Florida Executes Man for 1986 Deputy Murder, State Nears Execution Record

Florida executed 77-year-old William Reaves by lethal injection on Tuesday for the 1986 murder of Indian River County sheriff's deputy Richard Raczkoski. The execution was the 18th in Florida this year, continuing an accelerated pace under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Reaves was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. at Florida State Prison near Starke. He had no last words. Following the administration of a three-drug lethal injection, Reaves became still about 30 seconds after the process began, and was pronounced deceased approximately one minute later after medical personnel confirmed no signs of life.

Raczkoski's brother, Marc, stated after witnessing the execution that his brother had finally received justice. However, Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers described the execution as closure rather than justice, commenting, "Would we all be so lucky to be 77 years old and to die so peacefully? That’s not justice in any way, in my opinion."

The incident occurred on September 23, 1986, when Deputy Raczkoski responded to a 911 call made by Reaves from a payphone at a Vero Beach convenience store. Court records indicate that as the deputy and Reaves spoke, a gun fell from Reaves’ pants. A struggle ensued, during which Reaves regained control of the weapon and fatally shot Raczkoski four times as the deputy attempted to retreat. Raczkoski died later that day from his wounds.

Reaves was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death about a year after the shooting. His initial conviction was overturned by the Florida Supreme Court due to a conflict of interest with the prosecutor, leading to a new trial. He was again convicted and sentenced to death, with subsequent appeals failing.

On the day of his execution, the U.S. Supreme Court denied Reaves’ request for a stay of execution and a petition to review his case without comment.

His attorneys had challenged Florida’s three-drug lethal injection protocol, which involves a sedative, a paralytic, and a drug to stop the heart. The court has previously upheld this protocol against similar legal challenges. Florida's method differs from the single-drug lethal injection used in states like Tennessee, which was recently implicated in the case of inmate Christa Pike, who survived two doses of pentobarbital during a botched execution last month.

Additionally, Reaves’ legal team argued that jurors who recommended the death penalty were not informed that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs had classified Reaves, an Army veteran, as 100% disabled due to post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from his service in the Vietnam War. A group of over 100 military veterans had appealed to DeSantis to halt the execution, citing these factors.

Reaves was the eighth Florida prisoner over the age of 70 to be executed this year. DeSantis oversaw a record 19 executions in the previous year, accounting for approximately 40% of the national total. Florida has carried out more than half of the 32 executions nationwide so far this year.

Florida is on track to potentially match last year's record if Jesse Guardado, 64, is executed as scheduled on November 5 for a 2004 drug-related murder. In July, Florida executed two prisoners on the same day, the first instance of such a double execution in nearly a decade.

DeSantis has expressed a commitment to ensuring justice for victims' families who have often waited many years for death sentences to be carried out.