Florida executed a 77-year-old death row inmate on Tuesday, the state’s 18th execution of 2026, adding an unusually high number of elderly inmates to execution as the state nears its annual execution record.
William Reeves was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. after being administered a fatal injection of three drugs at the Florida State Prison near Stark. He was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1986 shooting death of Indian River County Sheriff’s Deputy Richard Raczkoski.
“Are we all going to be so lucky to live to be 77 and die so peacefully? In my opinion, that’s not justice at all,” Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers said at a news conference after the execution.
It was the 18th execution this year under Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who accelerated the pace of executions during his final term. Florida set a state record with 19 executions in 2025, a record that could be matched if another scheduled execution occurs next month.
Reeves is also the eighth inmate 70 or older to be executed in Florida this year, a statistic that has drawn attention to the aging death row population in Florida and across the country.
Data compiled by the Death Penalty Information Center show Reeves was sentenced to death 34 years before his execution. Several other Florida inmates executed this year also spent nearly three decades or more on death row before being executed.
The speed of Florida’s execution also makes it a major anomaly nationally. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, there have been 32 executions carried out in the United States this year, 18 of which were carried out by this state.
Why Florida’s death row inmates are getting older
The issue came into focus again this summer, when Florida planned to execute multiple inmates in their 70s and one inmate in his 80s. The cases have sparked debate over whether elderly and frail prisoners should still be executed after decades of waiting for the outcome of appeals, The Associated Press reported.
Supporters of the death penalty argue lengthy appeals are necessary to ensure constitutional protections and avoid wrongful executions, but can also delay justice for victims’ families. Opponents argue that carrying out executions when prisoners are old raises humanitarian concerns and questions the purpose of punishment.
Research from the Death Penalty Information Center found that over time, the age of death row inmates also increased significantly as appeals took longer. The organization has previously reported that the median age of executed prisoners in the United States has risen steadily in recent decades.
Reeves’ final appeal
Reeves’ attorneys unsuccessfully challenged Florida’s lethal injection protocol, arguing that the jurors who sentenced him to death were not told that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs had determined that he was 100 percent disabled from service-related post-traumatic stress disorder while serving in Vietnam.
More than 100 veterans also called on DeSantis to halt the executions. The governor did not intervene, and both the U.S. Supreme Court and the Florida Supreme Court refused to halt the execution.
According to court records, on Sept. 23, 1986, Raczkoski answered a 911 call from Reeves at a Vero Beach convenience store. During the encounter, a gun fell from Reeves’ clothing, leading to a fight, authorities said. Investigators said Levis was trying to run away when he fired four shots at the officer. Raczkoski later died from his injuries.
After witnessing Tuesday’s execution, the deputy’s brother, Mark Ratzkoski, told reporters that his brother had finally received justice. Flowers called the execution a sign of closure rather than justice.
Florida plans to execute another inmate, Jesse Guardado, on November 5. If the executions go ahead, the state will tie last year’s record of 19 executions.
newsweek’s Reporters and editors used our artificial intelligence assistant Martyn to produce this story. Learn more about Martin here. Please contact Newsweek editors about this story: Steven Frank and Edward T. Cummins