Camilla Jessen
State carries out 19th execution of the year.
A Florida man convicted of murdering a man and his girlfriend during a home invasion has been executed, marking the state’s 19th execution this year.
Frank Athen Walls was put to death by lethal injection on Thursday evening at Florida State Prison near Starke, according to the Associated Press.
The execution began at 6 p.m. local time on Nov. 18, and Walls was pronounced dead at 6:11 p.m. He became the 47th person executed in the United States this year, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
Florida now leads the nation in executions for 2025.
The previous annual high for the state since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976 was eight executions in 2014.
Final statement
A spokesman for Governor Ron DeSantis said Walls made a brief statement before his death.
“Good evening, everyone. I appreciate the opportunity to say what’s on my heart. If any of the members of the family are here, I am sorry for all of the things I did, the pain I caused, and all of that you have suffered all these years,” Walls said, according to the AP.
A Catholic priest was seated near Walls during the execution, with his hand extended toward him.
The crime
Walls was convicted of killing Edward Alger, an airman stationed at Eglin Air Force Base, and Alger’s girlfriend, Ann Peterson. Court records show Walls broke into their mobile home in Florida’s Panhandle in July 1987.
Prosecutors said he tied the couple up. After Alger broke free, Walls slit his throat and shot him. He then shot Peterson as she struggled to escape.
Long legal history
Walls was first sentenced to death in 1988. The Florida Supreme Court later overturned the conviction and ordered a new trial. He was again convicted and sentenced to death in 1992.
Years later, DNA evidence linked Walls to the 1987 rape and murder of Audrey Gygi. He pleaded no contest to avoid another trial and possible death sentence. As part of plea agreements, he also admitted responsibility for two other killings in the 1980s.
Florida carries out executions using a three-drug lethal injection protocol: a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that stops the heart, according to the state Department of Corrections.
Sources: Associated Press; Florida Department of Corrections; Death Penalty Information Center.
