Florida Executes 77-Year-Old Inmate for 1986 Deputy Murder as State Nears Annual Record
Florida carries out its 18th execution of 2026, putting William Reaves to death for the 1986 killing of a deputy as the state nears a record-breaking pace.
POLICY WIRE — Starke, Florida — Florida officials executed 77-year-old William Reaves on Tuesday, marking the state’s 18th lethal injection of the year. The procedure took place at the Florida State Prison near Starke, continuing a trend of aggressive capital punishment enforcement during Governor Ron DeSantis’ final term in office.
Reaves was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. following the administration of a three-drug cocktail. Medical staff confirmed his death shortly after the warden attempted to elicit a response from the inmate, who had ceased moving approximately 30 seconds after the injection process began.
The inmate had been on death row for the 1986 murder of Indian River County Deputy Richard Raczkowski. According to court documents, the fatal encounter occurred after a struggle over a firearm that fell from Reaves’ clothing while the deputy was responding to a 911 call at a Vero Beach convenience store. Reaves shot the deputy four times as he attempted to flee the scene.
This case marks the eighth time this year that Florida has executed a prisoner over the age of 70, underscoring the aging demographic of the state’s death row population. With one additional execution scheduled for November, the state is on track to potentially match or exceed the record of 19 executions set last year.
Legal challenges regarding the execution were exhausted last week when the Florida Supreme Court denied final appeals. Defense attorneys had contested the state’s three-drug lethal injection protocol and argued that jurors were never informed of Reaves’ status as a Vietnam War veteran suffering from 100% service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder.
Governor DeSantis, who is set to leave office in January, has maintained that his administration is focused on providing closure to the families of victims. Meanwhile, Florida continues to lead the nation in capital punishment, accounting for more than half of the 31 executions carried out across the United States so far in 2026.
The state’s next scheduled execution is set for November 5, involving Jesse Guardado, who was convicted for a 2004 robbery and murder. Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
