STARKE, Fla. (AP) — A man convicted of stabbing a woman to death during a home invasion robbery more than 30 years ago is scheduled to be executed Tuesday evening in Florida.
Mark Allen Geralds, 58, is set to receive a lethal injection starting at 6 p.m. at Florida State Prison near Starke. Geralds was convicted of murder, armed robbery, burglary, and stealing a car, resulting in his death sentence in 1990. The Florida Supreme Court vacated the sentence but affirmed the conviction, leading to a resentencing in 1992.
This execution will mark Florida's 18th death penalty carried out in 2025, further extending the state's record for total executions in a single year.
Details from court records reveal that Tressa Pettibone's 8-year-old son found her beaten and stabbed on the kitchen floor of their Panama City home in February 1989. Geralds, a carpenter, had previously worked at the house.
In the week leading up to the murder, Geralds encountered Pettibone and her children at a shopping mall, where they discussed her husband's absence on a business trip. Following this, Geralds approached Pettibone’s son at a video arcade, inquiring about the return time of her children from school.
Investigators later discovered Geralds had pawned jewelry that contained traces of Pettibone’s blood, and plastic ties used to bind her matched those found in his vehicle.
After a death warrant was signed last month, Geralds opted not to pursue further appeals, a decision authorized by a judge.
Florida has executed more individuals than any other state this year. Another execution is set for the following week, continuing under death warrants signed by Governor Ron DeSantis. The state has exceeded previous annual totals for executions, indicating a concerning trend in capital punishment.
According to the state Department of Corrections, Florida's lethal injections occur using a sedative, a paralytic agent, and a drug that induces cardiac arrest.
}
