STARKE, Fla. (AP) — A Florida man, Edward Zakrzewski, who was convicted of brutally murdering his wife and two children in 1994 using a machete, is scheduled for execution on Thursday. This execution, which will use lethal injection, marks a significant moment as it would be the ninth death penalty carried out in the state in 2025, setting a new record for the highest annual total. This execution is part of a broader wave of capital punishment in Florida, where two additional executions are already scheduled on August 19 and August 28, respectively.
Sixty-year-old Zakrzewski, an Air Force veteran, received a death warrant signed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, which mandates that he be executed at 6 p.m. at the Florida State Prison in Starke. His last appeal to stay the execution was turned down by the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday, leaving no further legal avenues open for him to avoid capital punishment.
Florida's historical context shows that the state previously executed a maximum of eight individuals in a single year, which occurred in 2014 following the restoration of the death penalty by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1976. As of the current year, Florida has taken the lead in executions nationwide, having executed more individuals than any other state, while Texas and South Carolina are tied for second with four executions each.
The horrific killings occurred in 1994 when Zakrzewski murdered his 34-year-old wife, Sylvia, and their two young children, Edward, aged 7, and Anna, aged 5. Testimony during the trial revealed that the murders were premeditated, driven by Zakrzewski's anger over his wife's desire for a divorce. He had even expressed intentions to kill his family rather than allow the separation. The method of attack was brutal; Sylvia was initially attacked with a crowbar and subsequently strangled with a rope. Zakrzewski then killed both children with a machete, and he struck Sylvia again in an attempt to ensure she was dead, believing she had survived the initial assault.
Opponents of Zakrzewski's execution have raised several concerns, particularly highlighting his military background and the fact that the jury's recommendation for the death penalty was not unanimous, reflecting a 7-5 vote. Under current Florida law, an execution cannot be carried out if the jury’s vote is not unanimous, which raises questions about the fairness of the judicial process in this case. Despite these appeals for clemency and legal challenges initiated by Zakrzewski's attorneys over the years, all efforts to overturn the death sentence have been unsuccessful.
In a broader context, the Action Network has mobilized against the execution by organizing petitions and urging individuals to contact Governor DeSantis’s office. They argue that the death penalty does not enhance public safety and that the execution will only serve to perpetuate violence in a tragic narrative. Their campaign emphasizes that justice can be achieved without resorting to the death penalty.
So far in 2025, the United States has seen 26 court-ordered executions, with an additional 11 scheduled across seven states for the remainder of the year. Florida recently executed Michael Bernard Bell by lethal injection on July 15 and has now advanced plans for the 10th execution of the year, involving Kayle Bates, who was convicted of kidnapping and murdering a woman more than 40 years ago. Additionally, Governor DeSantis has signed an execution warrant for Curtis Windom, who is scheduled for execution on August 28 after being convicted of three murders in the Orlando area in 1992.
Florida employs a three-drug protocol for its lethal injections, which consists of a sedative, a paralytic agent, and a medication that induces cardiac arrest, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.
