Mark Sievers takes appeal to Florida Supreme Court on Tuesday

Mark Sievers’ attorneys are set to argue in front of Florida’s highest court that he deserves a new trial on Tuesday.

Sievers was found guilty in 2019 of orchestrating the death of his wife Teresa Sievers, a well-known doctor in Southwest Florida. Sievers hired his longtime friend Curtis Wayne Wright and Jimmy Rodgers to kill Teresa after she flew in from a family vacation in 2015.

Sievers was sentenced to death in 2020 by Judge Bruce Kyle.

Wright pleaded guilty in exchange for a 25-year sentence and with the condition that he testify for the prosecution during Sievers’ and Rodgers’ trial. Rodgers was found guilty and sentenced to life for his involvement.

At question is Wright’s testimony.

Sievers’ attorneys are arguing his plea deal made it more likely for Wright to lie on the stand.

But the state, in their response, said there’s plenty of evidence like cell phone records to back up Wright’s testimony to prove Sievers’ involvement.

Sievers also wants the Florida Supreme Court to reconsider Kyle’s ruling that prevented jurors from hearing a portion of a letter from his daughter.

In the letter, his daughter asked if Sievers would die and she said she hoped not.

The Sievers defense believes had the jury heard that, they would have granted her wish.

In their response, the state said while Sievers has a good relationship with his daughter, he still had his wife killed.

Sievers also believes the judge was wrong to allow testimony from his neighbor who claimed they heard the couple arguing shortly before she was murdered.

The defense claims that is hearsay.

And the defense also claims the graphic autopsy photos were presented only to play on the emotions of jurors.

Teresa Sievers was found dead on June 29, 2015 in her Bonita Springs home. She flew home from a family trip ahead of Mark Sievers and her two children and was killed in her home by Wright and Rodgers, who investigators say bludgeoned her to death.