After an emotional teenager was sentenced to life in prison plus an additional 45 years for the killing of 15-year-old Kayla Rincon-Miller, the Lee County judge denied his request for a hug and had him taken into custody.

Attempted Robbery Turned Deadly

Thomas Stein, 18, was convicted on May 4, 2026, of felony murder with a firearm and attempted murder in the death of Kayla Rincon-Miller, a teenager who was walking to a Cape Coral McDonald’s with her friends when she was ambushed by boys with guns and fatally shot.

On the evening of March 17, 2024, Rincon-Miller and her two friends had just left the movie theatre and decided to walk down the road to McDonald’s for a quick bite to eat. While they were on their walk, a minivan passed them, then made a U-turn and shone its high beams at them. 

Prosecutors said at trial that the two passengers of the vehicle, Thomas Stein and co-defendant Christopher Horne, got out of the vehicle and pointed guns at the three girls, attempting to rob them, when one gun fired, shooting Rincon-Miller. 

Sentencing Hearing

Stein admitted to being present at the time of the shooting, but that he was not the one who pulled the trigger. He claimed he had no intention of harming anyone, and it was the others in the car who did it. At his sentencing hearing, he maintained his innocence and said his only intention was to steal from cars that night.

“I didn’t know that robbery was going to occur, but it was my reaction in fleeing that ultimately played a major role in assisting the perpetrators,” Stein said at his hearing on July 10, 2026. 

“I know that it wasn’t my intention, but the truth is it doesn’t change the result. It doesn’t change the fact that there was a life taken and innocent people were forever traumatized because of that. That day I made a terrible decision. The decision to get behind the wheel was a total act of selfishness and something I regret, and I’m ashamed of every day.”

Surviving Victims Speak Out

One of the surviving victims, and friend of Rincon-Miller, testified at Stein’s trial, and said the attempted robbery changed her life in many ways. “I have been bullied and discouraged,” Emma Wright said. “People tried to blame me and my friend Dejaie for this act of violence.”

The third victim, Louanna Dejaie, also took the opportunity to speak at Friday’s hearing. “I feel like I’m trapped in a coma that I can’t wake up from. Like I’m suffocating, but somehow still expected to keep on living. Losing Kayla changed every part of my life,” she said.

Arguing Thomas Stein’s Sentence

Prosecutors requested that Stein be issued the maximum penalty of life in prison, telling Judge Nick Thompson that the teenager has a felony record for burglary. “Thomas Stein is the bad influence,” prosecutors said. 

“He was the driver. He had armed the parties. He was making the rap videos about doing crimes. He was doing all of those things. He’s the one who identified the targets — the girls in this case who were walking down a dark road alone.”

Stein’s defense countered the prosecution’s request with a 25-year sentence, matching that of his co-defendant, Christopher Horne, who accepted a plea deal in exchange for testifying against Stein.

When Stein was given the chance to speak, he requested only one thing. “If I could just ask you one thing, if before I walk out of the courtroom, if I could give my family a hug, if you’d allow that?” 

The judge issued an immediate response, simply stating no. “I can’t grant that request in here. You can say goodbye, but you can’t have any physical contact.”

Life in Prison

Thompson sided with the prosecution and issued a sentence of life in prison for the murder of Kayla Rincon-Miller. Stein is guaranteed a 15-year sentence review because he was a minor at the time of the crime, but he was also sentenced to a mandatory minimum of 10 years on each count of attempted robbery.

The three counts of attempted robbery and felony murder sentence will be served consecutively. Stein’s attorney, Robert Malove, expressed his disapproval of the sentence and said that his client will still have to serve 45 more years after his 15-year review. 

“I’ve thought about it, I’ve considered it, and the sentence the Court’s imposed is what I believe is appropriate under these circumstances,” Judge Thompson responded. “So I will leave it the way I’ve ordered it.”