Florida Executes James Aren Duckett and Dominick Anthony Occhicone in Rare Double Execution
Florida carried out its first double execution since 1964 on Tuesday, putting to death James Aren Duckett and Dominick Anthony Occhicone in the same day. James Aren Duckett, a former police officer, was executed at 1:19 p.m. for the 1987 rape and murder of 11-year-old Teresa McAbee. Despite maintaining his innocence for decades, Duckett was executed via a three-drug lethal injection. Later that afternoon, Dominick Anthony Occhicone was executed at 6:13 p.m. At 80 years old, Occhicone became the oldest prisoner executed in modern Florida history. He was convicted of the 1986 killings of his ex-girlfriend’s parents. The administration of the state's death penalty has accelerated under Governor Ron DeSantis, making Florida the nation's busiest death penalty state. While some experts warned that the rapid pace of executions could lead to torturous deaths, the administration maintained that the speed is necessary to provide justice for families who have waited decades for closure.