U.S. Marine Corps Veteran Bryan Frederick Jennings is scheduled for execution in Florida on November 13, 2025, just two days after Veterans Day. He was sentenced to death for the 1979 murder of Rebecca Kunash. Governor DeSantis signed his warrant on World Day Against the Death Penalty. If the execution proceeds, it will be the 16th to take place in Florida this year.
The crime for which Bryan was convicted was horrific and unthinkable. And yet, Bryan has spent more than 45 years incarcerated on Florida’s death row and is not the same man he was at 20 years old when this crime was committed. Critically, despite the gravity of his upcoming execution, Bryan currently lacks state postconviction counsel. Executing someone without full and fair access to legal review violates the most fundamental principle of justice: no one should lose their life without meaningful representation.
This is not a defense of the crimes Bryan was convicted of, but the criminal justice system must ensure that even those accused of the worst crimes are given their rights. If we allow executions under rushed or inadequate legal processes, we betray the rule of law and risk irreversible injustice.