Florida Executions in 2025 and 2026: The Crimes, Convictions, and Decades Between Sentence and Execution

This Florida execution list 2025 and 2026 guide examines the underlying convictions and the long periods between sentence and execution. The history also shows why homicide and capital prosecutions require detailed records and layered legal review.

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Florida’s use of the death penalty has accelerated sharply.

In 2025, Florida executed 19 people, the highest number of executions carried out by the State in a single year in the modern death penalty era. That pace continued into 2026. Through August 18, 2026, Florida had executed another 13 people.

What stands out is not only the number of executions.

Many of these cases began decades ago.

Some of the underlying murders occurred in the 1970s and 1980s. Some defendants were first sentenced to death more than 30 years before their executions. Others went through retrials, resentencings, reversals, postconviction proceedings, federal habeas litigation, and last-minute challenges before the sentence was ultimately carried out.

The list below shows who Florida executed in 2025 and 2026, what they were convicted of doing, and how long their cases remained in the system before execution.

Florida Executions in 2025

1. James Dennis Ford

Executed February 13, 2025

Crime: Ford murdered Gregory and Kimberly Malnory in Charlotte County in 1997. Gregory was shot, beaten, and had his throat cut. Kimberly was sexually battered and murdered. Their 22-month-old child was left at the scene.

Case timeline: The murders occurred April 6, 1997. Ford’s jury trial began in February 1999. He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder, sexual battery, and child abuse and sentenced to death in June 1999. He was executed nearly 28 years after the murders.

2. Edward Thomas James

Executed March 20, 2025

Crime: James raped and strangled eight-year-old Toni Neuner and then stabbed her grandmother, Betty Dick, to death. He stole property and Dick’s car before leaving Florida.

Case timeline: James did not go through a guilt-phase jury trial. He pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and other charges. A jury later heard the penalty phase, recommended death, and the court sentenced him to death in 1995.

3. Michael Anthony Tanzi

Executed April 9, 2025

Crime: In 2000, Tanzi abducted Janet Acosta from her van in Miami, drove her south, sexually battered her, strangled her, and disposed of her body in the Florida Keys. He was later located with her van and led law enforcement to her body.

Case timeline: Tanzi pleaded guilty shortly before trial to first-degree murder, carjacking, kidnapping, and armed robbery. His case proceeded to a penalty-phase jury, which unanimously recommended death. He was sentenced to death on February 19, 2003.

4. Jeffrey Hutchinson

Executed May 1, 2025

Crime: Hutchinson was convicted of killing his girlfriend, Renee Flaherty, and her three children in their Okaloosa County home in 1998 with a shotgun.

Case timeline: Hutchinson went to trial and contested responsibility for the killings. The jury convicted him of all four murders. He later waived a penalty-phase jury. The judge imposed life for Flaherty’s murder and death for each of the three children’s murders. His capital litigation continued for more than two decades.

5. Glen Edward Rogers

Executed May 15, 2025

Crime: Rogers was convicted in Florida of murdering Tina Marie Cribbs in Tampa in 1995. Cribbs was stabbed to death. Rogers was also convicted of a separate murder in California and was suspected in additional killings.

Case timeline: He was tried and convicted of Cribbs’ murder in Florida in 1997 and sentenced to death. A separate California jury convicted him of another murder in 1999.

6. Anthony Wainwright

Executed June 10, 2025

Crime: After escaping from custody in North Carolina in 1994, Wainwright and Richard Hamilton kidnapped 23-year-old Carmen Gayheart from a Florida grocery-store parking lot. She was sexually assaulted, strangled, and ultimately shot twice in the back of the head.

Case timeline: Wainwright was prosecuted at trial and convicted. A unanimous jury recommended death, and he was sentenced to death in the mid-1990s.

7. Thomas Lee Gudinas

Executed June 24, 2025

Crime: Gudinas was convicted of the 1994 murder and sexual battery of Michelle McGrath in Orlando. She was found beaten and killed near a bar after being seen in the area where Gudinas had been drinking.

Case timeline: Gudinas was tried, convicted of first-degree murder and sexual battery, and sentenced to death in 1995. His case then remained in state and federal capital litigation for approximately 30 years.

8. Michael Bernard Bell

Executed July 15, 2025

Crime: Bell killed Jimmy West and Tamecka Smith in Jacksonville in 1993 while seeking revenge for the death of his brother. Bell mistakenly identified West as his intended target and opened fire with an AK-47.

