On Thursday, December 19, the state of Florida carried out the death penalty on Frank Athen Walls, a 58-year-old man convicted of murder in 1992. With this execution, Walls became the 19th person executed in Florida this year, an unprecedented figure that marks a historic record since the death penalty was reinstated in the United States in 1976.
Florida accounts for two out of every five executions in the United States in 2025
So far this year, the United States has carried out 46 executions, a number that will rise to 47 with Walls’ death, pending the resolution of an outstanding case in Georgia.
Florida is positioned as the state with the most executions in 2025, accounting for two out of every five death penalty procedures carried out in the country, far ahead of other states such as Alabama, Texas, and South Carolina, which each account for five.
Who was Frank Athen Walls and why was he convicted?
Frank Athen Walls was convicted of murdering a couple in 1987, when he was 19 years old. According to court records, the crime occurred after breaking into the victims’ home in a Florida county.
After more than three decades on death row, the Court of Appeals rejected the defense’s final appeal, which argued that Walls suffered from serious medical conditions that could intensify his suffering during the execution.
Lethal injection execution at Florida State Prison
The execution was carried out at 6:00 p.m. (local time) at the Florida State Prison in Raiford, west of Jacksonville, by lethal injection, the most commonly used method in the country.
All 19 executions carried out in Florida this year were conducted by lethal injection, far surpassing the previous state record of eight executions per year, set in 1984 and 2014.
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Methods of execution in the United States: Beyond lethal injection
Although lethal injection remains the predominant method, with 39 executions in 2025, other procedures have sparked controversy:
Nitrogen gas: applied to five inmates in Alabama and Louisiana, considered controversial by medical specialists due to the high level of suffering prior to death.
Firing squad: used in three executions in South Carolina, marking the first time this method has been employed since 2010. So far this century, it has only been used four times.
Ron DeSantis and the easing of the death penalty in Florida
Florida is one of the 27 U.S. states that still has the death penalty in effect, but its accelerated increase in executions is attributed to recent legal changes and the political support of Governor Ron DeSantis.
Since 2023, Florida has been one of only two states—along with Alabama—where jury unanimity is not required to impose the death penalty. Currently, only eight out of twelve jurors’ votes are required to recommend execution, the lowest threshold in the country.
Florida death row: current figures
Florida currently has 265 inmates on death row, making it the second-highest state in the country, behind only California, which has over 500 inmates, although it has maintained a moratorium on executions since 2019.
Scheduled executions in the United States for next year
Looking ahead to 2026, the United States already has 13 executions scheduled:
- Ohio: 6
- Tennessee: 4
- Texas: 3
However, authorities warn that the number could rise as governors sign new execution orders.
