Execution of Former Florida Officer Postponed by Court
The Florida Supreme Court has temporarily halted the execution of James Aren Duckett, a former police officer, who was convicted in 1988 for the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl. The execution was scheduled to occur at Florida State Prison, near Starke, using a three-drug injection method.
Duckett, who is 68 years old, was sentenced to death for the first-degree murder and sexual assault of Teresa McAbee. Her body was discovered in a lake near a convenience store where she was last seen entering Duckett’s patrol car on the night of May 11, 1987. Evidence such as blood, hair, and fingerprints linked her to Duckett, along with tire tracks from Mascotte patrol cars.
In a recent development in his appeals process, Duckett requested DNA testing, claiming it could clear his name. A circuit court approved the request, and the testing is currently underway. The Florida Supreme Court has given the state a deadline until 5 p.m. Friday to report on the DNA testing’s progress.
The delay has left the timing of the execution uncertain if the stay is not lifted by Tuesday. Duckett’s case comes in the context of a year marked by a high number of executions in Florida. In 2025, under Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida conducted 19 executions—the most in a single year since the death penalty’s reinstatement in 1976. This surpassed Florida’s previous record of eight executions in 2014.
As per the Department of Corrections, Florida carries out executions using a combination of a sedative, a paralytic, and a heart-stopping drug. Across the United States, 47 executions occurred in 2025, with Florida leading. Alabama, South Carolina, and Texas each carried out five executions, tying for second place.
Additional testimony in Duckett’s trial included accounts from three teenage girls, who claimed Duckett had given them rides and made sexual advances.
