Florida Carries Out 16th Execution of 2023, Highest Number in Over Four Decades
Florida reached a somber milestone Thursday evening, executing Bryan Frederick Jennings – the 16th person put to death in the state this year, a figure exceeding any annual total since 1976. Jennings, 66, was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m. at Florida State Prison near Starke following a three-drug injection for the 1979 murder of six-year-old Rebecca Kunash.
The execution underscores a significant increase in capital punishment across the United States, with Florida leading the way. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, a total of 42 executions have been carried out nationwide so far this year, with at least 16 more scheduled through 2026.
Jennings was convicted of abducting Kunash from her bedroom, raping her, and ultimately drowning her in a canal. Trial testimony revealed the horrific details of the crime, including evidence that Jennings “swung her by her legs to the ground with such force that she fractured her skull” before the drowning.
Authorities apprehended Jennings hours after the abduction on an unrelated traffic warrant. Investigators connected him to the crime scene through shoe prints, fingerprints on the girl’s windowsill, and the fact that his clothing and hair were wet – consistent with having been near the canal.
The path to Jennings’ execution was protracted, marked by multiple convictions and reversals. He was initially sentenced to death twice in Brevard County, but both verdicts were overturned on appeal. A third trial in 1986 ultimately resulted in a final death sentence, alongside life sentences for kidnapping, sexual assault, and burglary.
Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, has been a driving force behind the surge in executions. He signed Jennings’ death warrant and has overseen a dramatic increase in the number of executions carried out in Florida, surpassing the previous record of eight set in 2014. “Justice delayed is justice denied,” DeSantis recently stated, explaining his commitment to carrying out sentences handed down decades ago. “I felt I owed it to them to make sure this ran very smoothly. If I honestly thought someone was innocent, I would not pull the trigger.”
Jennings declined to make a final statement before his execution. Witnesses reported that his chest heaved and his arms twitched for several minutes as the drugs were administered, before he lay still. A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections confirmed the execution took place “without incident” and “without complications.” No family members of the victim spoke to the media following the procedure.
The state has two more executions scheduled: Richard Barry Randolph on November 20 and Mark Allen Geralds on December 9. If carried out, these would bring Florida’s total executions for the year to 18.
The increase in executions in Florida comes as other states also grapple with capital punishment. On Friday, Stephen Bryant is scheduled to be executed by firing squad in South Carolina for a killing spree that spanned five days. However, in Oklahoma, Governor Kevin Stitt commuted Tremane Wood’s sentence to life in prison just moments before his scheduled lethal injection on Thursday, offering a contrasting example of executive clemency.
