Ron DeSantis already rewrote Florida's history books this year by presiding over more executions than any governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
Now he's going for even more.
And Ron DeSantis just signed a death warrant that could shatter Florida's execution record.
Florida Governor Sets Execution Date for Serial Killer Who Terrorized Panhandle
Governor Ron DeSantis signed a death warrant Tuesday for Frank Athen Walls, a serial killer who murdered five people in Florida's Panhandle between 1985 and 1987.¹
Walls, now 58, is scheduled to die by lethal injection December 18 at Florida State Prison near Starke.
The execution would make Walls the 19th person put to death in Florida in 2025 — obliterating the previous modern-era record of eight executions in a single year set in both 1984 and 2014.²
https://twitter.com/death_row0506/status/1991042034162131395?s=20
DeSantis has now overseen more executions in 2025 than any Florida governor since capital punishment was reinstated nearly 50 years ago.
The killing spree began when Walls was just 17 years old.
His first victim was 19-year-old Tommie Lou Whiddon, a junior college student he encountered sunbathing on Okaloosa Island in March 1985.³
Walls slit her throat while doing court-ordered community service for prior crimes.
In September 1986, Walls stabbed 24-year-old mother of three Cynthia Sue Condra 21 times.⁴
Then came the murders that finally put Walls on death row.
Brutal Double Murder Led to Death Sentence
In the early morning hours of July 22, 1987, Walls broke into the mobile home of 21-year-old Eglin Air Force Base airman Edward Alger and his 20-year-old girlfriend Ann Peterson in Ocean City.⁵
Walls forced Peterson at gunpoint to tie up Alger with curtain cords.
But Alger managed to break free and fought back against his attacker.
Walls slashed Alger's throat with a knife.
When the airman kept fighting, Walls shot him three times in the head and neck.⁶
Then Walls turned on Peterson.
According to court documents, Walls told Peterson what had happened to her boyfriend before killing her.
"She was curled up crying as she was told of what had happened to Edward," the 1992 sentencing document stated.⁷
Walls admitted he intended to leave no witnesses.
He shot Peterson in the cheek.
When she began crying and screaming, Walls fired a second fatal shot into her head.
Walls then cleaned up, stole Alger's wallet, and went to a strip club where he spent the murdered airman's money.
His roommate tipped off police the next day after noticing Walls' odd behavior.
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DNA Evidence Linked Killer to Additional Murders
Walls was convicted and sentenced to death in 1988.
The Florida Supreme Court reversed that conviction and ordered a new trial, where Walls was again convicted and sentenced to death in 1992.⁸
After his conviction, DNA evidence linked Walls to the May 1987 rape and murder of 47-year-old Audrey Gygi, whose trailer was just one block from where Alger and Peterson were killed.⁹
Walls pleaded no contest to avoid a second death sentence.
As part of a deal with prosecutors, Walls also admitted responsibility for the murders of Whiddon and Condra.
All five killings occurred in Okaloosa County, where Walls lived.
"Out of all the cases I've worked, all the homicides, the death penalty is for someone like him," said Dennis Haley, a 32-year veteran Florida Department of Law Enforcement officer who secured Walls' confessions.¹⁰
"There are five different families that are still grieving because of the lives taken by Frank Walls."
DeSantis signed Walls' death warrant just two days before another scheduled execution Thursday — and less than a month before yet another execution on December 9.
Critics immediately seized on the governor's record-breaking pace.
Democrat politicians and death penalty opponents claim DeSantis is ramping up executions to boost his national profile and prove his tough-on-crime credentials to Republican voters.
Florida House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell said DeSantis is "so focused on his own ambitions, his personal ambitions, he wants to impress Republican primary voters."¹¹
The Florida Catholic Conference of Bishops has been outspoken in criticizing DeSantis for "presiding over an execution spree."¹²
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Even some veteran advocates expressed concerns after discovering that veterans represent nearly 40% of death warrants DeSantis has signed in 2025 — despite DeSantis himself being a former Navy JAG officer who served as legal adviser to SEAL Team One in Iraq.¹³
DeSantis responded to critics by stating capital punishment is "an appropriate punishment for the worst offenders" and could serve as a "strong deterrent" if carried out more quickly.¹⁴
The governor explained he needed time to settle into office after his 2018 election and that priorities shifted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
But before 2025, DeSantis had only signed nine death warrants total during his entire time as governor.
This year he's signed 15.
Florida now leads the nation in executions.
The state has put 43 people to death nationwide so far in 2025.¹⁵
And with three more executions scheduled before year's end — including Walls on December 18 — Florida is driving a national surge in capital punishment not seen since 2010.
Attorneys for Walls are expected to file appeals to both the Florida Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to halt his execution.
That's the standard last-ditch legal process that begins in circuit court, proceeds to the state supreme court, and typically ends at the nation's highest court.
But given DeSantis' track record this year, those appeals face long odds of success.
The governor has made clear he views execution as justice for victims' families — and he's carrying out that mission faster than any Florida governor in modern history.
¹ Associated Press, "DeSantis signs death warrant for man convicted for Okaloosa double-murder," WUSF, November 18, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Yahoo News, "DeSantis signs death warrant for Northwest Florida serial killer," November 18, 2025.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ FOX 13 Tampa Bay, "DeSantis signs death warrant in 1987 Florida murders," November 19, 2025.
⁶ Sun Sentinel, "DeSantis signs death warrant for inmate convicted of 2 murders during home invasion robbery," November 18, 2025.
⁷ FOX 13 Tampa Bay, "DeSantis signs death warrant in 1987 Florida murders," November 19, 2025.
⁸ WUSF, "DeSantis signs death warrant for man convicted for Okaloosa double-murder," November 18, 2025.
⁹ Ibid.
¹⁰ Yahoo News, "DeSantis signs death warrant for Northwest Florida serial killer," November 18, 2025.
¹¹ WUSF, "Gov. Ron DeSantis says executions are about justice amid modern-era record," November 4, 2025.
¹² WLRN, "Under Ron DeSantis' leadership, Florida leads the nation in executions in 2025," November 17, 2025.
¹³ Air Force Times, "DeSantis is a veteran. So are inmates he'll send to execution chamber," November 18, 2025.
¹⁴ WFSU News, "Gov. DeSantis says Florida's record number of executions is about justice," November 4, 2025.
¹⁵ WUSF, "DeSantis signs death warrant for man convicted for Okaloosa double-murder," November 18, 2025.
