Florida on Tuesday executed Chadwick Scott Willacy, 58, for the 1990 killing of his neighbor, Marlys Sather, after she found him inside her Palm Bay home during a burglary. The state carried out the lethal injection at Florida State Prison in Starke at 6:15 p.m.
Willacy had been on death row for decades after being convicted of first-degree murder, burglary, robbery, and arson. His final appeals were rejected by state and federal courts in the hours before the execution, clearing the way for the sentence to be carried out.
Investigators said Sather came home during her lunch break on Sept. 5, 1990, and was attacked after discovering Willacy in the house. According to court records, he hit her with a blunt object, bound her with wire and tape, and then attempted to strangle her with a telephone cord, according to Florida Today.
Prosecutors said Willacy then poured gasoline on Sather and set her on fire. An autopsy found that she died of smoke inhalation, meaning she was alive when the fire started, and prosecutors also said he took her car and other items from the home before using her ATM card to withdraw cash.
Willacy was first sentenced to death in 1991, but the Florida Supreme Court ordered a new sentencing hearing in 1994 after ruling that a juror should have been questioned about her views on the death penalty. A second jury again recommended death in 1995, this time by an 11-1 vote, Local10.
Before the execution, Willacy met with family members, including his mother, two sisters, and a cousin, according to the Florida Department of Corrections. He apologized to his own relatives in a brief statement and addressed Sather's family, saying he hoped the execution would bring them peace, while also saying he maintained his innocence.
Florida's execution pace has remained unusually high in recent months. The state carried out 19 executions in 2025, its highest total since the death penalty was reinstated, and Tuesday's execution was its fifth of 2026.
In early 2026, Florida had already put Ronald Palmer Heath to death for a 1989 murder and Melvin Trotter for a separate killing, while Billy Leon Kearse was also scheduled for execution as the state continued a rapid series of death warrants. That pace put Florida on track to match or exceed last year's record total, as per WUFT.
