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Man guilty of killing his 13-year-old step-niece is set to be Florida’s 6th execution of 2026
The inmate’s final appeal was denied after decades of litigation over his conviction and repeated death sentences.
- James Ernest Hitchcock, 70, faces execution on Thursday at Florida State Prison near Starke for the 1976 killing of his 13-year-old step-niece, Cynthia Driggers. The three-drug lethal injection is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.
- Convicted of first-degree murder in 1977, Hitchcock faced resentencings in 1988, 1993 and 1996. The Florida Supreme Court denied an appeal last week to halt his execution.
- Investigators stated Hitchcock, 20 at the time, raped the 13-year-old girl before beating and choking her. Hitchcock later testified his brother committed the killing, alleging he had taken the blame to protect him.
- This marks Florida's sixth execution this year, following a record 19 executions in 2025. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis oversaw more executions in 2025 than any Florida governor since 1976.
- Richard Knight, 47, is scheduled to receive a lethal injection on May 21 for his conviction in the fatal stabbing of his cousin's girlfriend and her 4-year-old daughter. Another execution is planned in Florida following Hitchcock's.
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Two men were executed this Thursday in the south of the United States, Florida and Texas. The first spent almost 50 years in the death row. James Hitchcock, 70, was sentenced to death in 1977 for the murder, the previous year, of his 13-year-old niece, Cynthia Driggers. 77 cases in the year: after asking for help by message, woman dies of a rattlesnake attack in the United States Also read: 5-year-old boy is found dead in a dumpster in the Unite…
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One of the two was sentenced to death in 1977, while he maintained his innocence all these years.
Coverage Details
Total News Sources100
Leaning Left29Leaning Right16Center33Last UpdatedBias Distribution42% Center
Bias Distribution
- 42% of the sources are Center
42% Center
L 37%
C 42%
R 21%
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