Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis withdrew the death warrant for William Lee Thompson on Thursday, and the move canceled the execution of the 74-year-old inmate. Ron DeSantis withdraws execution order after Thompson had been set to die on Tuesday.
The change came in a Thursday afternoon letter to Florida State Prison Warden Randall Polk. DeSantis did not state a reason in that letter.
William Lee Thompson and Sept. 11
Thompson had been scheduled to be one of two inmates executed on Tuesday, hours after James Robertson. Robertson was 63 years old and was to die for the 2008 murder of his cellmate, Frank Hart, at the Charlotte Correctional Institution.
Grace Hanna, executive director of Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, said that after DeSantis signed Thompson's death warrant on Sept. 11, counsel notified the governor of Thompson's physical and mental conditions. Hanna said Thompson did not know where he was, stated that 'Bush' was the president, and, at times, did not even recognize that he had been sentenced to death.
Florida Supreme Court and 26-192
DeSantis commissioned a three-member panel of psychiatrists less than a week after issuing the warrant. In executive order 26-192, he wrote that counsel alleged Thompson may be insane. He also wrote that a neuropsychologist met with Thompson on Sept. 15 and opined that he meets the criteria for insanity due to dementia and significant cognitive decline as Thompson lacks the mental capacity to understand the fact of his impending execution and the reason for it.
Thompson's counsel and opponents of the death penalty said he has several health issues, including dementia and heart failure. Counsel also filed a federal lawsuit seeking care for those medical conditions.
Randall Polk and Thursday
The Florida Supreme Court denied Thompson's motion for a stay hours before DeSantis withdrew the warrant. Grace Hanna said, 'In accordance with state law, he underwent an evaluation last week. Officials never released the findings or explained today's withdrawal.'
Thompson's case also sits beside another execution fight in Tennessee. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee halted executions in Tennessee and ordered an independent investigation after Tennessee failed to execute Christa Pike on Sept. 30, and in May Tennessee halted another execution when an adequate intravenous line could not be found for the lethal injection. For Thompson, the immediate result is simple: the warrant is gone, the scheduled execution is off, and the reason for the withdrawal has not been stated.
