Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has withdrawn a death warrant for the first time since taking office, calling off the execution of 74-year-old William Lee Thompson days before it was scheduled, the Associated Press reported.
DeSantis signed a letter Thursday withdrawing the warrant but gave no reason. Thompson had been set to die Tuesday for the 1976 kidnapping and murder of Sally Ivester.
A second execution scheduled for the same day is still planned. James Robertson, 63, pleaded guilty and waived appeals in the 2008 strangling of cellmate Frank Hart, telling investigators he killed him to be moved to death row.
DeSantis has used the death penalty aggressively in his final term, making Florida the nation’s busiest execution state.
Sources: AP via KTAR News. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: United States Congress / Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
