STARKE, Fla. (AP) — Samuel Lee Smithers, who was convicted for the 1996 killings of two women, was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday evening, marking Florida's 14th execution of the year—a record number. The execution took place at Florida State Prison near Starke, where Smithers, 72, was pronounced dead at 6:15 p.m.
Smithers was sentenced to death in 1999 after being found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder. When offered the chance to make a final statement, Smithers replied, “No sir.” Following his death, a spokesperson for the Department of Corrections reported that the execution was conducted without incident.
As the lethal drugs were administered, witnesses observed Smithers experiencing heavy breathing and slight convulsions before he became unresponsive. A medic checked his vital signs and declared him dead a minute later.
This execution extends Florida's record for the number of executions in a single year, with at least two more scheduled in the coming weeks under death warrants signed by Governor Ron DeSantis. Prior to this year, Florida's highest annual total was eight executions in 2014, significantly less than the current total.
Smithers was convicted based on evidence that included a grisly discovery of the victims' bodies in a rural pond. Despite his age, the Florida Supreme Court denied a recent appeal from Smithers arguing that his advanced years should exempt him from the death penalty. Smithers's execution is a stark reflection of Florida's stringent approach to capital punishment, leading the United States in the number of executions this year.
His execution occurred alongside multiple high-profile cases, including another scheduled execution in Missouri of a man who fatally shot a state trooper two decades earlier.