Case timeline: Bell went to trial and was convicted of both first-degree murders. The jury unanimously recommended death on both counts, and the trial court imposed two death sentences in 1995.

9. Edward J. Zakrzewski II

Executed July 31, 2025

Crime: Zakrzewski killed his wife Sylvia and their two children, seven-year-old Edward and five-year-old Anna, in 1994. He had purchased a machete after learning that his wife was discussing divorce. He fled to Hawaii after the murders.

Case timeline: He pleaded guilty to all three first-degree murders on March 19, 1996. The jury then heard only the penalty phase. It recommended death 7-5 for the murders of his wife and son and life for his daughter. On April 19, 1996, the judge sentenced him to death for all three murders, including overriding the life recommendation as to Anna.

10. Kayle Barrington Bates

Executed August 19, 2025

Crime: Bates abducted 24-year-old Janet Renee White from her workplace in 1982, took her into a wooded area, attempted to rape her, stabbed her to death, and stole a diamond ring from her finger.

Case timeline: A jury convicted him on January 20, 1983 of first-degree murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, and attempted sexual battery. He was initially sentenced to death in March 1983. His sentence was later vacated and litigated through multiple resentencings, including another death sentence in 1995.

11. Curtis Windom

Executed August 28, 2025

Crime: Windom carried out a 1992 shooting spree in Orange County, killing Johnnie Lee, his girlfriend Valerie Davis, and Davis’ mother Mary Lubin, and seriously wounding another man.

Case timeline: He went to trial in 1992 and was convicted of three counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder. The court imposed three death sentences.

12. David Joseph Pittman

Executed September 17, 2025

Crime: In 1990, while going through a divorce, Pittman killed his estranged wife’s parents, Clarence and Barbara Knowles, and her sister Bonnie Knowles. All three were stabbed. He then set the home on fire, stole Bonnie’s car, and later burned the car.

Case timeline: Trial began March 18, 1991. On April 19, 1991, the jury convicted him of three counts of first-degree murder, two counts of arson, and grand theft. The jury recommended death 9-3, and Pittman was sentenced to death on April 25, 1991.

13. Victor Tony Jones

Executed September 30, 2025

Crime: Jones was convicted of murdering Matilda and Jacob Nestor during a robbery at the Miami business where he worked. Both victims were killed during the attack.

Case timeline: Jones was prosecuted by jury in the early 1990s and received death sentences for both murders. His convictions and sentences became final in 1995.

14. Samuel Lee Smithers

Executed October 14, 2025

Crime: Smithers murdered Denise Roach and Christy Cowan in 1996. Their bodies were discovered in ponds on property where Smithers performed maintenance work. Both had suffered extensive injuries.

Case timeline: His jury trial began December 14, 1998. He was convicted of both first-degree murders on December 19. On January 25, 1999, the jury unanimously recommended death, and the judge formally imposed two death sentences on June 25, 1999.

15. Norman Mearle Grim Jr.

Executed October 28, 2025

Crime: Grim was convicted of raping and murdering Cynthia Campbell, a Pensacola attorney, in 1998. She suffered numerous blunt-force and stab wounds. Physical evidence connected Grim’s home to the crime.

Case timeline: Grim was tried and convicted in 2000 and subsequently sentenced to death. He declined to present mitigation during sentencing.

16. Bryan Frederick Jennings

Executed November 13, 2025

Crime: Jennings abducted six-year-old Rebecca Kunash from her bedroom in 1979, sexually battered her, caused catastrophic head injuries, and drowned her in a canal.

Case timeline: Jennings was first tried and convicted in 1980. That conviction was reversed. He was convicted again in a 1982 retrial, which was also reversed. His third trial began March 24, 1986. He was convicted again on March 28, the jury recommended death 11-1 on April 8, and he was sentenced to death on April 25, 1986.

17. Malik Abdul-Sajjad, formerly Richard Barry Randolph

Executed November 20, 2025

Crime: Randolph was convicted of sexually assaulting and murdering a woman in Putnam County in 1988.

Case timeline: He was convicted by a jury and sentenced to death in 1989. The jury’s death recommendation was 8-4, the same numerical threshold Florida now permits under its current death penalty statute. He remained under that sentence for approximately 36 years.

