Florida's executions highest in U.S, data shows

LEE COUNTY, Fla. (WINK) — Florida executed more inmates last year than any other state.

That's according to data from the Florida Department of Corrections.

Data revealed 19 inmates were put to death last year, accounting for nearly 40% of all executions nationwide. 

Some inmates who were executed last year had been on death row for decades, data shows.

“Death is different," Lee Hollander, criminal defense attorney, said. "Once you execute them, you can't bring them back and say, 'Oops, we're sorry.'"

For Denise Lee's family in North Port, the 18-year wait was quicker than expected. 

In 2008, Denise was abducted, raped, and murdered by convicted killer Michael King. On Friday, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed King's death warrant.

“Eighteen years, which look, I mean, it seems like forever, right?" Nathan Lee, Denise's husband, said. "I mean, it's way too long, but the speed of things, if you look at, I'm assuming, a lot of the other death row cases, this is probably one of the fastest, honestly, so we're grateful to that."

Hollander has represented two inmates who currently sit on death row and explained how the process works.

“Who gets picked for a death warrant?" Hollander said. "There's no apparent rhyme or reason other than you're one of a group of people who have completed their legal appeals."

Florida has one of the largest death row populations in the country, and last year, executions moved at an unprecedented pace.

Data reveals 251 inmates currently sit on Florida's death row. 13 of those inmates are from Lee, Charlotte, and Collier counties. The most recent is Ryan Cole from Charlotte County, who killed a 15-year-old in 2019.

Florida also leads the nation in death row exonerees, according to Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty.

About 30 people who have sat on death row in Florida were later exonerated, more than any other state, data reveals.