Jim Turner
•7/30/2026
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday signed the warrant for Harold Gene Lucas to be executed over the death of his 16-year-old former girlfriend in Bonita Springs almost 50 years ago. The warrant calls for Lucas, 74, to die Sept. 1 by lethal injection at Florida State Prison in Starke. It is the 14th DeSantis has signed this year and comes two days after the state conducted a rare single-day double-execution. The window to carry out the sentence for Lucas runs from noon, Sept. 1 through noon, Sept. 8. On Tuesday, DeSantis said he didn’t “take joy” in presiding over the double execution of James Duckett, 68, and Dominick Occhicone, 80, earlier in the day or “take pride” in signing the warrants even though it will be “more than any administration in the history of the state.” But DeSantis said capital punishment is needed to “bring justice,” as “some of the victims' families have been waiting a long time.” “We do owe it to them to do it,” DeSantis said Tuesday night at the Florida Sheriffs Association Summer Conference at Trump National Doral. “And it doesn't take away what happened,” he continued. “I don't know if closure is the right word, because you'll probably never get full closure. But at least knowing justice was served is something that was very important to a lot of people.” DeSantis also questioned the length of the appeals process. “You shouldn't be going for 20 years,” he said. “You should be able to try and maybe appeal, but then at some point, we've got to get cracking here.” According to court records, on Aug. 13, 1976 Lucas went to the home of 16-year-old Jill Piper, a week after being arrested for criminal trespassing at the residence. Armed with a rifle, Lucas, 24 at the time, shot at Piper and two friends while they were in the yard. Piper was hit and her friends ran inside. The two friends were later shot and survived. Piper was shot several more times and died. Lucas was arrested the next day. He testified that he remembered getting high on the night of the murders, lost consciousness and woke up in the woods. He was found guilty of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted first-degree murder in 1977, with a jury unanimously recommending a sentence of death. The sentence has been revisited four times, including after an 11-1 jury recommendation in 1987 for the death penalty, but it was never altered. After a modern-era record 19 executions in 2025, Florida has conducted 12 executions this year. William Frances Silvia, 61, who was convicted of fatally shooting his estranged wife at her mother’s Casselberry-area home in 2006, is scheduled for execution on Aug. 18. DOWNLOAD the free Gulf Coast News app for your latest news and alerts on breaking news, weather, sports, entertainment, and more on your phone or tablet. And check out the Very Local Gulf Coast app to stream news, entertainment and original programming on your TV.
