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2 Executions Scheduled for Same Day in Florida for the First Time in More than 60 Years
The two inmates would be Florida’s 11th and 12th executions this year, and appeals in both cases are expected to reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
On July 28, Florida will execute two death row inmates on the same day for the first time since May 12, 1964. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed death warrants for James Aren Duckett and Dominick Anthony Occhicone at Florida State Prison near Starke.
Since 1964, when Sie Dawon and Emmett C. Blake were executed via electrocution, the state has not carried out multiple executions in a single day. DeSantis ordered both scheduled for the same July 28 date after lifting a stay on Duckett's case earlier this month.
Occhicone, 80, was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend's parents in 1986 and would become the second-oldest prisoner executed in modern U.S. history. Duckett, 68, was convicted of murdering 11-year-old Teresa McAbee while serving as a police officer in 1988.
Duckett's attorney, Mary Elizabeth Wells, called the execution "shameful," arguing that inconclusive DNA test results warrant caution. The Florida Supreme Court lifted Duckett's stay earlier this month, allowing the execution to proceed despite his attorney's continued appeals.
Appeals in both cases will eventually move to the U.S. Supreme Court before any executions are performed. DeSantis stated his goal is to provide justice for victims' families, saying during a November 2025 news conference that "justice delayed is justice denied.