Dusty Ray Spencer is scheduled to be executed in Florida on Thursday night for the 1992 murder of his wife. Image is courtesy of the Florida Department of Corrections.
STARKE, Fla. - A 74-year-old man convicted of fatally stabbing his wife decades ago is scheduled to be executed Thursday evening at Florida State Prison.
Florida execution schedule
What we know:
Dusty Ray Spencer, 74, is scheduled to receive a three-drug lethal injection starting at 6 p.m. Thursday. He was convicted of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, aggravated assault and aggravated battery for the 1992 death of his wife, Karen Spencer.
Court records show Spencer was arrested in December 1991 after choking and threatening to kill his wife. On Jan. 18, 1992, he beat his wife’s teenage son with a clothes iron when the boy tried to stop an attack. About a week later, the teen found Spencer hitting his mother with a brick outside their home. The boy ran away to get help after his rifle misfired and Spencer threatened him with a knife. When police arrived, they found Karen Spencer dead with multiple chest stab wounds.
Spencer legal history
The backstory:
Spencer was initially sentenced to death in 1992, but the Florida Supreme Court ordered a new sentencing in 1994 after finding the trial court mishandled evaluating aggravating and mitigating circumstances. He was resentenced to death the next year, and subsequent appeals have been denied.
The state Supreme Court rejected Spencer's appeals last week. His defense attorneys argued that his advanced age and health issues, including liver disease, present a heightened risk of pain and suffering that would constitute cruel and unusual punishment.
Supreme Court review
What we don't know:
Officials have not yet announced whether the U.S. Supreme Court will grant a stay of execution, as a final appeal remains pending before the high court.
Florida death penalty statistics
By the numbers:
If carried out, this will be the ninth execution in Florida this year, following a record 19 executions in 2025. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis oversaw more executions in 2025 than any other Florida governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
A total of 47 people were executed across the U.S. in 2025. Florida led the nation, while Alabama, South Carolina and Texas tied for second with five executions each.
Future Florida executions
What's next:
Another execution is scheduled in Florida for July 14. Dennis Sochor, 74, was convicted of killing a woman hours into 1982 after meeting her at a New Year’s Eve party.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Florida court records, which detailed Spencer's arrest history and prior appeals, as well as the Florida Department of Corrections and the state Supreme Court.