[8][9] Ford was thus detained in police custody and on April 18, 1997, he was charged with two counts of first-degree murder,[10] an offense which carries the death penalty under Florida state law.
[12] Born on July 23, 1960, James Dennis Ford grew up with a troubled childhood, and according to media and court sources, his father was an alcoholic while his mother abandoned the family when he was 14.
Still, in his early life, Ford had no significant criminal records and he was noted to be a non-violent man per the testimony of his family and friends.
The defence, however, sought to dispute the credibility of DNA evidence used against Ford and claimed that the samples were contaminated and the accuracy of the results should be put in question.
[18] On March 8, 1999, the jury found Ford guilty of sexual battery with a firearm, child abuse, and two counts of first-degree murder.
[26][27][3] On April 12, 2007, the Florida Supreme Court once again rejected Ford's second appeal, in which he alleged that he was represented by ineffective legal counsel and asked to have his two death sentences and double murder conviction overturned.
That same month, Charlotte County judge rejected Ford's appeal, after he dismissed the appellant's argument that he had the mental and developmental age of a 14-year-old.
[44] Deidre Parkinson, Kimberly Malnory's stepmother, stated that she was relieved and felt that justice was served even though she found Ford's manner of death too peaceful.
[45] When the murders of Kimberly and Greg Malnory happened, family members, friends and colleagues of the couple were shocked and saddened at the incident.
[46] Soon after the double murder happened in April 1997, a community trust fund was set up for the couple's surviving daughter Maranda.
[47] In May 1997, a local restaurant in Punta Gorda, Florida, held a special dinner event to raise funds for the Malnorys' daughter.
[48] A vigil was held to commemorate the victims of violent crimes that took place during that year in May 1997, including the double murder at the South Florida Sod Farm.
[53] During the next few years, the graves of the Malnorys and Kimberly's younger sister Jennifer Kay Griffin (who died in a car accident in 1999) were repeatedly a target for vandalism and theft.
[54] The perpetrator, Dean Kenneth Healy, was identified and arrested for charges of vandalizing the graves and cemetery,[55] and sentenced to eight months' imprisonment in October 2004.
Ankney also stated in a 2019 news report that her involvement in the group helped her to cope with her sadness of losing her son and daughter-in-law.
[57] As for Maranda Malnory, who was a toddler when her parents were murdered, she expressed in an interview ahead of Ford's execution that she had little recollection of the crime, and she only learned of the full facts at age 13.