Death row
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Florida executes Harold Gene Lucas, 14th prisoner put to death this year
Lucas, 74, was killed by lethal injection for the 1976 murder of a 16-year-old girl in Bonita Springs. Relatives told reporters they felt a long-delayed sense of relief.
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RAIFORD, Fla.: Florida executed Harold Gene Lucas on Tuesday, the 14th death-row prisoner the state has put to death this year and one of the oldest in recent memory.
Lucas, 74, was convicted of killing his 16-year-old former girlfriend in Bonita Springs in 1976. He died by lethal injection at Florida State Prison. The death warrant was the latest in a record pace of executions under Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Family members of the victim told the Naples Daily News they felt a “sense of relief” after five decades. Opponents of capital punishment, including Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, called the killing a failure of the justice system, not a closing of it.
Florida is on a historically aggressive execution calendar in 2026. Bay News will continue to report each warrant as it is signed.