PHIL SEARS/Special to the Daily Business Review

The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday ordered a new sentence for a man involved in one of South Florida's most notorious crimes — the deadly kidnapping of a young couple from South Beach.

The court upheld the conviction of Joel Lebron but tossed his death sentence. The 39-year-old man is getting a new hearing because a jury recommended the death penalty by a 9-3 vote. The U.S. Supreme Court later ordered unanimous jury verdicts for capital punishment.

Authorities say Nelson Portobanco, 17, and Ana Maria Angel, 18, were walking back to their car after a date on their five-month anniversary in 2002 when they were forced into a pickup by Lebron and four other men.

Authorities say Lebron stabbed Portobanco and left him for dead, but the teen survived. Angel was repeatedly raped and taken to a retaining wall beside Interstate 95 where Lebron killed her with a single gunshot.