Florida set to carry out 13th execution this year in nation’s busiest death chamber

Florida Set to Carry Out 13th Execution

Tyunews.com – Florida set to carry out 13th execution of 2026 as the state’s death chamber continues its relentless pace. With more than half of the nation’s 22 scheduled executions already completed this year, Florida remains the busiest capital-punishment jurisdiction in the country. Under Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, now serving his final term, the Department of Corrections has logged twelve lethal injections so far and is preparing for a thirteenth on Tuesday, with two further dates already locked in for September.

The Silvia Case

William Frances Silvia, 61, will receive a three-drug lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke, with the procedure set to begin at 6 p.m. local time. A final appeal remains pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, though the state has moved forward with scheduling regardless.

Silvia was convicted of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder arising from a 2006 attack. Court records show that he purchased a shotgun that year and drove to the Orlando-area home of Betty Woodard, where his estranged wife, Patricia Silvia, had been staying since their separation roughly two months earlier. The two women were in the middle of a cookout when Silvia arrived. After what authorities described as a failed attempt at reconciliation, he pulled the shotgun from his truck and fired on both women. Patricia was killed; Betty Woodard survived.

Sentencing History and Broader Execution Context

Silvia first received a death sentence following his 2008 trial. A court later vacated that sentence on appeal tied to Florida’s death-penalty sentencing procedures. He was granted a new death-penalty phase in 2018 and was again handed a death sentence. His attorneys, representing him through the state agency Capital Collateral Regional Counsel, argued that the office could not deliver adequate legal assistance because it was simultaneously assisting another death-row inmate. The Florida Supreme Court rejected that appeal.

“Every Florida execution employs a lethal-injection protocol consisting of a sedative, a paralytic agent, and a cardiac-arrest drug.” — Florida Department of Corrections

Nationally, 47 people were put to death in 2025. Florida accounted for 19 of those, a state record dating back to the reinstatement of capital punishment in 1976. In July of this year, the state carried out two executions in a single day — the first state to do so in nearly a decade. The two remaining September dates involve Harold Gene Lucas, 74, scheduled for Sept. 1, and Daniel Owen Conahan Jr., 72, set for Sept. 10. Lucas was convicted of fatally shooting a 16-year-old girl who had turned down his romantic advances and of wounding two of her companions. Conahan was found guilty of kidnapping and strangling a man he had paid to pose for nude photographs; investigators suspect him of additional homicides committed in southwest Florida during the 1990s.

As Florida set to carry out 13th execution marks another milestone in the state’s accelerating capital-punishment calendar, observers note that the pace of lethal injections has outstripped anything seen since the modern era of the death penalty began. The Department of Corrections has indicated no plans to slow the schedule, and both September dates remain firm.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is Silvia’s execution scheduled? Tuesday, beginning at 6 p.m. local time at Florida State Prison near Starke. A final appeal is still pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.

What drugs are used in Florida lethal injections? The protocol consists of three agents administered in sequence: a sedative, a paralytic agent, and a cardiac-arrest drug.

How many executions has Florida carried out in 2026 so far? Twelve, with the Silvia proceeding making it the thirteenth. Two additional executions are scheduled for September.

What is the national execution total for 2026? Twenty-two executions are scheduled nationwide, with more than half already completed as of this week.