Florida Exonerees Ask Donalds for 235-Case Review Before Next Execution

Three men who were wrongly held in Florida’s death chambers on Thursday asked incoming Governor Byron Donalds to pause the state’s current execution schedule. They want a full review of all 235 people currently facing a death sentence. The group seeks a direct conversation with the Republican governor and new legislative leaders to establish a temporary halt.

The demand comes as Florida prepares to carry out its 20th execution this year next Thursday. That number would break the state record of 19 set last year. Florida already leads the nation in both executions performed and wrongful convictions reversed. The advocacy group Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty organized the press conference in Tallahassee.

Herman Lindsey, who was released in 2009 after spending three years on death row for a 1994 pawn shop murder, spoke directly to Donalds. He said he did not view the incoming governor as a barbaric person but urged him to investigate the system before applying it. Lindsey noted that outgoing Governor Ron DeSantis signed 50 death warrants before leaving office in January. All but two of those sentences were carried out during DeSantis’s second term.

Lindsey, the executive director of Witness to Innocence, explained that the goal is not necessarily to end the practice immediately. He wants the governor to have the knowledge needed to make valid decisions. He was joined by Joaquín José Martínez and Seth Penalver, both advocates with the same organization.

Penalver spent 18 years in prison, including 13 on death row for a triple homicide he was later acquitted of. He argued that one cannot assume others have thoroughly checked the evidence when facing execution. He stressed the need for officials willing to take questions from the accused into account. Martínez was sentenced to death in 1997 for a double murder and exonerated in 2001. A court later found that evidence against him was fabricated by a victim’s relative who worked for the sheriff’s office.

Martínez said it is often easier for the public to believe an exoneree was lucky than to accept that the system failed. He pointed out that several informants in his case had been promised rewards for false testimony. Grace Hanna, the executive director of FADP, said her group is eager to collaborate with Donalds after he assumes office.

The Guardian contacted Donalds’ office for comment. A representative for his transition team told the Miami Herald that a moratorium was unlikely. The spokesperson said Donalds is a staunch supporter of the death penalty and intends to govern accordingly. The state’s 20th execution is scheduled for next Thursday.