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Criminal history of James” Chick Head” Robertson

James” Chicken Head” Robertson went to prison in 1980. According to the Florida Department of Corrections website, he was 17 on May 11th when he committed the burglary of an unoccupied structure or conveyance or attempted burglary, and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill.

Three months later, while in jail, he was hit with an escape charge. In November 1980, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

In June 1985, he was caught transmitting contraband, and a year later, he was convicted and got 15 years added to his sentence, moving his potential release date back to 2000.

He didn’t learn his lesson, and by the time the 1980’s came to a close, he had had another 35 years added to his sentence. He received an additional 5 years for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, 5 years for introducing a weapon, 8 years for escape, 5 years for battery of a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or EMS, and 12 years for the construction or possession of contraband.

He didn’t improve his behavior, and in 95 he received an additional 8 years and 4 months for attempted first-degree murder plus an additional 8 years and 4 months for the construction and possession of contraband.

For the next 10 years, he seemed to have gotten his act together, as he was not convicted of any additional crimes between 1998 and 2007

Murder of Frank Hart

According to GulfCoastNewsNow, Robertson was housed at Charlotte Correctional Institution in Punta Gorda, Florida, in 2008. He was sharing a cell with 52-year old Frank Hart. Hart was serving 11 years in prison at the time. He was serving 9 years for committing sexual battery when a victim is physically helpless to resist, and two years for being a sexual predator who failed to register. He was sentenced in 2003, and according to YourSun, he had one more week left to serve before he would have been released.

But Robertson made sure he would never see freedom again. On December 10th, 2008, he strangled Hart to death.

After the murder, authorities questioned Robertson. He told them that he wasn’t provoked and there was no fight. He admitted he killed his cellmate because he was sick of his prison conditions and wanted to get the death penalty so he could live on death row, where he could be more comfortable

Legal Proceedings

Years later, Robertson pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. Instead of letting the jury decide his punishment, he left it up to a judge. The judge gave him what he wanted and sent him to death row.

Netflix Episode

In 2018, Robertson appeared on season 1 episode 1 of the Netflix show I Am a Killer. In his episode, “Means to an End”, he went into more detail about his motives, saying he was on “maximum- security status, where you are locked in a cell all the time.” He complained of having everything taken away from him, “like the TV.”

Execution

After committing the murder and being sent to death row, he got his own cell, a TV, a radio, a tablet, and a fan. But after 14 years of prison comfort, it was time for him to die.

After Governor Ron DeSantis signed his death warrant, the now 63 -year-old, had his execution scheduled for October 13th, 2026.

When his death date arrived, he woke up at 5:45 a.m. At some point, he had a last meal of steak, potatoes, fried eggs, toast, and milk. As his life came closer to its end, he visited with his cousin and a pen pal. While many death row inmates meet with a spiritual advisor in their last hours, Robertson did not, GulfCoastNewsNow reported.

The execution started after noon with Robertson being taken from his cell to the execution chamber, where he was strapped to the gurney and had IVs placed in his arm. According to YourSun, the curtain to the death chamber opened at 12:20 p.m. As family members of the victim and the media watched, Robertson smiled at them. When asked if he had any last words, he replied, “Nah, I’m straight,” GulfCoastNewsNow reported.

The execution started at 12:21 p.m. Florida administered it’s three-drug protocol, and Robertson was pronounced dead at 12:31 p.m. He was the 17th person executed in the state of Florida this year.

According to APNews, an 18th execution of 74-year-old William Lee Thompson had initially been scheduled the same day as Robertson, but the Governor pulled the Death warrant on October 8th. DeSantis did not provide a reason for withdrawing the death warrant, but Thompson’s lawyers have argued that he has dementia