STARKE — Florida executed James Aren Duckett and Dominick Anthony Occhicone on July 28, 2026, using lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. The coordinated proceedings made Florida the first state in nearly a decade to carry out two executions in a single day.

Duckett, 68, was pronounced dead at 1:19 p.m. after a warden shook him and shouted his name during the procedure. When asked if he wished to make a final statement, Duckett responded "no sir" and declined to speak further.

James Aren Duckett was convicted of raping and drowning 11-year-old Teresa McAbee in 1987. He was working as a police officer in Mascotte, Florida, at the time of the crime, and his victim's body was found near Knight Lake. Duckett maintained his innocence throughout the legal process leading up to his execution.

Dominick Anthony Occhicone, 80, was pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m. with his lethal injection beginning at 6:02 p.m. Occhicone was strapped to a gurney with an IV in his arm, and a spiritual adviser stood near his feet during the execution. A warden shook Occhicone and yelled his name as the procedure commenced.

"I know it don't mean much, but I'm sorry," Dominick Anthony Occhicone said. "I never meant to do what I did." He thanked his Christian brothers for visiting him and apologized to his family and the victims' families.

Dominick Anthony Occhicone was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend's parents, Raymond and Martha Artzner, in 1986. The murders occurred in Holiday, Florida, where Raymond Artzner identified Occhicone as the shooter before dying, and Martha Artzner was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds.

Occhicone is the oldest prisoner executed in Florida's history since modern record-keeping began. He is also the second-oldest inmate known to receive a lethal injection in modern U.S. history, following Walter Moody Jr. who was executed in Alabama in 2018 at age 83.

The executions followed a series of legal denials in the weeks prior. The Florida Supreme Court removed the stay on Duckett's execution on July 8, 2026, and denied his appeal on July 24, 2026. The U.S. Supreme Court denied final appeals from both men on July 28, 2026, clearing the way for the state to proceed.

Governor Ron DeSantis signed the death warrants for both executions. In a statement regarding the pace of capital punishment in the state, he said, "Justice delayed is justice denied." Reports indicated that DeSantis oversaw a record 19 executions in 2025, more in a single year than any other Florida governor since the reinstatement of the death penalty in the United States in 1976.

Grace Hanna, executive director of Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, criticized the recent activity. "Florida continues to expand the use of capital punishment, despite mounting evidence that it is not what Floridians want," Grace Hanna said.

All Florida executions are conducted by injection of a sedative, a paralytic, and a drug that stops the heart. The state has conducted 12 executions in 2026, following 19 executions in 2025. Since 2025 began, Florida has carried out nearly half the state executions across the country.

Overall, Florida now has executed 30 people since the beginning of 2025 while the rest of the US states combined have carried out 35 executions over the same period. This frequency marks a shift from historical norms, as the last time Florida executed more than one person in a single day was in 1964. Arkansas executed two men on the same day in 2017, representing the most recent prior instance of such an event in the U.S.

Recent executions in Florida have included older inmates, such as Dusty Ray Spencer and Dennis Sochor, both 74, who were executed in July 2026. Another execution in Florida is set for August 2026, with William Silvia scheduled for execution on August 18, 2026.

The simultaneous executions highlight Florida's central role in the current landscape of capital punishment in the United States. As a state of the United States of America established in 1845, Florida has recently accounted for a disproportionate share of national executions, with 30 carried out since 2025 compared to 35 in all other states combined. This volume represents a significant increase in activity, with the state conducting nearly half of all U.S. executions in this period.

The events also underscore the legal and procedural finality of the death penalty in the state, where appeals were denied by both state and federal courts in the days leading up to the executions. The use of lethal injection, involving a three-drug protocol, remains the standard method for these state-sanctioned actions, which continue to draw divergent responses from officials and advocacy groups regarding their necessity and public support.