Florida is on the brink of carrying out its 12th execution this year – the state’s deadliest pace in history. On Wednesday, September 17, David Pittman is scheduled to be killed.
At a time when violence is everywhere, Florida’s government has chosen to meet violence with more violence. The death penalty is punishment-as-spectacle, rooted in retribution and hatred. It does not make us safer. It does not deliver justice. It does not prevent future harm. Instead, it normalizes violence, fuels cycles of hate, and deepens our collective wounds.
David Pittman’s own life shows what those cycles look like. He grew up in extreme poverty, with a mother who gleefully admitted to whipping him with a belt from the time he was four years old – sometimes every day. His family could not afford to continue the psychiatric treatment he needed. Violence, neglect, and hardship shaped his childhood long before the state ever called him “defendant.” Killing David now cannot and will not undo that harm.
- Sign the petition for David – we will deliver your signatures to the Governor’s office next week
- Send Governor DeSantis a message. Tell him to stop David’s execution
- Attend a vigil or protest, either with us across from Florida State Prison, online, or at one of the many events around the state
Once you have taken action for David, please sign this petition for Victor Jones, who is scheduled to be the 13th person executed in Florida this year. Victor survived brutal abuse at Florida’s infamous Okeechobee School for Boys. Victor’s jury never heard about the horrific abuse he suffered as a child, or that the State itself created the trauma that shaped his life. Less than eight months after the State formally acknowledged him as a survivor of torture at Okeechobee and issued him compensation, Governor DeSantis signed his death warrant and set his execution for September 30. Take action now.
Look around. Florida is feeding the rage. All around us, violence is spilling over. The fear and anger in our country are unmistakable. And instead of breaking that cycle, Florida is amplifying it. Executions are the government’s display of rage: a ritual of retribution that fuels hatred rather than healing.
Together, we can stand against Florida’s machinery of death – and for a future that prioritizes healing, not hate.
Onward,
The FADP Team
P.S. If you’re in the Tallahassee area, please join FADP and our friends at Tallahassee Citizens Against the Death Penalty for a special evening with law professor and author of Secrets of the Killing State, Corinna Barrett-Lain. The event is free and open to the public. Contact [email protected] with questions.
Monday September 15, 2025 | 6:30pm ET | Challenger Learning Center | 200 S. Duval St. Tallahassee, FL 32301