Florida has carried out its 12th execution of the year with David Pittman under Governor Ron DeSantis. David Joseph Pittman was 63 years old and had been on death row since 1991. He was put to death by lethal injection at the Florida State Prison.
With this execution, Governor DeSantis has signed more death warrants than any of his predecessors.
Even in his final moments, Pittman maintained his innocence. He kept claiming that he had no part in the brutal triple murder of his ex-in-laws.
“I know you all came to watch the state of Florida murder an innocent man. I am innocent. I didn’t kill anybody,” he said. His statement was released by the governor’s office.
Pittman’s case has remained in the news and has been controversial for a long time. His lawyers had maintained that he was intellectually disabled and under the US Constitution does not deserve the death penalty.
When they had exhausted all their appeals, they presented their final appeal to the Supreme Court, which was rejected just a day before his scheduled death.
David Joseph Pittman has been executed in Florida, he died at 6:12 P.M, justice is now served to:
Clarence Knowles
Barbara Knowles
Bonnie KnowlesHis execution is the 12th in the state and 31st nationwide. pic.twitter.com/GUzKzWazIj
— Friday-Justice-Obsessions (@death_row0506) September 17, 2025
David Pittman stood accused and convicted for the triple murder of Clarence Knowles, 60, his wife Barbara, 50, and their daughter Bonnie, 21, in Mulberry, Florida, in May 1990.
Prosecutors argued that Pittman was responsible for the deaths of the family, they claimed that he was bitter and also had a motive since he was divorcing one of his daughters. After killing the family, he allegedly set the house on fire and stole Bonnie Knowles’ car, too. He later set the car on fire, too.
In 1991, Pittman was sentenced to death for three counts of first-degree murder, arson and grand theft.
After denying him a hearing to prove he was ineligible for the death penalty because of intellectual disability, Florida has executed David Pittman. It was the state’s record 12th execution this year. https://t.co/4wQhvZy89G @guardian @FLDeathPenalty @FADPorg @TheArcUS
— Robert Dunham (@RDunhamDP) September 17, 2025
Several human rights groups have again called for a halt to the execution. Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty have also condemned the state’s actions and have continued to argue that capital punishment does not bring justice to the victim’s family.
“The death penalty is punishment-as-spectacle, rooted in retribution and hatred. It does not make us safer. It does not deliver justice. It does not prevent future harm,” the group wrote in a statement. “Instead, it normalises violence, fuels cycles of hate, and deepens our collective wounds.”
In 2025, under Governor DeSantis, there was a sharp acceleration in the number of death penalties, making the state a deadlier in decades.
So far, there have been 2025 executions with two more scheduled. The first one is Victor Tony Jones, to be executed on September 30 for a 1990 double murder, and the second one is Samuel Lee Smithers, on October 14 for the 1996 killings of two women.
The Utah Supreme Court has STAYED the September 5, 2025 execution date of Ralph Leroy Menzies, ordering a new Competency evaluation.
Meanwhile, Florida Governor Ron Desantis has set a September 30, 2025 execution date for Victor Tony Jones. pic.twitter.com/d9JrqqRVhf
— Friday-Justice-Obsessions (@death_row0506) August 30, 2025
The pace at which executions are being carried out has reignited the debate around capital punishment. Wrongful convictions are not uncommon, and one cannot deny that many times, innocent people are led to the electric chair due to failed lawful processes.
Pittman’s final declaration of innocence will definitely become the flashpoint for activists and legal scholars in their fight against executions.
There have been a few cases where convicted prisoners have maintained their innocence till the end. This had forced the questions of the death penalty and the failure of the legal system in the US.
Close to our live shot location, a few dozen people with Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty and from a church in Daytona Beach are protesting Gudinas’ execution and the death penalty more broadly. @news6wkmg pic.twitter.com/SiN50aBIQJ
— Mike Valente (@ValenteReports) June 24, 2025
The legal machinery in the nation has to update its methods to find the accused and must use reforms.
- Law enforcement agencies need better access to DNA and other scientific testing.
- The minimum standard for legal representation needs to be upgraded.
- There has to be protection for those who are intellectually disabled.
- There is a requirement for stronger oversight of prosecutorial practices.
These reforms are necessary to avoid instances where inmates insist on being innocent till the end of time. These can not be ignored and must be taken as a warning and testimonies for the change.
