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Supreme Court Rejects Final Appeal for Billy Kearse, Clearing Way for Florida Execution Tonight

The decision comes in a state that accelerated executions to a modern record last year.

Overview

  • Kearse, 53, is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection at 6 p.m. ET at Florida State Prison near Starke after the U.S. Supreme Court denied his last‑minute bid.
  • He was convicted of first-degree murder and robbery with a firearm for fatally shooting Fort Pierce Officer Danny Parrish with the officer’s own gun during a 1991 traffic stop.
  • Kearse was initially sentenced to death in 1991, won a new penalty phase on appeal, and was resentenced to death in 1997.
  • The Florida Supreme Court rejected recent appeals that challenged the fairness of his penalty phase and raised intellectual-disability claims.
  • Florida carried out a record 19 executions in 2025, has already conducted two this year, and has additional executions set for March 17 and March 31, while Parrish’s widow plans to witness Kearse’s execution.