As John Walston awaits his pretrial hearing this week, more details are emerging about his alleged first-degree murder of two children.
Walston was arrested on two counts of first-degree murder, one count of first-degree arson, one count of sexual assault of a child under 12 and one count of misdemeanor animal cruelty after two children were found dead before a massive mobile home fire he allegedly started in the Myrtle Grove cottage community.
Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons told the News Journal that the children, ages 7 and 9, were fatally stabbed inside a Flaxman Street mobile home on Nov. 7 before Walston allegedly started a fire that eventually destroyed the entire home.
Simmons also told the News Journal that there is no family relationship between the children and Walston, just friends in a small neighborhood.
According to a Walston police report, firefighters determined the fire started in the living room where one of the children’s bodies was found, and a fire marshal’s investigator “could not detect any accelerant” in the trailer.
When deputies interviewed Walston, he initially said he awoke to an unknown man opening his front door, who then “threw something through Walston’s window, which started a fire” as he chased the unknown man outside. Walston said the object was thrown into the bedroom window, contradicting findings that the fire started in the living room.
“I asked Walston how long after he heard the door open that he discovered the person in the trailer, to which he replied ‘8’ seconds. I asked Walston about how far the person got into the house and he said, ‘4 feet,'” the report said.
The problem with the person only being in Walston’s home for about eight seconds is that he told investigators he didn’t know how the two children were killed, even though one of the children was sleeping in his room, as he admitted, according to the report.
“Walston then attempted to say that he was a rough sleeper and must have been asleep during the incident,” the report said. “I then confronted him about how if he was such a heavy sleeper he woke up to the sound of the front door opening.
“He then changed his story to say he was awakened by the trailer swinging as the person entered,” the report added. “Then I asked him if he was woken up by the movement of the trailer from this alleged person driving into it, didn’t he wake up to the (redacted) girl being killed next to him?”
Walston told the investigator, “Because I don’t sleep well.” Investigators also said he showed “no emotional response” when shown the pictures of the dead children.
Although Florida law requires that a defendant’s confession be redacted prior to sentencing, Walston appears to have confessed to investigators.
A long paragraph at the end of the interview is excerpted from Walston’s arrest report, but the document ends with the investigator who filed the report writing, “Based on the facts and circumstances above, along with Walston’s guilty plea, there is probable cause.”
John Walston’s case is being reviewed for the death penalty
According to Supervising Assistant State’s Attorney Greg Marcille, Walston’s case will be reviewed by the State’s Attorney’s Office to determine whether the prosecution will seek the death penalty.
Walston’s two counts of murder, both felony counts, carry the death penalty and a minimum sentence of life in prison if convicted. His sexual assault charge, also a felony, also carries the death penalty after Florida’s legislature passed a law in 2023 that would allow defendants convicted of raping a child under 12 to face the death penalty.
Marcille said while the case is still early, a review committee will examine Walston’s case to see if it meets the aggravating standards for a potential death penalty case. Marcille said it is standard practice for the committee to review each case of premeditated murder.
Under Florida statute, prosecutors have 45 days after an indictment to file an intent to seek the death penalty. According to court documents, on Nov. 12 Walston did not have an arraignment date.
This article originally appeared in the Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola’s John Walston allegedly confesses to Escambia investigators