- April 25, 2024
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A second person responsible for killing a retired school teacher in Palatka was found guilty as charged, by a Flagler County jury, of first degree murder, capital felony; robbery; and burglary with battery. Circuit Judge Terry LaRue sentenced Gytonia Jean Cheek to life in prison
After a three-day trial and approximately five hours of deliberation, Cheek, 31, was found guilty by a jury of six women and six men in Flagler County. State Attorney R.J. Larizza stated, “Nothing will lessen the tragedy of that night but justice for Myrtle McKinney was served today.”
Fifty-eight-year-old Myrtle McKinney was found bound, gagged, blindfolded, and beaten to death in her Palatka apartment. Large amounts of her blood stained the living room floor, and her apartment was ransacked. On Christmas Day in 2007, the nephew of Myrtle McKinney went to check on his aunt but what he found was a gruesome and violent end to his aunt’s life.
One former inmate testified at trial that Cheek told her that she and co-defendant Quritus Lowe II “tortured” McKinney and that she beat McKinney with a bottle “until she had a hole in her head.”
Lowe was convicted and sentenced last month to two life sentences plus an additional 30 years for robbery with no parole. Co-defendant Barbara Mundy testified at both Lowe’s and Cheek’s trial that Lowe beat McKinney with a stick and Cheek used a glass bottle.
In December, a jury found Lowe guilty of first-degree murder and other charges. Last month, Cheek’s first trial ended with a mistrial because jurors could not reach a unanimous vote and Cheek was retried the beginning of this week.
Co-defendants Melissa Watson and Barbara Mundy were also charged in connection with McKinney’s death and their separate trials will soon follow.
The Putnam County murder case was moved to Flagler County as part of a change in venue motion because of the extensive news coverage in Putnam County.
