Florida has executed a man who proclaimed his innocence until his final breath, marking the state’s record-breaking 12th execution of 2025 under Governor DeSantis’s aggressive death penalty agenda.
Story Snapshot
- David Pittman was executed on September 17th after maintaining innocence for 34 years on death row.
- Florida sets a new state record with 12 executions in 2025, surpassing all previous years.
- The DeSantis administration has dramatically accelerated the pace of the death penalty since 2023.
- Florida leads the nation with 30 death row exonerations, raising wrongful conviction concerns.
Final Declaration of Innocence Ignored
David Pittman, 63, used his last moments to declare his innocence before lethal injection at Florida State Prison. “I know you all came to watch an innocent man be murdered by the state of Florida. I am innocent. I didn’t kill anybody. That’s it,” Pittman stated.
Convicted in 1991 for murdering his estranged wife’s sister and parents, Pittman spent 34 years fighting his conviction through multiple appeals, including claims of intellectual disability that courts rejected.
The execution proceeded despite Pittman’s consistent protestations of innocence throughout three decades of legal challenges. His final appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied hours before the scheduled execution time.
State prosecutors maintained that evidence supported the conviction for the May 1990 triple murder and arson in Apopka, Florida.
Florida man uses last words to insist he’s innocent during state’s record 12th execution of the year https://t.co/z9rLjHaVjn pic.twitter.com/ZOEOOtEm2p
— New York Post (@nypost) September 18, 2025
DeSantis Sets Unprecedented Execution Record
Governor Ron DeSantis has transformed Florida into the nation’s execution capital, signing more death warrants than any previous governor in state history.
The 12 executions in 2025 shatter Florida’s previous annual record, with additional executions scheduled through October.
This aggressive approach represents a dramatic shift from previous administrations that processed death penalty cases more deliberately and with greater scrutiny of potential wrongful convictions.
Florida’s execution machinery operates with unprecedented efficiency under DeSantis, who has streamlined the warrant-signing process and reduced traditional review periods.
The governor’s office has dismissed concerns about rushing cases, arguing that lengthy appeals processes deny justice to victims’ families.
This acceleration occurs despite Florida maintaining the second-largest death row population nationally and leading all states in death row exonerations with 30 wrongfully convicted individuals freed since 1976.
Legislative Changes Lower Execution Standards
Recent legislative changes have made Florida’s death penalty system the most aggressive in America. In 2023, Florida lowered its jury requirement for death sentences from unanimity to just 8-4, the lowest threshold nationwide.
Additionally, Senate Bill 4C, signed in February 2025, mandates death sentences for certain unauthorized immigrants convicted of capital felonies, further expanding execution-eligible crimes beyond traditional murder cases.
These changes concern constitutional scholars who warn about due process violations and the increased risk of executing innocent individuals.
The lowered jury threshold particularly troubles legal experts, as it allows death sentences despite significant juror doubt about guilt or appropriateness of execution.
Traditional conservative principles of careful deliberation and constitutional protections appear sacrificed for political expediency in Florida’s rush to execute.
