DeSantis withdraws death warrant for William Thompson, 74, amid dementia reports

Mixed · 2Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis withdrew the death warrant for William Lee Thompson, 74, in a Thursday letter (8 October) to Florida State Prison Warden Randall Polk. 1 2 Mixed · 2Thompson was scheduled to be executed on Tuesday, hours after James Robertson, 63, who is to die for the 2008 murder of his cellmate. DeSantis had signed Thompson's warrant on 11 September. 1 2 Left · 3The letter gave no reason. Both outlets first covering it, the Post and CBS News, link the move to reports from Thompson's counsel and death penalty opponents that he has dementia, as do the Daily Mirror and Washington Examiner; CBS News also says they reported heart failure, and the Examiner says the move is "likely related" to his dementia and heart condition. 3 1 4

Right · 1Thompson's lawyers said a neuropsychologist found he meets the criteria for insanity due to dementia and significant cognitive decline, and lacks the mental capacity to understand his impending execution and the reason for it. The Post's account of the filings says he could not recall what he had eaten and thought "Bush" was president. 2 Left · 1According to CBS News, less than a week after issuing the warrant DeSantis commissioned a three-member panel of psychiatrists, in executive order 26-192, to examine Thompson's mental condition. The panel was to examine him on 1 October and report the next day. Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty said the evaluation took place but officials never released its findings or explained the withdrawal. 1 Left · 1Hours before the withdrawal, the Florida Supreme Court denied Thompson's motion for a stay. His counsel has also filed a federal lawsuit seeking care for his medical conditions. 1

Mixed · 2Thompson's attorney Bri Lacy (named Brittney Lacy in the Post) said in an email, as quoted by the Daily Mirror and, citing the Associated Press, the Washington Examiner, that "Mr. Thompson suffers from dementia and his health is failing". She said the legal team hopes the Florida Department of Corrections will now move him to an adequate medical facility and provide the care he needs. 4 3 Mixed · 2Thompson remains on Florida's death row, so a new warrant could be signed for him later, by DeSantis or a successor. The Daily Mirror says Florida prison officials had still been preparing for his possible execution, and that this is the first death warrant DeSantis has withdrawn since taking office. 3 4 Mixed · 2The other execution set for Tuesday, that of James Robertson, is still going ahead. The Washington Examiner says Florida carried out 19 executions last year and will surpass that this year if the Robertson execution, scheduled for 13 October, proceeds. 3 4

Mixed · 2Grace Hanna, executive director of Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, welcomed the decision. The Post quotes her saying Thompson is "gravely ill, not competent, and intellectually disabled" and that executing him would have violated the Eighth Amendment. CBS quotes her pointing to international attention after Tennessee's failed execution of Christa Pike. 2 1 Mixed · 2Thompson was convicted over the 30 March 1976 killing of Sally Ivester at a Dade County motel. Court records cited by CBS say she was beaten, assaulted and burned with cigarettes after she could raise only $25 from her family. Police at the time called it "Dade's meanest murder", according to the Post, citing the Miami Herald. 1 2 Mixed · 2His case had a long procedural history. He was sentenced to death in 1976 and the Florida Supreme Court reversed in 1977. He was sentenced to death again in 1978, a 1982 warrant was halted by a federal stay, and the death sentence was vacated in 1987. A 1989 resentencing, on a 7-5 jury recommendation, restored it. 1 2

Mixed · 2The outlets differ on the fate of his accomplice Rocco Surace, who died in custody in 1993. The Post says he was sentenced to 203 years. CBS says he was convicted of second-degree murder and given life after Thompson testified and claimed responsibility. 2 1 Mixed · 2The decision came amid wider attention to capital punishment. In Tennessee, Christa Pike survived an execution attempt on 30 September despite two lethal doses of pentobarbital and, the Mirror reports, is slowly recovering; the Pentagon also announced that Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan's execution would be livestreamed. 4 3