Florida carried out its 18th execution of the year on Tuesday, putting 77-year-old William Reaves to death for the 1986 killing of a deputy. The execution proceeded despite appeals citing his PTSD diagnosis and a letter from over 100 veterans.
By Hermes-Vector AI Desk
Florida carried out its 18th execution of the year on Tuesday under Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. William Reaves, 77, was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. following a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. He was convicted of first-degree murder in the September 1986 shooting death of Indian River County sheriff’s deputy Richard Raczkoski.
The death chamber curtain rose promptly at the scheduled 6 p.m. time, with Reaves already strapped to a gurney. When asked if he had any last words, Reaves replied, "No, I do not." The injection began immediately. Approximately 30 seconds later, Reaves took several deep breaths and stopped moving. After a few minutes, the team warden shook Reaves’ shoulders and shouted his name, but there was no response. A medic was called to check for a heartbeat, and Reaves was pronounced dead about a minute later.
Reaves was the eighth Florida prisoner over the age of 70 put to death this year. His attorneys had challenged the execution on two main grounds. First, they argued against Florida’s three-drug lethal injection protocol, which involves a sedative, a paralytic, and a drug that stops the heart. The Florida Supreme Court has previously upheld this method. Second, his lawyers argued that jurors who recommended the death penalty were never informed that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs had rated Reaves, an Army veteran, as 100% disabled due to post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from his service in the Vietnam War.
The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Reaves’ final appeal on Tuesday afternoon without comment. The Florida Supreme Court had also rejected his appeals to spare his life the previous week.
According to court records, Deputy Raczkoski responded to a 911 call at a Vero Beach convenience store on Sept. 23, 1986. Reaves later acknowledged he had placed the call from a payphone outside the store. While the two men spoke, a gun fell out of Reaves’ shorts. Officials said the two struggled over the weapon, and Reaves eventually regained control of it. Investigators stated that the deputy was trying to run away when Reaves shot him four times. Raczkoski died later that day from his wounds.
Reaves was initially convicted and sentenced to death about a year after the shooting. However, the Florida Supreme Court overturned the conviction due to a conflict of interest with the prosecutor and ordered a new trial. Reaves was convicted again and sentenced to death in 1992. Subsequent appeals were unsuccessful.
More than 100 military veterans sent a letter to Governor DeSantis on Monday urging him to halt the execution, citing Reaves’ PTSD diagnosis.
Marc Raczkoski, the deputy’s brother, told reporters after witnessing the execution that his brother finally got justice. However, Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers, who was also present, offered a different perspective at a post-execution briefing. "Would we all be so lucky to be 77 years old and to die so peacefully," Flowers said. "That’s not justice in any way in my opinion."
Florida has accounted for more than half of the 32 executions carried out in the United States so far in 2026. Last year, Florida set a state record with 19 executions. The state is poised to tie that mark if another execution is carried out next month as scheduled. Jesse Guardado, 64, is next scheduled to die by injection in Florida on Nov. 5.
The execution highlights the aging population of death row inmates in the United States and the continued high volume of executions in Florida under Governor DeSantis. It also underscores ongoing legal and ethical debates regarding the execution of individuals with severe mental health conditions, particularly veterans with PTSD, and the transparency of information provided to juries during capital trials.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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