Florida puts to death 77-year-old man convicted of murder 40 years ago

Florida has put a 77-year-old man to death, 40 years after he was convicted of first-degree murder.

It marks the state’s 18th execution of the year under Republic Governor Ron DeSantis’ aggressive use of the death penalty in his final term.

William Reaves was pronounced dead at 6.12pm on Tuesday following a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke.

Reeves was found guilty of shooting Indian River County sheriff’s deputy Richard Raczkoski in September 1986.

The death chamber curtain went up at the 6 p.m. execution time with Reaves already strapped to a gurney with an IV in his arm.

Asked if he had any last words, he replied: ”No, I do not.”

The injection began immediately after that. About 30 seconds later, Reaves took several big breaths and then stopped moving.

After a few minutes, the team warden shook Reaves’ shoulders and shouted his name, but there was no response. A medic was called in a short time later to check for a heartbeat or any other signs of life. Reaves was pronounced dead about a minute later.

Florida ramps up the death penalty

Reaves became the eighth Florida prisoner over the age of 70 put to death this year. It highlights the nation’s aging death-row population as the state continues to far outpace the rest of the country in total executions.

In 2025, Florida set a state record with 19 executions in a year, and it is slated to tie that mark if another execution is carried out next month as scheduled.

DeSantis, who leaves office in January after two terms, has said he wants justice to be delivered to victims’ families who have often waited decades for death sentences to be imposed.

Marc Raczkoski, the deputy’s brother, briefly told reporters after witnessing the execution that his brother finally got justice.

But Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers, who was also on hand, said at a post-execution briefing that he saw the execution as closure, not justice.

“Would we all be so lucky to be 77 years old and to die so peacefully,” Flowers said. “That’s not justice in any way in my opinion.”

Why William Reaves was put to death

Raczkoski responded to an emergency 911 call at a Vero Beach convenience store on 23 September 1986, court records state.

Reaves later acknowledged he had placed the call from a payphone outside the store. While the two men talked, a gun fell out of Reaves’ shorts, officials said.

They then struggled over the weapon, and Reaves eventually regained control of it. Investigators said that the deputy was trying to run away when Reaves shot him four times.

Raczkoski died later that day from his wounds. Reaves was convicted and sentenced to death about a year after the shooting. But the Florida Supreme Court overturned the conviction because of a conflict of interest with the prosecutor and ordered a new trial.

Reaves was convicted again and newly sentenced to death in 1992. Subsequent appeals were unsuccessful.The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday afternoon rejected Reaves’ 11th-hour appeal without comment.

The Florida Supreme Court last week also rejected Reaves’ appeals seeking to spare his life. His attorneys challenged Florida’s three-drug lethal injection protocol. All Florida executions are carried out via injection of a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that stops the heart, according to the Department of Corrections.