David Joseph execution-of-polk-county-triple-murderer-david-pittman/” title=”Sheriff Grady Judd To Witness … Of … Triple … – Tampa”>Pittman Executed in Florida: A 35-Year Case Closes with Claims of innocence
Starke, FL – David Joseph Pittman, convicted of the brutal 1990 murders of his estranged wife’s family in Mulberry, Florida, was executed by lethal injection at 6:00 PM on September 17th at Florida State Prison. The execution marks the state’s 12th of the year, a record number.
Pittman, 63, was found guilty in April 1991 of three counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Clarence and Barbara Knowles, and their daughter, Bonnie. The crimes were especially heinous: Pittman stabbed the victims, slit Bonnie Knowles’ throat, then set the family home ablaze, attempting to destroy evidence and prevent the victims from calling for help by cutting the telephone lines. He subsequently stole their daughter’s car,abandoning and burning it in a nearby ditch.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, a first responder on the scene at the time as a patrol division major, described the scene as particularly disturbing. “He purchased gasoline to start the fire,” Judd stated,highlighting the premeditation involved in the killings.
The motive behind the murders stemmed from a complex web of personal grievances. Court records reveal Pittman’s wife had served him with divorce papers while he was already incarcerated on an unrelated charge. Further fueling his rage was Bonnie Knowles’ 1989 allegation that Pittman had raped her – a case ultimately dropped due to a delay in filing the charges.
(See video above: Reaction to David Joseph Pittman’s execution outside the prison)
Pittman was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m., according to the Florida Department of Corrections. In his final moments, he maintained his innocence, stating, “I know you all came to watch an innocent man be murdered by the State of Florida. I am innocent. I didn’t kill anybody. that’s it,” as reported by WFLA TV News.
The case, spanning 35 years from the crime to the execution, underscores the lengthy and complex nature of capital punishment cases. The execution of David Joseph Pittman brings a somber close to a decades-old tragedy for the Knowles family and raises continued debate surrounding the death penalty and the possibility of wrongful convictions.
Keywords: David Joseph Pittman, execution, Florida, murder, Polk County, death penalty, lethal injection, crime, Florida State Prison, Sheriff Grady Judd, wrongful conviction.
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