US EditionFlorida puts a man to death for killing 2 outside a bar, the 26th US execution this year
FLORIDA, JUL 15 – Michael Bernard Bell was executed for a 1993 revenge killing that mistakenly targeted two innocent people, marking Florida's eighth execution and the 26th nationwide in 2025.
- Michael Bernard Bell was executed by lethal injection on July 15, 2025, at Florida State Prison for the 1993 murders of two individuals near a bar in Jacksonville.
- Bell committed the murders as an attempted revenge against the man he mistakenly believed was responsible for his brother's death earlier that year.
- Bell, who was convicted and sentenced to death in 1995, fired more than a dozen shots with an AK-47, and appeals to halt his execution were unanimously rejected by courts including the U.S. Supreme Court.
- Bell was declared dead at 6:25 p.m., marking Florida’s eighth execution of the year and bringing the nationwide total to 26 in 2025, surpassing last year’s number with several months still remaining.
- Florida's rising execution rate reflects state policy shifts, with Governor DeSantis signing death warrants and continued legal and political support for capital punishment despite opposition.
81 Articles
81 Articles
Commentary: More death should not be our response to murderous crimes
With one prisoner executed this week and another set to be executed this month, Gov. Ron DeSantis will achieve the dubious record of having executed more people in a year than any other Florida governor, writes Archbishop Thomas Wenski. There is a better way.
He Wanted Revenge on His Brother's Killer — Now He's Set to be Executed for Murdering the Wrong Guy
53-year-old Michael Bernard Bell, a Florida man who shot and killed two people as a part of a revenge plot is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Tuesday evening.
Capital punishments in U.S. hit 10-year high
More than 70% of counties around the world have banned the death penalty, including the European Union. And yet in the U.S., capital punishment has hit a 10-year high. Distinguished Princeton University Professor Eddie Glaude and civil rights attorney Charles Coleman join Chris Jansing to discuss why this is a “moment of crisis” for the country.
Florida Executes Man for Killing 2 People Outside Bar
STARKE, Fla.—A man convicted of fatally shooting two people outside a Florida bar in 1993 as part of an attempted revenge killing was executed Tuesday evening, the 26th person put to death in the United States this year. Michael Bernard Bell, 54, was pronounced dead at 6:25 p.m. after receiving a lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke, said Bryan Griffin, a spokesperson for Gov. Ron DeSantis. Bell was convicted in 1995 and sentence…
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