Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has called off a planned state execution for the first time in his nearly eight years in office, canceling the lethal injection of 74-year-old William Lee Thompson just days before it was scheduled to occur. The decision follows a botched execution in Tennessee and comes amid heightened national and international scrutiny regarding capital punishment in the United States.
DeSantis signed an official letter withdrawing Thompson's death warrant, though the Republican governor did not provide a specific reason for the reversal. Thompson had been condemned for the 1976 kidnapping and murder of Sally Ivester, but his legal team maintained that he suffers from advanced dementia and is medically incompetent to face execution.
Defense attorneys and advocacy groups pointed out that Thompson's failing health left him disoriented, unaware of his surroundings, and unable to comprehend his sentence. Although DeSantis had temporarily stayed the execution the previous month to allow for a psychiatric evaluation, state prison officials had continued preparations for the scheduled date.
Legal representatives expressed relief following the announcement, emphasizing Thompson's deteriorating condition and calling on the Florida Department of Corrections to transfer him to an appropriate medical facility for proper care. Despite the withdrawal of the warrant, Thompson remains on death row, leaving open the possibility that a new warrant could be issued in the future.
The cancellation coincides with broader controversies surrounding the death penalty nationwide, including the recent botched execution of Christa Pike in Tennessee, where the inmate survived multiple lethal injections before being hospitalized. Meanwhile, a separate Florida execution involving James Robertson remains set to proceed after the inmate waived his appeals.
DeSantis has aggressively pursued the death penalty throughout his governorship, overseeing a record 19 executions in the state during the previous year and authorizing a rare double execution earlier in the summer. Officials from the governor's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the sudden withdrawal.