OHIO CASE Florida inmate confesses killing

COLUMBUS (AP) -- A Florida inmate pleaded guilty to a 30-year-old homicide Thursday after confessing to the crime in a letter to Ohio prosecutors.
Raymond Norman, who is serving a 99-year sentence in Florida, was never mentioned as a suspect in the 1976 murder of 17-year-old Sheryl Encarnanze in Columbus until his letter arrived at the Franklin County prosecutor's office last July. He wrote that he had found faith in prison and wanted to confess to the murder, Prosecutor Ron O'Brien said.
O'Brien said it's not uncommon for his office to get confessions from inmates, but not all can be used in court. He assigned an investigator look into Norman's claim and assess his mental state.
Norman told investigators he was driving a yellow Pontiac GTO that night, the same kind of car Encarnanze's friends last saw her in, O'Brien said. He offered the high school junior a ride home from a convenience store, then ran her over when she got out of the car, O'Brien said.
Investigators know Norman was in Columbus in 1976 because of a drug arrest he had that year, O'Brien said.