Florida executes man convicted in 1976 killing of 16-year-old after 50 year wait

FLORIDA (CBS12) — A Florida man convicted of fatally shooting a 16-year-old girl has been put to death after spending 50 years on death row.

Tuesday, Harold Gene Lucas, 74, became the 14th prisoner put to death by Florida governor Ron DeSantis this year, with two more executions set for later this month. Lucas received a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison at around 6:00 p.m. He was convicted for the 1976 murder of Jill Piper, along with the wounding of her three friends.

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Court records show that Lucas, who was 24 at the time of the murder, had known the teen for four years, and had previously dated before two separate confrontations led to him threatening to kill Piper. He had previously been arrested for trespassing at Piper’s home just a week before her death before showing up with a rifle just a week later, carrying out the grisly attack.

Lucas was initially sentenced to death in 1977 and had been sentenced to death five separate times in retrials over the years.