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A Florida man convicted of killing his girlfriend, her mother and a man he said owed him money more than 30 years ago was put to death on Thursday, extending the record number of executions carried out in the Sunshine State to 11 so far this year.
Curtis Windom, 59, died by lethal injection at 6:17 p.m. at Florida State Prison near Starke on Thursday, according to The Associated Press. He was convicted in the Nov. 7, 1992, killings of his girlfriend Valerie Davis, her mother Mary Lubin and Johnnie Lee, who he claimed owed him $2,000.
Windom’s face was covered by a sheet when the curtain was raised to the death chamber shortly before the injection was set to begin, The AP reported. When the drugs were administered, he began taking deep breaths and his legs twitched several times before he stopped moving.
Davis’ sister Kemene Hunter wore a T-shirt to a news conference following the execution that read, “Justice for her, healing for me.”
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Curtis Windom, 59, was pronounced dead at 6:17 p.m. at Florida State Prison near Starke. (Florida Department of Corrections)
“All I want to say is, it took 33 years to get some closure,” Hunter said, adding that “vengeance is mine says the Lord.”
On the day of the three killings, a friend told Windom that Lee had won $114 at a greyhound racetrack, according to court records. Windom responded to the friend that “you’re gonna read about me” and that he planned to kill the man who owed him money.
Windom went to a Walmart and purchased a .38-caliber revolver and a box of 50 shells, according to court testimony. A short time later, Windom drove in search of Lee and shot him twice in the back from his car before firing two more shots standing at close range.
After that killing, Windom went to Davis’ apartment and shot and killed her in front of a friend “with no provocation,” court records showed. Windom then shot and wounded another man before fatally shooting Davis’ mother in her car at a stop sign as she drove to her daughter’s apartment.
He was sentenced to death for the three murders and given a 22-year sentence for the attempted murder.
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Curtis Windom was put to death for the killings of his girlfriend, her mother and a man he claimed owed him $2,000. (AP)
Davis was the mother of one of Windom’s children, who had sought to stop her father’s execution.
“Forgiveness comes with time, and 33 years is a long time,” Curtisia Windom said in a statement. “I, myself, have forgiven my father.”
Relatives and friends of the three murder victims also released a joint statement saying that they still loved and cared for Windom and that Florida officials had told them there was nothing they could do to stop the execution they had campaigned to prevent.
“33 years ago, Curtis Windom took the lives of our mother Valerie Davis, grandmother Mary Lubin, and dear family friend Johnny Lee,” the statement said. “Whether the events of that day made us the surviving victims of a violent crime, the relatives of a person facing execution, or both, we have all lived our lives wearing a label that the state of Florida decided should define and divide us. We haven’t allowed that to happen, though. We have continued to love and care for each other, teaching our children that there is no use in punishing the many for the acts of the few.”
“Most of all, we have continued to love and care for Curtis,” it continued. “We have celebrated graduations and weddings over the phone. We have brought his grandchildren to visit him at Florida State Prison. We have built connections despite the visitation glass and cell bars. We have forgiven him.”
The statement added that they “will continue to reject the labels that we were given.”
“We are heartbroken that the State of Florida didn’t listen to our pleas,” the statement said. “And we are committed to continuing to tell our story.”
Relatives and friends of the three murder victims said they still loved and cared for Curtis Windom. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)
Windom and his lawyers filed multiple appeals, arguing that he was represented by an incompetent lawyer when presenting evidence of mental health struggles.
Windom’s final appeal was rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday.
“Forgiveness and healing do not come from a lethal injection in the death chamber. They come from the families’ decades of conversations, visits, and phone calls with Curtis, where he demonstrated remorse and redemption,” Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty said in a statement. “They come from Curtis building new relationships with the people he has so deeply hurt. They come from showing a new generation of Windoms that there is a hope for a less violent future. His execution tonight stopped that healing in its tracks, and replaced it with new pain.”
“Governor DeSantis does not speak for all victims’ families,” the group added. “Tonight’s execution wasn’t about justice. It was about flexing political muscle.”
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Windom’s execution extends Florida’s record this year following numerous death warrants signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. The state’s 12th execution this year is set for Sept. 17.
The Sunshine State has executed more people this year than any other state, with Texas and South Carolina tied for the second-most with four each. Across the U.S., 30 people have been executed so far in 2025.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.