On Feb. 1, 1997, Felix Parker was shot and killed near the intersection of Berwick and Park streets in Pensacola during a dispute over a drug deal. Sanders was arrested, tried and convicted of the murder, and sentenced to life in prison. On appeal she for the first time argued that the State had not proven all the elements of the offense. The First District Court rejected this claim but certified that its decision was in conflict with decisions of other district courts.