35 Years in Prison For Birmingham Man on Second Conviction Following Deadly Home Invasion

Birmingham, Alabama

In a shocking turn of events, a Birmingham man has been handed a 35-year sentence following his second conviction in an alarmingly brutal home invasion that resulted in the shooting death of another man over four years ago.

Details of the Conviction

Frank Steele, a 24-year-old Birmingham local, was previously given a life in prison without parole sentence for the 2019 killing of 21-year-old, Benjamin Gonzalez. However, Jefferson County Circuit Judge, Stephen Wallace granted a retrial after declaring juror misconduct on the back of evidence presented by Steele’s defense team. The misconduct pertains to jurors using Google to try to gauge the distance between locations that had come up during the trial, an act prohibited in the courtroom.

Following the retrial, Steele was again convicted, but with a reduced charge of felony murder. The Judge in his sentencing order also recommended mental health and substance abuse treatment for the convict. Steele was taken into custody within days of the shooting back in October 2019. Prosecutors did not object to the defense claim and the subsequent retrial.

The Incident

The unfortunate incident occurred in the evening of Sunday, Oct. 19, 2019. Jefferson County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the 1800 block of Martinique Drive N.E after neighbors reported shots fired. When the law enforcement officers arrived at the scene, they found Gonzalez dead, thus sparking the subsequent investigation leading to the capture and trial of Frank Steele.

The Legal Teams

The case was argued by Deputy District Attorneys Warren Brooks and Nick Taggart representing the state, while Frank Steele’s defense team consisted of Adam Danneman, Paul McDaniel, and Madeline Hillsmith.

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Procedure

The 35-year sentence is handed down according to Alabama state law and takes into account the defendant’s prior criminal history, the severity of the crime, and other pertinent factors in criminal sentencing.

More Information

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