18. Mark Geralds

Executed December 9, 2025

Crime: Geralds was convicted of murdering Tressa Pettibone during a 1989 burglary of her Panama City home. The State’s case included circumstantial and forensic evidence connecting him to the killing and property taken from the residence.

Case timeline: He went to trial and was convicted of first-degree murder and related offenses. He received a death sentence in 1990 and spent approximately 35 years under sentence of death.

19. Frank Athen Walls

Executed December 19, 2025

Crime: Walls was convicted of murdering Edward Alger and Ann Peterson during a 1987 home invasion in Okaloosa County. He was later linked to additional killings.

Case timeline: His first trial began in July 1988 and resulted in two first-degree murder convictions. Those convictions were reversed. Walls was tried again in 1992, was again convicted, and was again sentenced to death for Peterson’s murder. He was executed more than 38 years after the murders.

Florida Executions in 2026

20. Ronald Palmer Heath

Executed February 10, 2026

Crime: Heath and his brother Kenneth targeted Michael Sheridan for robbery after meeting him at a Gainesville bar in 1989. Heath stabbed Sheridan and directed his brother to shoot him.

Case timeline: Ronald Heath went to trial in November 1990. His brother had entered a plea and testified against him. Ronald was convicted of first-degree murder and related offenses, the jury recommended death 10-2, and he was sentenced to death in 1991.

21. Melvin Trotter

Executed February 24, 2026

Crime: Trotter stabbed and robbed 70-year-old grocery-store owner Virgie Langford at her Palmetto store in 1986. Langford survived long enough to provide identifying information before dying after surgery.

Case timeline: Trotter was tried and convicted of first-degree murder in 1987 and sentenced to death. The Florida Supreme Court later reversed the sentence because of errors involving aggravating factors. After a new penalty proceeding, he was sentenced to death again in 1993.

22. Billy Leon Kearse

Executed March 3, 2026

Crime: In 1991, Fort Pierce police officer Danny Parrish stopped Kearse for driving the wrong way on a one-way street. During the encounter, Kearse took Parrish’s service weapon and fired 14 shots, striking him 13 times.

Case timeline: A jury convicted Kearse of first-degree murder and robbery with a firearm. His original penalty phase was reversed on appeal. At a new penalty phase in 1996, he was again sentenced to death.

23. Michael King

Executed March 17, 2026

Crime: King abducted 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee from her North Port home in 2008 while her two young children were present. He sexually assaulted her and killed her. Lee managed to call 911 during the abduction, and additional witnesses also contacted law enforcement. Her body was found two days later in a shallow grave.

Case timeline: King went to trial in 2009, was convicted of kidnapping, sexual battery, and first-degree murder, and was sentenced to death in 2010.

24. Chadwick “Khalil” Willacy

Executed April 21, 2026

Crime: Willacy was convicted of killing Vicki Elliott during a 1990 burglary and robbery in Brevard County. The prosecution established that Elliott was beaten, strangled, and set on fire.

Case timeline: Willacy was tried and convicted in the early 1990s. His original death sentence was overturned, and after additional capital sentencing litigation, he was again sentenced to death in the mid-1990s.

25. James Ernest Hitchcock

Executed April 30, 2026

Crime: Hitchcock raped and murdered his 13-year-old stepniece, Cynthia Driggers, in Winter Garden in 1976.

Case timeline: Hitchcock was first tried, convicted, and sentenced to death in 1977. His death sentence was overturned multiple times. He underwent several resentencing proceedings, including proceedings in 1993 and 1996. In September 1996, a fourth sentencing jury recommended death 10-2, and he was again sentenced to death.

He was executed almost 50 years after the crime.

26. Richard Knight

Executed May 21, 2026

Crime: Knight was convicted of stabbing Odessia Stephens and her four-year-old daughter, Hanessia Mullings, to death in Coral Springs in 2002 after an argument over Knight continuing to live in the home.

Case timeline: Knight was prosecuted at trial for both first-degree murders and received death sentences. He remained under sentence of death for approximately 19 years before his execution.

27. Andrew Richard Lukehart

Executed June 2, 2026

Crime: Lukehart killed his girlfriend’s five-month-old daughter in 1996 and disposed of the baby’s body in a pond. He had previously been on felony probation for abusing another infant.

Case timeline: Lukehart was convicted of first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse and sentenced to death in 1997. His death sentence became final in 2001.

