Brooksville Man Sentenced to Life for Second Degree Murder

On December 18, 2025, R W Resca Jr., born April 3, 1970, received a life sentence in the custody of the Florida Department of Corrections for second degree murder, and a consecutive 15 year sentence for possession of a firearm by a felon. Resca was adjudicated guilty on November 14, 2025, after an investigation by the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office into a death first reported on November 21, 2023.

The original call came just before 3:30 p.m. on November 21, 2023, when a caller reported a suspicious person and a strong foul odor near the back of a dead end road by a business on Cortez Boulevard on the east side of the county. Hernando County Fire Rescue personnel confirmed the individual was deceased and in the early stages of decomposition, and investigators determined the decedent had been the victim of homicidal violence. Major Case detectives, Forensic Science technicians, and the medical examiner responded to the scene. The decedent’s identity is being withheld under Marsy’s Law.

Investigators quickly identified and located a person of interest. Within 10 hours of the initial call for service, Resca provided detectives with a confession and described disposal of the body, leading to his arrest on a second degree homicide charge. He was transported to the Hernando County Detention Center and held without bond. The sheriff’s office concluded the incident was isolated and domestic in nature, and that there was no ongoing threat to the community.

The sentences imposed this month close a two year criminal investigation and underscore several policy issues for Hernando County residents and officials. The case illustrates the enforcement consequences of firearm possession laws for convicted felons and raises questions about local capacity for preventing and responding to domestic violence incidents. The sheriff’s office and fire rescue response demonstrated interagency coordination, while Marsy’s Law protections limited public disclosure of the victim’s identity, balancing transparency with victim privacy.

For more information contact Jessica Burns, Community Relations Coordinator, at (352) 797 3660.