Death row inmate, 74, facing execution would be oldest put to death in modern Florida history
Spencer’s lawyers cited liver disease and age-related suffering, while the state said the execution was long deserved after repeated appeals failed.
- On Thursday, Florida authorities executed 74-year-old Dusty Ray Spencer at Florida State Prison by three-drug injection for the 1992 stabbing death of his wife, Karen Spencer, making him the oldest person executed in modern Florida history.
- Spencer was convicted in 1992 after a documented violent history, including choking and threatening Karen before her death; the Florida Supreme Court ordered a new sentencing in 1994, leading to his death sentence the following year.
- Attorneys argued his liver disease and advanced age constituted cruel and unusual punishment, but the Florida Supreme Court rejected these appeals last week; the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a final appeal Thursday without comment.
- The execution marked Florida's ninth this year following a record 19 in 2025; Spencer became the oldest inmate executed in modern state history, surpassing the previous record of 72 held by Samuel Lee Smithers and R. Charlie Gifford.
- Republican Governor Ron DeSantis oversaw 19 executions in 2025, the highest total since the death penalty's 1976 reinstatement; another 74-year-old death row inmate, Dennis Sochor, faces execution on July 14, continuing the accelerated pace.
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Florida Kills Dusty Ray Spencer, 74, For Wife's Murder in 1992; He Is Oldest Inmate to Be Executed in Modern Era
Dusty Ray Spencer was put to death by lethal injection Thursday at Florida State Prison in Starke for his wife’s murder more than three decades ago in Orange County. Spencer, 74, became the oldest person put to death by the state in the modern era. Spencer had a violent history with his wife, Karen, before stabbing her to death in the backyard of their home on Jan. 18, 1992 in Orange County. The post Florida Kills Dusty Ray Spencer, 74, For Wife…
Florida Executes Oldest Death Row Inmate in State History
Florida executed a 74-year-old death row inmate on Thursday, making him the oldest person put to death in the state’s modern history. According to Fox News , Dusty Ray Spencer was pronounced dead at 6:10 p.m. at Florida…
The man had been in prison since 1992. His lawyers tried to save him by citing his age, but in the end he could not escape his fate.
Final words for Florida’s oldest death row inmate executed for wife’s murder revealed
A 74-year-old Florida man was executed on Thursday for his conviction in the 1992 fatal stabbing of his wife, making him the oldest inmate in modern state history to be put to death.
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