28. Dusty Ray Spencer

Executed June 25, 2026

Crime: Spencer was convicted of murdering his wife, Karen Spencer, in 1992 after a history of violence against her.

Case timeline: He was prosecuted by jury, convicted of first-degree murder, and ultimately sentenced to death in the 1990s. He spent approximately 30 years under his final death sentence before execution.

29. Dennis Sochor

Executed July 14, 2026

Crime: Sochor was convicted of the 1981 murder of 18-year-old Patricia Gifford in Broward County. Gifford disappeared after leaving a Fort Lauderdale-area bar, and her body was later discovered.

Case timeline: Sochor was tried and convicted of first-degree murder in the 1980s and sentenced to death in 1987. His case spent decades in direct appeal, postconviction, and federal habeas litigation before execution.

30. James Aren Duckett

Executed July 28, 2026

Crime: Duckett, a former law enforcement officer, was convicted of sexually assaulting and drowning 11-year-old Teresa McAbee in 1987 while working as a police officer in central Florida.

Case timeline: He was tried, convicted, and sentenced to death in 1988. His scheduled March 2026 execution was temporarily stayed while DNA-related litigation proceeded. Florida ultimately executed him on July 28.

31. Dominick Anthony Occhicone Jr.

Executed July 28, 2026

Crime: Occhicone was convicted of murdering the parents of his former girlfriend in 1986.

Case timeline: He was tried and sentenced to death in 1988. He remained on death row for approximately 38 years. Florida executed him on the same day as Duckett, marking the State’s first two-execution day since 1964. He was 80 years old.

32. William Frances Silvia Jr.

Executed August 18, 2026

Crime: Silvia was convicted of murdering his estranged wife, Patricia Silvia, in 2006 and attempting to murder her mother during a shooting at a family gathering.

Case timeline: He was tried and convicted and received his death sentence approximately three years after the crime, around 2009. He remained under the death sentence for approximately 17 years before his execution.

What These Cases Show

The most striking part of Florida’s 2025 and 2026 execution record is the amount of time between the underlying crime and the execution.

James Hitchcock’s case began with a 1976 murder and ended with his execution in 2026.

Bryan Jennings was first convicted in 1980 and executed in 2025 after three separate trials.

Frank Walls was first tried in 1988 and executed in 2025.

Dominick Occhicone was sentenced to death in 1988 and executed in 2026.

These cases demonstrate how capital litigation operates on an entirely different timeline from an ordinary criminal case. A death sentence can remain active for decades while convictions, sentencing procedures, constitutional issues, mitigation, appellate decisions, and postconviction claims continue to be litigated.

They also show how much Florida’s death penalty law has changed during that time.

Some defendants were sentenced under procedures that no longer exist. Some received nonunanimous death recommendations. Some had death sentences reversed and were later resentenced. Others went through multiple trials before the sentence became final.

At the same time, Florida has now moved in the opposite direction on jury unanimity. Since April 20, 2023, Florida law allows a jury to recommend death by an 8-4 vote once at least one statutory aggravating factor has been unanimously established.

For anyone facing a capital prosecution today, the recent execution record makes one point unmistakable: a death sentence entered now may still be litigated decades from now, but Florida has demonstrated that it remains willing to ultimately carry that sentence out.

Natalie Lopez Attorney at Law, P.A. represents individuals facing homicide and other serious felony prosecutions throughout South Florida.

Why Capital Cases Require Layered Legal Review

A Florida execution list records an endpoint, but each entry may reflect years of litigation involving the conviction, penalty phase, direct appeal, postconviction claims, federal habeas review, clemency, and warrant-stage filings. The legal questions can involve trial evidence, jury instructions, attorney performance, newly discovered evidence, constitutional procedure, and whether every required safeguard was observed.

Capital cases arise from the most serious category of alleged violent crimes. They are not handled like an ordinary felony prosecution. The factual investigation, mitigation record, expert evidence, and preservation of appellate issues can affect proceedings long after the initial trial.

Current Information Should Be Checked Against Official Records

Execution schedules and warrant litigation can change. Readers researching a particular case should confirm dates and status through the Florida Department of Corrections execution list and the relevant court dockets. This article provides legal context and is not a substitute for reviewing the complete record.

A person under investigation for homicide or another life-changing accusation should obtain individual advice immediately. Learn more about responding when accused of a violent crime in Fort Lauderdale or request a confidential consultation.