Florida man’s execution date set for killing 2, including small child

A Florida man is scheduled for execution next month after his conviction in the killing of his cousin’s girlfriend and her 4-year-old daughter under a death warrant signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis Wednesday.

Richard Knight, 47, will die by lethal injection at Florida State Prison in Starke May 21 as part of a series of death warrants signed by the governor.

Knight was convicted in the 2000 murders of Odessia Stephens and her young daughter, Hanessia Mullings, according to WFLA. Prosecutors said Knight and Stephens were involved in an argument the night of the crime.

Authorities described the killings in court records as “heinous, atrocious and cruel,” the outlet reported.

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Stephens and her daughter had gone to bed when Knight grabbed knives from the kitchen, walked into their bedroom and attacked the woman as her daughter lay next to her.

Investigators said Knight stabbed Stephens 21 times, with most of the injuries to her neck. She also sustained stab wounds to her chin, back and chest.

Stephens also suffered injuries indicating she had been strangled and attempted to fight back, and investigators said images from the crime showed a “bloody struggle.”

Knight then strangled and stabbed the child multiple times, causing stab wounds to her upper chest, neck and hand.

The details were presented by prosecutors during trial proceedings, according to court records.

A judge sentenced Knight to death in 2007 after a jury unanimously recommended the death sentence for his first-degree murder convictions.

Efforts by Knight’s attorneys to appeal the case have so far been unsuccessful. Court records show his legal team has challenged the conviction and sentence in multiple appeals, which have been denied to date.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Knight’s legal team for comment.

DeSantis continues to accelerate the number of death warrants signed since the start of last year.

In 2025, 19 people were put to death in Florida, setting a record for the most executions in one year in the Sunshine State. Before last year, Florida’s record for executions in a year since the death penalty was restored in 1976 was eight in 1984 and 2014.

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Advocacy groups, including the Equal Justice Initiative, have raised concerns about fairness and due process in death penalty cases.

Florida also executed more people last year than any other state, with Alabama, Texas and South Carolina tied for the second-most with five each. Across the U.S., 47 people were executed in 2025.

This year, Florida has already executed five people, and another is scheduled for April 30, when James Hitchcock, 70, is scheduled to be put to death for the rape and murder of his 13-year-old step-niece.

The last execution was carried out on Tuesday, when Chadwick Willacy, 58, was put to death for murdering his elderly neighbor in Palm Bay by setting the victim on fire.