CLAY COUNTY, Fla. (Court TV) — After finding a Florida contractor guilty of murdering his client, a jury spared his life and recommended he be sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Corey Binderim, 49, was convicted of first-degree murder, assault, and destroying evidence in the Oct. 2019 death of 65-year-old Susan Mauldin. Investigators said Binderim killed Mauldin because she was going to sue him over a botched bathroom remodel.
During a penalty phase spanning two days, prosecutors asked the jury to sentence Binderim to death. The jurors voted 7-5 in favor of the death penalty, falling short of the eight votes required under Florida law.
FILE – Corey Binderim (Clay County Sheriff’s Office)
Court documents state Mauldin paid Binderim approximately $12,000 for the project. Binderim demolished the bathroom but failed to finish the job and failed to show up for work on multiple occasions over the next several months. Before her disappearance, Mauldin told multiple people she was going to tell Binderim he must refund her money or she would sue. Binderim was scheduled to come to Mauldin’s home on Oct. 23 but did not show.
Mauldin was reported missing by a friend on Oct. 25, who alerted investigators to the issues with Binderim. Authorities said blood was found in Mauldin’s living room and kitchen.
According to an affidavit, investigators were able to track Bindermin’s movements on Oct. 24. Video surveillance allegedly showed him at a Home Depot purchasing bags of concrete and heavy-duty demo bags. Afterward, he called Mauldin twice and drove to her home for a short period of time.
After leaving Mauldin’s residence, investigators tracked his vehicle to his home, then to a landfill, where he dumped approximately 300 pounds in the construction area, according to the affidavit. That waste was ultimately transferred to another landfill in Folkston, Georgia, where authorities conducted a search in Jan. 2020. Over two days, search teams recovered human remains that were confirmed to be Mauldin.
DAILY TRIAL UPDATES
DAY 6 – 10/16/24
- The state called 3 witnesses to deliver victim impact statements, and the defense called a childhood friend of Binderim
- Dr. Mark Rubino testified about the defendant’s head trauma affecting his frontal lobe, saying it tends to lead to impulsivity
- The jury heard opening statements in the penalty phase of Binderim’s trial
DAY 5 – 10/14/24
- Corey Binderim was convicted of first-degree murder, assault, and destroying evidence in the death of 65-year-old Susan Mauldin.
- The prosecution and defense delivered closing arguments.
DAY 4 – 10/8/24
- Clay County prosecutors rested their case after calling their 33rd and final witness: the forensic pathologist who conducted Susan Mauldin’s autopsy.
- Dr. Edmund Donoghue concluded manner of death was homicide and cause of death was blunt force trauma with “strangulation” as a contributing condition. He said strangulation was a more likely cause for a fractured bone from Mauldin’s neck than landfill compression/damage.
- Corey Binderim’s defense rested after calling two witnesses, a former client who likened Binderim’s mastery of his trade to “Michelangelo” and a retired contractor who testified that scratches on arms were common in his and Binderim’s line of work (presumably, to provide an explanation for scratches on CB’s arms that a detective noted when he spoke to CB five days after SM went missing).
- Binderim declined to testify after what seemed like an unusually long colloquy from the judge.
- No state rebuttal.
- Judge denied the defense’s motion for judgement of acquittal based on lack of evidence of premeditation.
- Juror 11 was excused because of a prior obligation next week that he disclosed in jury selection.
DAY 3 – 10/7/24
- Testimony of the defendant’s ex-wife, Cassidy Lee, who described her husband’s history of drug abuse and financial struggles. She also recounted her husband’s seemingly suspicious conduct on the day SM is believed to have been killed, which Lee discovered on the couple’s Ring doorbell camera.
- Testimony of Clay County jail informant Thomas Smith, who said the defendant admitted to hitting and choking a client during a fight over payment. “He said he felt like something snapped… when he had his hands around her.”
- Testimony of Leigh Stansbury, who worked with CB for about a month before SM went missing. She attested to his drug use (she never observed it firsthand but said it made him anxious and quick to anger); said CB never mentioned SM as a client until after she went missing; she joked to CB about dumping a body in the landfill a few weeks before SM went missing.
- Testimony of forensic anthropologist Dr. Alice Goodman, who taught us the meaning of “macerated” (cleaned) while explaining how she examined SM’s bones. She opined that fractures in SM’s neck bone area were consistent with her being strangled (by the defendant) or crushed in the landfill equipment (by an excavator or compactor).
- Testimony of DNA analyst excluding Binderim as a contributor to DNA samples found on the “demo bags” that contained SM’s bones and in SM’s fingernails.
- WATCH: Witness Accuses Corey Binderim of Forging Check, Stealing $5,000
DAY 2 – 10/4/24
- Crime scene technicians walked the jury through evidence photos of Binderim’s storage facility, Mauldin’s home and Binderim’s truck
- The jury saw surveillance video of Binderim at his storage facility on Oct. 24, 2019
- Karen Hall, a former client of Binderim, testified about her experience with the contractor and how he came to drop off supplies at her house on Oct. 24
- Former Clay County Sheriff’s Detective Howard Fryer testified about the investigation into Binderim
DAY 1 – 10/3/24
- The jury hears opening statements
- Phyllis and Daniel Yates, who reported Susan Mauldin missing, testified about Mauldin’s frustrations with Binderim.
