A Florida man who murdered his wife and two children with a machete in 1994 was executed on Thursday, making him the ninth person put to death in Florida this year.
Edward Zakrzewski was pronounced dead at 6.12 p.m. after he received a lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke, according to prison officials.
Prison officials woke Zakrzewski at 5.15 a.m. and he later received his last meal — fried pork chops, root beer, and ice cream — before he was put to death in the evening.
Florida Department of Corrections spokesman Paul Walker told the Associated Press Zakrzewski “remained compliant” during his execution process.
Florida has set a grim record with Zakrzewski’s death; this year the state has executed more inmates than any other year since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. The last record was eight executions in one year in 2014.
Not only has Florida outdone itself when it comes to killing inmates, but it has executed more people than any other state. Texas and South Carolina are tied for second with four executions each, according to the Associated Press.
The Sunshine State isn’t slowing down either. It is expected to execute two other inmates — bringing its total to 11 executions under one year — on August 19 and 28.
Zakrzewski killed his 34-year-old wife, Sylvia, and their two children, Edward, 7, and Anna, 5, at their home in Florida more than 30 years ago.
Prosecutors argued Zakrzewski murdered his wife in retaliation of her seeking a divorce. He reportedly had told others he would kill his family before he’d agree to a divorce.
He attacked his wife with a crowbar and then strangled her with a rope, according to court documents. Zakrzewski killed his children with a machete and hit his wife with the blade as well when he mistakenly thought she’d survived his initial attack.
Zakrzewski’s attorneys tried to file appeals to his death sentence during his incarceration after the trial but all were rejected. Just before his execution, Zakrzewski’s lawyers filed a final request to stay his execution, but the Supreme Court denied the request on Wednesday.
Demonstrators who oppose the death penalty pointed to the fact that Zakrzewski was sentenced to death by a jury who voted 7-5 for the punishment — barely a majority.
They noted that, under current state law, he could not have been sentenced to death with a hung jury. Florida currently requires at least an 8-4 vote in favor of execution to hand down a death penalty.
The Action Network, one of the groups that oppose the death penalty, asked volunteers to call Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s office to ask for a stay of execution.
“Florida does not need the death penalty to be safe. This execution will not make us safer, it will simply add another act of violence to an already tragic story. Justice does not require death,” The Action Network’s script said.
Before Thursday, 26 inmates were put to death in the U.S. this year, and 11 more are scheduled for execution before the end of 2025.
