2024 in Review
Here's a review of capital punishment in the State of Florida for 2024.
This year was quieter than last for capital punishment in Florida. Here’s a quick review of the year.
Seven people were sentenced to death. This is more than last year, in which five new sentences of death were imposed. It is also, again, the highest in the country—followed by Texas, which had six new sentences of death.
At least 8 people were resentenced to life in prison rather than death.1 The State completed 1 execution, and 6 people died while on death row. Below is a chart that shows the number of death sentences and executions in the State since 1976.
As of this post, Florida’s death row population is 278, which is less than last year’s number. Last year, Florida’s death row population was 285.2
As of today, Florida’s oldest death row prisoner is Robert Peede, who turned 80 in June. The average age of Florida’s death row is 57. The average time on death row for all Florida’s death row prisoners is 23.74 years.
On January 19, Michael Hunt was sentenced to death following the jury’s recommendation for death by a vote of 10-2. More here. The Florida Supreme Court held oral argument on his direct appeal on December 12.
In April, Phillup Partin was resentenced to life after being granted resentencing under Hurst. More here.
On April 5, Tavares Calloway was resentenced to life in prison without parole (LWOP) following his new penalty phase granted in light of Hurst. More here.
On May 13, Reynaldo Figueroa-Sanabria was resentenced to death after the Florida Supreme Court remanded his case for resentencing. More here. Also on May 13, Jerry Haliburton died while in DOC custody after decades on death row. More here.
On May 15, Todd Zommer was resentenced to LWOP following his new penalty phase granted in light of Hurst. More here.
In June, Markas Fishburne was sentenced to death following the jury’s recommendation for death by a vote of 10-2. More here.
On June 24, Bessman Okafor was resentenced to death following the jury’s recommendation for death by a vote of 9-3. More here.
In July, Patrick McDowell was sentenced to death following the jury’s recommendation for death by a vote of 11-1. More here.
On July 11, Julio Rivera was sentenced to death following the jury’s recommendation for death by a vote of 8-4. More here.
On July 17, Renaldo McGirth was resentenced to life in prison without parole (LWOP) following his new penalty phase granted in light of Hurst. More here.
On August 8, Nelson Serrano died in DOC custody after decades on death row pursuing innocence claims. His Hurst resentencing was pending. More here.
On August 11, Michael J. Jackson was resentenced to death following his new penalty phase granted in light of Hurst. More here. His direct appeal from resentencing remains pending at the Supreme Court of Florida. The Florida Supreme Court held oral argument on his direct appeal on December 12.
On August 13, former Florida death row prisoner Krishna Maharaj died while in DOC custody. More here.
On August 27, Wade Wilson was sentenced to death. More here.
On August 29, after almost a year without an execution, the State completed its first execution of 2024 with the execution of Loran Cole. Florida’s full execution list can be found here. You can read more on Cole’s case here.
On September 16, Richard Bishop was sentenced to death. More here.
October 1 was one year since Florida’s capital sex crime law went into effect. Read more here.
On October 31, Marvin Cannon was resentenced to LWOP after the State agreed to drop the death penalty on resentencing. More here.
On November 12, Donte Hall was resentenced to LWOP after the State agreed to drop the death penalty on resentencing. More here.
On November 19, Charles Finney died after over 30 years on Florida’s death row. More here.
On November 21, Jason Roseman pled to LWOP. More here.
On December 3, William “Bill” Kelley died after 40 years on Florida’s death row. More here.
On December 13, Margaret Allen died after over 10 years on Florida’s death row. More here.
On December 16, Zephen Xaver was sentenced to death. More here.
On December 17, a Palm Beach County trial court found Semmie Williams intellectually disabled and, therefore, ineligible for the death penalty. More here.
On December 20, Daniel Lugo and Noel Doorbal were resentenced to life in prison after resentencing. More here.
On December 23, Donald Bradley died after over 25 years on Florida’s death row. More here.
Below is a summary of the people who were resentenced to life this year:
Tavares Calloway
Marvin Cannon
Noel Doorbal
Donte Hall
Daniel Lugo
Renaldo McGirth
Phillup Partin
Todd Zommer
Below is a summary of the jury votes in cases that resulted in new death sentences this year:
Bishop (Union County): waived jury
Fishburne (Duval County): 10-2
Hunt (Bay County): 10-2
McDowell (Nassau County): 11-1
Rivera (Volusia County): 8-4
Wilson (Lee County): 9-3, 10-2
Zephen Xaver (Highlands County): 9-3
Under Florida’s pre-2023 sentencing scheme, none of these cases could’ve resulted in a death sentence.
While executions were lower this year than last, it was not Gov. DeSantis’s lowest. He went several years without conducting any executions. Here’s a look at executions throughout Gov. DeSantis’s term as Governor:
Additional Resources
This number was updated from the post’s original publication to include Daniel Lugo and Noel Doorbal.