Three husbands. A boyfriend. Her own son. Judy Buenoano buried them one by one, and every time, the story was almost believable — an infection picked up in Vietnam, a canoeing accident, alcoholism. It wasn’t until investigators traced a car bombing back to her that the pattern finally cracked open: arsenic, insurance money, and a body count that took over a decade to fully add up. Judy — later dubbed “Florida’s Black Widow” — was convicted of first-degree murder for the death of husband James Goodyear, with her son Michael’s death, boyfriend Bobby Joe Morris’s death, and the attempted murder of fiancé John Gentry all painting the same picture: poison, patience, and a payout. In 1998, she became the first woman executed in Florida in 150 years — going to the electric chair still claiming her innocence. This episode walks through how each case built on the last, and the aggravating factors that ultimately sent her to death row.
| Date | Proceeding | Description | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct Appeal — Initial Brief, Buenoano v. State, No. 68091 | Buenoano's initial brief appealing her conviction and death sentence for the 1971 arsenic murder of husband James Goodyear | https://library.law.fsu.edu/Digital-Collections/flsupct/dockets/68091/68091ini.pdf | |
| Direct Appeal — Answer Brief, Buenoano v. State, No. 68091 | The State's answer brief opposing Buenoano's direct appeal | https://library.law.fsu.edu/Digital-Collections/flsupct/dockets/68091/68091ans.pdf | |
| Postconviction/Habeas Appeal — Initial Brief, Buenoano v. Dugger, Nos. 75213/75346 | Initial brief for Buenoano's first round of postconviction relief and habeas petition, filed after her death warrant was signed for a January 1990 execution date | https://library.law.fsu.edu/Digital-Collections/flsupct/dockets/75213/75213ini.pdf | |
| Second Postconviction Appeal — Answer Brief, Buenoano v. State, No. 92522 | State's answer brief opposing Buenoano's third round of postconviction motions and stay request, days before her scheduled execution | https://library.law.fsu.edu/Digital-Collections/flsupct/dockets/92522/92522ans.pdf | |
| Second Postconviction Appeal — Florida Supreme Court Opinion, Buenoano v. State, No. 92522 | Opinion affirming denial of postconviction relief and denying a stay of execution | https://law.justia.com/cases/florida/supreme-court/1998/92522-0.html |