Death Penalty against Vickie Lynn Williams, who is charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the gruesome slayings of Sharon Getman, 80, and her 83-year-old husband, Darryl Getman.
According to the filing, the state is relying on five aggravating factors which prosecutors say they can prove “beyond a reasonable doubt” to establish that the double murder was a capital offense.
Among the aggravated factors listed in the filing was Williams’ previous conviction for “another capital felony or of a felony involving the use or threat of violence.” Prosecutors also wrote that the slayings were “especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel.” Furthermore, the victims were “particularly vulnerable” due to their ages, prosecutors said.
The remaining two aggravating factors stems from the accusation that Williams killed the Getmans while engaged in the commission of a robbery for “pecuniary gain,” the document said.
Grisly details were revealed in a probable cause affidavit after Williams’ arrest.
Officers with the Mount Dora Police Department responded to two separate 911 calls reporting that two people had been killed at the Lakeside at Waterman Village Retirement Community in the 300 block of Lake Margaret Circle on Jan. 1, 2023.
Upon arriving at the scene, investigators said Sharon Getman—found in the entryway of the home with “a large amount of blood surrounding her”—had sustained severe head trauma. There were white towels around her body that investigators said appeared “as if someone attempted to render aid or clean up” after she suffered her fatal injuries, authorities said. Police also said there was “a large amount of blood from her abdomen which ran out and pooled behind her in the entryway.”
Darryl Getman also suffered “severe head and facial trauma” and was found on the ground with “a large butcher-style knife with a yellow handle” still “stuck up to the hilt in his abdomen,” police wrote. A second detective noted that there was a “large butcher knife in view” that had been “plunged into the stomach” of Darryl, with only about an inch of the blade remaining visible.
Police allegedly found bloody footprints throughout the home leading to the garage, but the Getmans’ car was missing.
Using GPS tracking on Sharon Getman’s phone, authorities said they were able to track the car to Georgia train station parking lot where Williams was arrested. She has pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and grand theft auto.
A plea negotiation in the case is currently scheduled to be held on March 7.
Read the notice of intent to seek the death penalty here.
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