Florida is preparing to execute two death row inmates, James Duckett and Dominick Occhicone, on July 28, in an action that would mark the state’s first double execution in more than 60 years.

Background

Former police officer James Duckett, 68, is scheduled to die by lethal injection at 12 p.m., followed six hours later by 80-year-old Dominick Occhicone at 6 p.m. If carried out, these will mark the 39th and 40th executions under Gov. Ron DeSantis, and the 11th and 12th in the state since the beginning of 2026.

Duckett was sentenced to death in Lake County for the 1986 murder of Teresa McAbee, an offense allegedly committed while he was on duty as a police officer. He has maintained his innocence since his arrest nearly four decades ago.

Occhicone, 80, was convicted in Pasco County for the 1986 murder of Martha Artzner and received a concurrent life sentence for the murder of Raymond Artzner. At age 80, Occhicone would become the oldest person ever executed in Florida, and the second-oldest nationwide in the modern era.

Reaction

Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (FADP) has launched petition and letter-writing efforts asking DeSantis to halt both procedures. The group has organized two public vigils outside Florida State Prison in Raiford, set for 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., contingent on whether stays are issued.

“July 28 represents an unprecedented escalation of Florida’s use of the death penalty,” said Grace Hanna, Executive Director of FADP. “These are two profoundly different cases, but they point to the same troubling reality: Florida continues to expand the use of capital punishment, despite mounting evidence that it is not what Floridians want.”

Original reporting: Tampa Free Press — read the source article.