A Jacksonville woman who told police she was groomed from childhood by a man she later admitted killing is set to learn her punishment Friday. The victim, identified in public records as 41-year-old Waduta Woodley, was found dead in the breezeway of a Westside apartment building in July 2025 with a handwritten note on his chest. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for Friday, March 27, 2026.
Scene and evidence
Responding officers discovered Woodley behind a stairwell with multiple blunt-force injuries and a note that read “PEDO Touches Children,” according to Action News Jax. Investigators recovered a blood-stained metal hammer from inside the apartment and collected clothing, shoes and a green highlighter that matched the writing on the paper. Those details appear in the arrest report and were described in local coverage of the crime scene.
Her account and the arrest affidavit
In a post-Miranda interview described in the arrest affidavit, the defendant told investigators Woodley had been “sexually grooming” her since she was eight years old and said she struck him after he grabbed her, according to Law & Crime. Court TV’s review of the same report noted detectives documented bloody footprints leading from the doorway to the bathroom, along with a pink notebook and loose paper, and that an autopsy concluded Woodley died from multiple “chop” injuries. Those investigative findings underpin the charge the state filed last year.
Plea and court timeline
The case has inched through the courts since the July 2025 arrest. Earlier coverage reported the defendant initially pleaded not guilty in August 2025, according to Action News Jax. More recent reporting says she has since entered a guilty plea and is now awaiting sentencing. News4JAX reports the hearing is set for Friday. Any final plea agreement or recommended sentence will be reflected in local filings and the public docket once the judge signs off.
Legal implications
Under Florida law, second-degree murder is classified as a first-degree felony and can carry a sentence of a term of years up to and including life in prison under the state’s Criminal Punishment Code. Florida Statutes section 782.04, which addresses homicide and defines second-degree murder, is outlined by the Florida Legislature.
What’s next
The Duval County judge will determine punishment and set the formal terms of the plea in Friday’s hearing, according to News4JAX. Local reporting has also noted that investigators and news outlets have not been able to locate prior public records of child-sex charges involving Woodley, a missing-paper trail that has complicated how the public views the alleged motive as the case reaches its sentencing phase.
