Prosecutors seek death penalty in Seminole County sexual battery case

Prosecutors have asked for the death penalty in a Seminole County sexual battery case against Daniel Rodriguez, a 35-year-old Sanford man. The filing pushes the case into the most serious tier of Florida criminal prosecution and makes it the first test in the 18th Judicial Circuit of the state’s 2023 capital sexual battery law.

That statute, passed as House Bill 1297 and now in section 921.1425, applies when an adult commits sexual battery on, or in an attempt to commit sexual battery injures the sexual organs of, a victim younger than 12. It allows jurors to consider either death or life imprisonment, requires a separate penalty phase, and provides for automatic review if a death sentence is imposed. Public reporting at the time the law was enacted said it took effect on Oct. 1, 2023, and that a jury can recommend death by an 8-4 vote.

The decision to seek death came after what prosecutors described as an intense review. The case also involves multiple child sex-crime allegations, placing it within a broader child-exploitation enforcement effort in Seminole County rather than a routine sexual-battery filing. Because the 18th Judicial Circuit covers Seminole and Brevard counties, the case is likely to draw close attention from victim advocates, defense lawyers, court observers and families following major criminal proceedings in the area.

The next steps will unfold in court. Scheduling, pretrial motions and challenges over evidence are expected before any trial date is set, and those hearings will shape whether the case advances toward a capital trial at all. If prosecutors secure a conviction and seek death in a penalty phase, jurors would then decide whether the case warrants the ultimate punishment or a life sentence.

For victims, the filing signals that state attorneys believe the allegations are severe enough to justify the harshest available response. For the defense, it means a more complicated and higher-stakes case with additional layers of litigation, appellate review and public scrutiny. For the local court system, it adds a rare capital proceeding to a circuit that handles criminal cases across Seminole and Brevard counties.

The 18th Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office says its mission is to pursue vigorous and fair prosecutions while advocating for victims and public safety. In this case, that mission now intersects with one of Florida’s newest and most consequential capital statutes.