74-year-old man accused of killing wife becomes the oldest recorded execution in modern Florida history
A 74-year-old Florida man who was convicted of fatally stabbing his wife on Thursday became the oldest person executed in the state since it began modern record-keeping in 1924.
Dusty Ray Spencer was pronounced dead at 6:10 p.m. after receiving a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. Spencer had been found guilty of the 1992 stabbing death of his wife Karen.
The curtain to the death chamber went up promptly at the scheduled 6 p.m. execution time and the warden asked Spencer if he had any last words. Spencer was already strapped down on a metal table with an IV inserted in his arm. A spiritual adviser was at the foot of the table.
"Sorry, sorry to the family. Into thy hands I commit my spirit and my soul. I'm on my way, Lord. I'm on my way. Amen," Spencer said.
Immediately following Spencer's statement, the lethal drugs began flowing. After a few minutes of labored breathing, Spencer stopped moving. Afterward, relatives of the victim released no statement.
The warden then shook Spencer and shouted his name several times but there was no response. Several more minutes elapsed before a medic was called in to check Spencer's vital signs, and the inmate was declared dead.
Alex Lanfranconi, a spokesman in the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis, separately told The Associated Press that there were no complications.
Florida Department of Correction records show the oldest inmates previously executed by the state were both 72 — Samuel Lee Smithers on Oct. 14, 2025, for the 1996 killings of two women; and R. Charlie Gifford on Feb. 21, 1951, for the 1950 shooting death of a state lawmaker, Charles Schuh Jr.
Another 74-year-old Florida inmate, Dennis Sochor, is set to be executed on July 14. Socor was convicted of killing a woman just hours into 1982 after meeting her at a New Year's Eve party.
Nationwide, the oldest person ever executed in modern times was Walter Leroy Moody Jr., 83, who was put to death in Alabama in 2018 for sending mail bombs during a wave of Southern terror, killing a federal judge and a Black civil rights attorney.
Thursday's execution was the ninth in Florida this year after a record 19 executions in 2025. DeSantis, a Republican, oversaw more executions in a single year in 2025 than any other Florida governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. The previous record was eight executions set in 2014.
Court records show Spencer was arrested after choking and threatening to kill Karen Spencer in December 1991. While in jail, Dusty Ray Spencer called his wife and warned her that when he got out, he was going to finish what he started.
Police found victim with several stab wounds to chest
On Jan. 18, 1992, Spencer beat his wife's teenage son with a clothes iron when the boy tried to stop Spencer from attacking his mother, officials said. Then about a week later, the son responded to a commotion outside their home and found Spencer hitting his mother in the head with a brick, according to officials.
Court records show the teen tried to shoot Spencer with a rifle, but the gun misfired. Spencer threatened the teen with a knife, and the boy ran away to get help. When police arrived, they found Karen Spencer dead with several stab wounds to the chest.
Spencer was initially sentenced to death in 1992 after being convicted of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, aggravated assault and aggravated battery. In 1994, the Florida Supreme Court ordered a new sentencing after finding that the trial court had mishandled evaluating aggravating and mitigating circumstances. Spencer was resentenced to death the next year, and subsequent appeals have been denied.
Florida Supreme Court rejected appeals from Dusty Ray Spencer
Last week, the state Supreme Court rejected Spencer's appeals. His attorneys had argued that he has health issues such as liver disease that pose a heightened risk of pain and suffering and argued that executing him at his advanced age would constitute cruel and unusual punishment.
A final appeal was still pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.
A total of 47 people were executed in the U.S. in 2025. Florida led the way with a flurry of death warrants signed by DeSantis. Alabama, South Carolina and Texas tied for second with five executions each.
Another execution is scheduled in Florida for July 14. Dennis Sochor, 74, was convicted of killing a woman just hours into 1982 after meeting her at a New Year's Eve party.
All Florida executions are carried out by lethal injection of a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that stops the heart, according to the Department of Corrections.