Convicted murderer Jeffery Joseph Daugherty said his execution for a 1976 murder freed him from 15 years of prison, and before he died he urged other death row inmates to fight the death penalty.
Daugherty visited with his ex-wife, two children and father Monday just hours before the state carried out the death sentence for the slaying of hitchhiker in Brevard County.Protesters, including actress Margot Kidder, carried signs reading "Stop State Murder" and "Orlando Citizens Against Execution" 2,000 volts of electric current were sent through Daugherty's body for two minutes. He died at 5:16 p.m. EST.
Daugherty, 33, was the 10th person executed this year and the 103rd since the Supreme Court lifted its ban on capital punishment in 1976.