STARKE, Fla. (AP) – Andrew Richard Lukehart, a 53-year-old Florida man, is scheduled to be executed on Tuesday evening for the murder of his girlfriend’s infant daughter, Gabrielle Hanshaw, three decades ago. The execution is set to take place at 6 p.m. at the Florida State Prison located in Starke. Lukehart was sentenced to death after being convicted in 1997 of first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse related to the death of the 5-month-old child, which occurred in February 1996.
The upcoming execution marks the eighth in Florida for this year, following a record 19 executions executed in 2025, which were overseen by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. This administration has seen the highest number of executions in a single year since the death penalty was reinstated in Florida in 1976, surpassing the previous record of eight executions set in 2014.
The tragic case dates back to February 1996 when Lukehart was caring for Gabrielle while his girlfriend looked after her older, ill daughter. At one point, the girlfriend reported that Lukehart had driven away from their Jacksonville home and that the baby had gone missing. Lukehart later called her, claiming the baby had been kidnapped and that he was pursuing the supposed kidnapper.
Later that evening, law enforcement discovered Lukehart in a neighboring county after he drove his car off the road. During subsequent questioning the following day, he confessed to investigators that he accidentally caused Gabrielle’s death by dropping the child and subsequently shaking her. In a panic, he admitted to throwing the infant's body into a nearby pond. Subsequent searches by law enforcement led to the discovery of the baby’s body in the pond.
Last week, the Florida Supreme Court denied Lukehart’s appeals, which argued that his medication for kidney disease could negatively interact with the lethal injection drugs. His attorneys also contended that the time frame between Lukehart's death warrant being signed and the execution was too short, thereby depriving him of due process. Additionally, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Lukehart's final appeal on Monday.
In the broader context, the United States executed 47 individuals in 2025, with Florida leading this statistic. The state surpassed Alabama, South Carolina, and Texas, which all executed five individuals each during the same period. Another execution in Florida is scheduled for later this month, involving Dusty Ray Spencer, a 74-year-old man convicted of fatally stabbing his wife in 1992.
Florida's executions are carried out via a lethal injection protocol that includes a sedative, a paralytic agent, and a drug intended to stop the heart, as outlined by the Department of Corrections.
