Earlier this year, James Ford was executed for the 1997 killings of a couple in Charlotte County — witnessed by their toddler daughter, who survived. DeSantis also signed a death warrant for the April 8 execution of Michael Tanzi for the 2000 slaying of a woman in the Florida Keys. ????? ???????

The nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center said Florida uses a three-drug cocktail for its lethal injection: a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that stops the heart. ????????????  

Even if it is new evidence, the court determined, the "defendant cannot establish that such evidence would likely yield a less severe sentence at a new penalty phase.” ?????  

The justices, however, agreed with a lower court decision that "James’s cognitive issues do not shield him from execution.” The court also rejected an argument from James' lawyers that the heart attack he suffered in prison led to deprivation of oxygen that affected his brain and should be considered new evidence to halt the execution. ????? ?

James' lawyers filed several appeals with state and federal courts, all of which were denied. Most recently, the Florida Supreme Court rejected an argument that James' longtime use of drugs and alcohol, several head injuries and a heart attack in 2023 led to mental decline that would make his execution cruel and unusual punishment. ???????????? &