Bio 

Robert L. Henry was born on May 1, 1958, in the United States. Before the murders, Henry had served in the United States Marine Corps. By 1987, he was working as a maintenance man at a fabric store in Deerfield Beach, Florida. His co-workers included Phyllis Harris and Janet Thermidor.

On the night of the crime, the store had closed when Henry attacked both women during a robbery. Authorities said the robbery involved more than $1,200 in store money.

The case against Henry became especially strong because Janet Thermidor survived for several hours after the attack. Despite severe burns and a head wound, she identified Henry as the attacker before she died. Henry first claimed that unknown men had forced him to participate, but he later confessed that he acted alone.

Murder Story

On the night of November 1, 1987, police officers and firefighters responded to a fire at a fabric store in Deerfield Beach, Florida. Inside the store, they found two employees, Phyllis Harris and Janet Thermidor. Harris was found tied up in the men’s restroom and was already dead. Thermidor was found on the floor of the women’s restroom. She was still conscious, even though she had been hit in the head and burned over more than 90 percent of her body.

Before she died, Thermidor told a police officer that Robert Henry, the store’s maintenance man, had attacked her. She said Henry entered the office, hit her on the head with a hammer, and stole the store’s money. She said he left briefly, then returned, threw liquid on her, and set her on fire. Thermidor ran to the restroom to try to put out the flames.

Henry had also attacked Phyllis Harris. Trial evidence showed that he led Harris to a restroom, tied and blindfolded her, later struck her with a hammer, and set her on fire as well. Thermidor died the next morning, November 2, 1987. Based on her statement, police began looking for Henry. He was arrested shortly before 7:00 a.m. on November 3, 1987.

After his arrest, Henry first claimed that three unknown men had robbed the store and abducted him. He later gave self-incriminating statements and confessed that he acted alone. On November 18, 1987, Henry was indicted on two counts of first-degree murder, robbery with a deadly weapon, and arson with a deadly weapon.

On September 29, 1988, a jury found Henry guilty on all counts. On October 6, 1988, the jury recommended death by a vote of 8 to 4 for the murder of Phyllis Harris and 9 to 3 for the murder of Janet Thermidor. On November 9, 1988, the court sentenced Henry to death for both murders. He also received life sentences for armed robbery and arson.

The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the convictions and death sentences in 1991. The United States Supreme Court later sent the case back for reconsideration in light of death-penalty sentencing issues, but the Florida Supreme Court again affirmed the convictions and death sentences in 1992.

Henry continued filing appeals for many years, including postconviction motions, DNA-related motions, habeas petitions, and challenges to Florida’s lethal injection method. His final appeals were denied before his execution.

On March 20, 2014, Robert L. Henry was executed by lethal injection at Florida State Prison. He read a statement apologizing for his crimes and criticizing the death penalty. He was pronounced dead at 6:16 p.m.