Florida Man Convicted of Raping and Killing 8-Year-Old Set for Execution Pending Supreme Court Appeal

Edward James, on death row for over 30 years, faces lethal injection after appeals citing cognitive decline were denied by lower courts.

Edward James, 63, was convicted of the 1993 rape and murder of 8-year-old Toni Neuner and the murder of her grandmother, Betty Dick, in Seminole County, Florida.
James is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on March 20, 2025, at 6 p.m. at Florida State Prison after Governor Ron DeSantis signed his death warrant on February 1.
His attorneys have appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that James' cognitive decline makes the execution a violation of the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
Previous appeals to the Florida Supreme Court and federal courts to delay the execution have been denied.
If carried out, James' execution will be the second in Florida this year, following the February execution of James Dennis Ford for a 1997 double homicide.