Florida carried out its 18th execution of the year on Tuesday under Republican governor Ron DeSantis’s aggressive use of the death penalty in his final term.
asserted
Florida → carry → term
William Reaves, 77, was pronounced dead at 6.12pm following a three-drug injection at Florida state prison near Starke.
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Reaves → pronounce → Starke
He was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1986 shooting death of Indian River county deputy Richard Raczkowski.
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He → convict → Raczkowski
The death chamber curtain went up promptly at the 6pm execution time, and Reaves was already strapped to a gurney with an IV in his arm.
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Reaves → go → arm
Asked if he had any last statement, he said: “No, I do not.”
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I → ask → statement
The injection began immediately after that.
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injection → begin → that
About 30 seconds later, Reaves took several big breaths and then stopped moving.
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Reaves → take → breaths
After a few minutes, the team warden shook Reaves’ shoulders and yelled his name, but there was no response.
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warden → shake → name
A medic was called into the chamber a short time later to check for a heartbeat or any other signs of life, and Reaves was pronounced dead about a minute later.
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Reaves → call → life
Reaves was the eighth Florida prisoner over the age of 70 put to death this year, highlighting the nation’s ageing death-row population as Florida continues to far outpace the rest of country in total executions.
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Florida → put → executions
Last year, Florida set a state record with 19 executions in a single year and it would tie that mark if another execution is carried out next month as scheduled.
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execution → set → mark
DeSantis, who leaves office in January after two terms, has said his goal is to deliver justice to victims’ families who have waited decades for death sentences to be carried out.
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sentences → leave → decades
Raczkowski responded to a 911 call at a Vero Beach convenience store in September 1986, according to court records.
uncertain
Raczkowski → respond → records
Reaves later acknowledged he had placed the call from a payphone outside the store.
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he → acknowledge → store
While Raczkowski and Reaves spoke, a gun fell out of Reaves’ shorts, officials said.
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officials → speak → shorts
The two struggled over the weapon, and Reaves eventually regained control of it.
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Reaves → struggle → it
Investigators said the deputy was trying to run away when Reaves shot him four times.
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Reaves → say → him
The deputy later died from his wounds.
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deputy → die → wounds
Reaves was convicted and sentenced to death about a year after the shooting.
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Reaves → convict → shooting
But the Florida supreme court overturned the conviction because of a conflict of interest with the prosecutor and ordered a new trial.
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court → overturn → trial
Reaves was convicted again and sentenced to death in 1992, and subsequent appeals were unsuccessful.
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appeals → convict → 1992
The US supreme court on Tuesday afternoon rejected Reaves’ final appeal without comment.
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court → reject → comment
The Florida supreme court last week also rejected Reaves’ appeals to spare his life.
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court → reject → life
One issue raised by his attorneys was Florida’s method of execution.
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issue → raise → execution
All Florida executions are carried out via lethal injection of a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that stops the heart, according to the department of corrections.
uncertain
that → carry → corrections
The court has previously upheld this lethal injection protocol against similar challenges.
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court → uphold → challenges
It differs from the single-drug injection used by states such as Tennessee, where death row inmate Christa Pike was rushed to the hospital last month after surviving two lethal doses of pentobarbital.
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Pike → differ → pentobarbital
Defense attorneys also argued that the jurors who recommended the death penalty for Reaves were never told that the US Department of Veterans Affairs rated Reaves – an army veteran – as 100% disabled by post-traumatic stress disorder, which was caused by his service in the Vietnam war.
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which → argue → war
More than 100 veterans sent DeSantis a letter Monday urging him to stop the execution.
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veterans → send → execution
A total of 47 people were executed in the US in 2025.
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people → execute → 2025
Besides leading all other states last year, Florida has carried out more than half the 32 total executions in the US so far this year.
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Florida → lead → US
In July, Florida executed two prisoners in one day, the first state in nearly a decade to do so.
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Florida → execute → decade
Jesse Guardado, 64, is next scheduled to die by injection in Florida on 5 Novemner.
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Guardado → schedule → Novemner
He was convicted of robbing and killing a woman in order to buy drugs in 2004.
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He → convict → 2004
The Aporia
