UPDATE: The U.S. Supreme Court has denied Spencer’s appeal.
Dusty Ray Spencer, 74, convicted of killing his wife in 1992, is set to become the oldest person ever executed in the state of Florida in modern history. The execution by lethal injection is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 25.
An appeal to the Florida Supreme Court was denied last week. The U.S. Supreme Court denied his final appeal Thursday afternoon.
Spencer was convicted of brutally beating and stabbing his wife, Karen Spencer, in front of her teenage son in their backyard, the culmination of weeks of abuse that ultimately contributed to stronger Florida laws against domestic violence.
Spencer’s death warrant, the 10th this year, is the latest in Gov. Ron DeSantis’ drastically accelerated execution schedule. Florida executed a record 19 people in 2025, nearly half of all executions in the U.S.for the year. Amnesty International singled out Florida and DeSantis in its annual report on the surge in executions around the world.
Anti-death penalty advocates such as Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty and the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops have called on DeSantis to commute Spencer’s sentence to life imprisonment. FADP plans to hold a vigil outside the execution chamber, starting at 5 p.m. ET, with additional vigils throughout the state.
Here is what Floridians should know as the execution approaches.
Who is Dusty Ray Spencer, and what was he convicted of?
After Karen Spencer demanded a divorce, Dusty Ray Spencer fought with her over their Orange County painting business and often became violent, court records show.
On Dec. 10, 1991, Spencer choked her, demanding money, and told her it was “only a sample,” prosecutors said. He was arrested, but he called Karen Spencer from jail and said he would finish what he started once he got out.
On Jan. 9, he attacked her with an iron. He also beat her teenage son, Timothy, with it when he tried to intervene. Karen Spencer received 11 stitches to repair lacerations in her face. Orange County Sheriff’s deputies declined to arrest him a second time and instead sent the case to the State Attorney’s office, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
Ten days later, prosecutors said Timothy woke to screams and rushed outside with a rifle to see Spencer hitting Karen in the head and face with a brick. He struck Spencer with the rifle after it misfired, but Spencer continued beating her head against the house, court records show. By the time police arrived, she was dead from multiple blunt force injuries to the back of the head and stabbing injuries, including two deep stab wounds in the chest, the medical examiner’s report said.
A jury found Spencer guilty of first-degree murder and attempt to commit murder in the second degree, and both aggravated assault and aggravated battery on Timothy. The jury recommended a death sentence on a 7 to 5 vote.
Over the next few years, the Florida Legislature strengthened laws and penalties against domestic violence, including making threats of violence a first-degree misdemeanor, requiring law enforcement to detail why an arrest was not made, and mandating a first appearance in court for anyone charged with domestic violence before they can be released on bail.
Is Dusty Ray Spencer the oldest person to be executed in Florida?
If the execution goes through as scheduled, at 74, Spencer will be the oldest inmate executed in modern Florida history. The previous oldest executed person was 72-year-old Charlie R. Gifford, executed in 1951, barely a year after murdering Florida legislator Charles Schuh in his St. Petersburg office the year before.
A few weeks after Spencer’s scheduled execution, another 74-year-old man is next: Dennis Sochor, convicted for the 1981 rape and murder of 18-year-old Patricia Gifford.
When is Dusty Ray Spencer scheduled to be executed?
Spencer’s death by lethal injection is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET on Thursday, June 25, at Florida State Prison in Raiford.
Spencer’s appeals denied
On direct appeal, the Florida Supreme Court vacated the death sentence and remanded the case for reconsideration over the trial court’s handling of aggravating and mitigating factors in the case. The trial court resentenced him to death in 1996. The U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal for review in 1997.
Over the years, Spencer has filed several appeals claiming a lack of evidence, prosecutorial misconduct, mishandling of aggravating factors, and the unconstitutionality of the death penalty. All of his appeals were denied.
After his death warrant was signed, Spencer, like many other recent condemned prisoners in the state, filed a public records request for documents related to Florida’s lethal injection protocol along with a new appeal. Documents released in 2025 seemed to show the state Department of Corrections using insufficient, expired, or different execution drugs, which attorneys have argued could cause unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment.
On June 18, the Florida Supreme Court denied both the demand and the appeal.
When is the next execution in Florida?
The next scheduled execution in Florida and the U.S. is that of Dennis Sochor on July 14. Sochor was convicted of the rape and strangulation of 18-year-old Patricia Gifford after meeting her at a New Year’s celebration in 1981.
C. A. Bridges is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida’s service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Appeal denied, Florida to execute 74-year-old man for 1992 murder
Reporting by C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Florida Today
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida | USA TODAY Network
