Florida set a new and somber milestone on August 19, 2025, when Kayle Barrington Bates, a 67-year-old man convicted of a brutal 1982 murder, was executed by lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. Bates’ execution marked the state’s 10th this year, surpassing all previous annual records since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976. The event drew national attention, not only for its record-breaking context but also for the decades-long legal battles and emotional toll it represented for those involved.
Bates’ crime, which occurred more than four decades ago, left a deep scar on the Bay County community. According to court records cited by USA Today and Fox News, Bates was a delivery driver who broke into the State Farm insurance office in Lynn Haven on June 14, 1982. Janet Renee White, an employee at the office, returned from lunch to find Bates waiting for her. Despite White’s attempts to fight back, Bates overpowered her, forced her into the woods behind the building, and subjected her to a brutal and violent attack.
The details of the crime are harrowing. White suffered more than 30 contusions, bruises, abrasions, and lacerations during the assault. Bates attempted to sexually assault her, strangled her, and stabbed her twice in the chest while she was still alive, according to a Florida Supreme Court opinion referenced by The Associated Press. He then tore her wedding ring from her finger, inflicting further injury, and left her to die from the cumulative trauma. Bates was arrested shortly afterward, covered in blood, with the stolen ring in his possession.
The impact of the crime reverberated for decades, especially for White’s family. Her husband, Randy White, who witnessed the execution, described the moment as the fulfillment of a vow he made years ago. “I made a promise to her right after it happened that I would be there for every trial, every hearing, every appeal, and that as long as I was living, I would seek justice for her,” he told USA Today. “I feel a relief that I can mentally let Renee know that justice has finally been served for her, and that’s mentally what I need. It’s always been for her.” At a press briefing after the execution, he also expressed gratitude for the support he had received: “I am truly humbled by the outpouring of love and support from so many who didn’t know either one of us. I thank you from my heart. It means more than you will ever know.”
The path to Bates’ execution was marked by relentless legal maneuvering. His attorneys filed numerous appeals over the years, raising issues ranging from claims of organic brain damage to allegations of racial bias and discrimination in the process of signing death warrants. They argued that evidence of Bates’ brain damage had not been adequately considered during his 1995 resentencing and that jurors were misled about his parole eligibility. “There can be nothing more arbitrary or capricious than receiving a death sentence because the jury mistakenly thought itself required to choose between 12 years more imprisonment and death,” his attorneys wrote in a filing to the U.S. Supreme Court, as reported by The News Service of Florida.
Despite these efforts, both the Florida Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court rejected all last-minute appeals. The federal lawsuit that accused Governor Ron DeSantis of discrimination in signing death warrants was also dismissed, with a judge finding problems with the statistical analysis used by Bates’ legal team, according to NBC News. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier’s office noted in a Supreme Court filing, “Bates has litigated and re-litigated his death sentence for over four decades, far longer than his victim ever lived. Now, on the eve of his execution, and for the eighth total time, he asks this Court to intervene in a penultimate attempt to deprive his victims of justice for heinous crimes committed in June 1982. This court should decline.”
Governor DeSantis, whose office signed the death warrant in July 2025, faced appeals from various groups, including veterans’ organizations that cited Bates’ service in the Florida National Guard and urged clemency. However, DeSantis and his office maintained that the execution was based solely on the severity of Bates’ crimes, not his military status. A spokeswoman for the governor stated that the warrant was signed for “the worst of the worst.”
The execution itself followed Florida’s standard protocol: a three-drug lethal injection consisting of a sedative, a paralytic, and a drug that stops the heart. According to AP and NBC News, Bates awoke at 5:15 a.m. on the day of his execution, received visits from his daughter, sister, and brother-in-law, but declined a last meal and did not meet with a spiritual adviser. When asked if he had any final words as he was strapped to the gurney, Bates simply replied, “no.” The procedure began at 6:01 p.m., and he was pronounced dead at 6:17 p.m.
Florida’s record-breaking pace of executions in 2025 has put the state at the forefront nationally. With 10 executions already carried out this year, Florida has surpassed its previous annual high of eight, set in 2014 and 1984. Texas and South Carolina, by comparison, have each conducted four executions so far in 2025, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Florida’s death row remains the second-largest in the country, with 278 inmates, trailing only California.
The state’s momentum shows no sign of slowing. Two more executions are scheduled in the coming weeks: Curtis Windom, convicted of killing three people in Orange County in 1992, is set to be executed on August 28, and David Pittman, found guilty of a triple murder in Polk County in 1990, is scheduled for September 17. The list of those executed in Florida this year already includes names such as Edward Zakrzewski, Michael Bell, and Thomas Gudinas, among others.
Nationally, Bates’ execution was the 29th carried out in 2025, the highest number in a decade. At least nine more executions are scheduled before the year’s end, reflecting a broader trend of increased use of capital punishment in the United States. Supporters argue that these executions serve as justice for victims and their families, while critics continue to raise questions about fairness, racial bias, and the effectiveness of the death penalty as a deterrent.
For those closest to the case, however, the debate is not abstract. For Randy White and the family of Janet Renee White, the execution of Kayle Bates closed a painful chapter that began over forty years ago, but the wounds left by the crime may never fully heal. As Florida moves forward with more scheduled executions, the state—and the nation—continue to grapple with the complexities and consequences of capital punishment.
