Laughing Florida sicko tells court he wants death penalty for torturing, dismembering teen girl he lured on social media
A Florida sicko laughed in court Wednesday as he pleaded guilty to luring a 16-year-old girl to his home then killing and dismembering her body — and is seeking the death penalty for himself.Steven Gress, 37, appeared smiling in a Pinellas County courtroom Wednesday morning and changed his plea to guilty on charges of kidnapping and first-degree murder in the February 2025 killing of Miranda Corsette, the Tampa Bay Times reported.Gress told the court he felt it was “the right thing to do,” but maintained he did not actually kill Corsette.“I did not kill Miranda, but I was involved in certain things that led to her death,” he said.Gress had previously appeared before the court in July, where he told Judge Philip Federico he wanted to enter a guilty plea and requested the death penalty, according to the outlet.However, Federico ordered a competency exam before he would accept the plea.Court psychologist Dr.Mark Crawford told the judge Wednesday that Gress was “very open, very respectful, very cooperative” during the evaluation and believed “he can freely and voluntarily enter a plea.”“His decision is not contaminated by any mental illness,” Crawford said.Federico then called Gress to approach the bench to make sure he was fully aware that a guilty plea will land him either life in prison without parole or a death sentence.“I want you to understand the significance of what we’re talking about as we go through this process,” Federico said.“Yes, sir,” Gress replied.He then offered a chilling explanation for his plea.“Life or death is a lose-lose,” Gress said, then chuckled.
“I would rather do the lesser time than spend the next 53 years of my life behind bars.”Gress lured Corsette to his home through the dating app Grindr on Valentine’s Day 2025, according to St.Petersburg police.Gress picked the 16-year-old up from her grandmother’s home in Gulfport and brought her to his apartment in St.
Petersburg — where his partner, Mi...