Florida Set to Carry Out 12th Execution of 2025, Despite Claims of Intellectual Disability
Live Oak, Florida – Florida is scheduled to execute Gary pittman tonight, marking teh state’s 12th execution of 2025 and intensifying scrutiny of Governor Ron DeSantis‘s rapid pace of capital punishment. Pittman was convicted of the 1990 murders of Barbara Knowles, her husband, and their daughter, and afterward setting fire to their home and the daughter’s car.
Pittman’s case has drawn renewed attention due to claims of intellectual disability, with his lawyers arguing his IQ score in the low 70s, evident at the time of the crimes, renders his execution unconstitutional. Though, both the florida Supreme Court and state attorneys have maintained that such claims are too late to be considered, with the state asserting, “Pittman’s underlying intellectual disability claim is meritless. He was not intellectually disabled when he murdered the three victims in 1990 or when he whent to trial in 1991.”
The 1990 triple homicide unfolded when Pittman killed Barbara Knowles, 50; her husband; and their 21-year-old daughter, Bonnie Knowles. A witness identified Pittman fleeing the burning car stolen after the murders, and a jailhouse informant testified to Pittman’s confession. Jurors initially recommended the death penalty by a 9-3 vote.
Florida leads the nation in executions this year, with 30 executions carried out nationwide as of today. The previous execution in the state occurred on August 28th with the lethal injection of Curtis Windom, convicted of a 1992 triple murder. Florida utilizes a three-drug injection protocol – a sedative, a paralytic, and a drug to stop the heart – for its executions.
