DeSantis Signs Warrant for Florida's Eighth 2025 Execution

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a death warrant for Michael Bernard Bell, who has been on death row since 1993 for the murder of Jimmy West and Tamecka Smith outside a Jacksonville bar. Bell used an AK-47 in the shooting, which was reportedly an act of revenge following the killing of his brother by West's half-brother earlier that year. Bell's execution is scheduled for July 15, and if carried out alongside the planned June 24 execution of Thomas Gudinas, Florida would match the record for the most executions in a year since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Bell is also serving additional 25-year sentences for unrelated second-degree murder charges. This latest death warrant follows the recent execution of Anthony Wainwright and continues DeSantis's pace of signing death warrants, with Bell being the eighth in 2025, tying the highest numbers seen in 1984 and 2014. The cases reflect the state's active use of capital punishment under DeSantis's administration.