{"id":10687,"date":"2026-05-22T07:44:47","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T07:44:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?p=10687"},"modified":"2026-05-22T07:44:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T07:44:47","slug":"florida-death-row-inmate-richard-knights-final-words-before-execution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?p=10687","title":{"rendered":"Florida death row inmate Richard Knight&#8217;s final words before execution"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <div style=\"display: grid; grid-template-columns: 300px 160px; gap: 2px; width: 460px; background: #eee; padding: 2px;\">\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u6574\u884c\u5bbd\u5e7f\u544a -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column: 1\/-1; width: 460px; height: 250px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876674\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column: 1\/-1; width: 460px; height: 90px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876676\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u5de6\u4fa7\u7ad6\u6392 -->\r\n  <div style=\"height: 250px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876672\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div style=\"height: 500px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876680\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u53f3\u4fa7\u6469\u5929\u697c\uff08\u548c\u5de6\u4fa7\u5b8c\u5168\u5bf9\u9f50\uff09 -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-row: 3\/5; height: 750px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876678\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  \r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e6\" data-zoneid=\"5876682\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n<\/div><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>A Florida man convicted of fatally stabbing his cousin\u2019s girlfriend and the couple\u2019s 4-year-old daughter was put to death Thursday evening, the seventh person executed by the state this year.<\/p>\n<p>Richard Knight, 47, was pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m. following a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke.<\/p>\n<p>Knight was convicted of first-degree murder in the June 2002 killings of Odessia Stephens and the couple\u2019s daughter, Hanessia Mullings.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Richard Knight was executed by lethal injection in Florida on May 21, 2026. <span class=\"credit\">Florida Department of Corrections<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When the death chamber curtain went up at the scheduled 6 p.m. execution time, Knight was already strapped down with arms extended and an IV line in place.<\/p>\n<p>Asked by the warden if he had a final statement, Knight said, \u201cI want to give thanks to Yahweh, who is the most high.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>The execution began immediately afterward. Knight closed his eyes and barely moved as the drugs began flowing.<\/p>\n<p>After about 10 minutes, a medic was called in and Knight was declared dead.<\/p>\n<p>Florida\u2019s seventh\u00a0execution\u00a0of the year followed a\u00a0record 19 executions in the state in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis oversaw more executions in a single year in 2025 than any other Florida governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Knight was convicted of first-degree murder in the June 2002 killings of Odessia Stephens and the couple\u2019s daughter, Hanessia Mullings. <span class=\"credit\">Family Handout<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Hans Mullings, who was Stephen\u2019s boyfriend and the father of the 4-year-old, told reporters after witnessing Thursday\u2019s execution that his family still grieves the loss. <span class=\"credit\">Family Handout<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The previous record was eight in 2014. And all told, a total of\u00a047 people\u00a0were executed in the US in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>According to court records, Knight had been living in Coral Springs, near Fort Lauderdale, with his cousin, his cousin\u2019s girlfriend and their daughter in 2000.<\/p>\n<p>Knight and Stephens frequently argued about Knight living there. One evening while Knight\u2019s cousin was at work, Stephens told Knight he would have to move out the next morning.<\/p>\n<p>Knight became angry and stabbed Stephens multiple times and then attacked the young girl, the records show.<\/p>\n<div class=\"single__inline-module inline-module inline-module--newsletter aligncenter inline-module--nypostbusinessunit aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-newsletter\" data-source-unit=\"Inline Newsletter Module Morning Report\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__title-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__unsubmitted-title-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Hans Mullings, who was Stephen\u2019s boyfriend and the father of the 4-year-old, told reporters after witnessing Thursday\u2019s execution that his family still grieves the loss.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe pain never leaves,\u201d Mullings said. \u201cWe love them still, and we can\u2019t stop loving them. We miss them a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Stephen\u2019s sisters and mother didn\u2019t attend the execution, but provided a statement expressing closure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWords cannot express the profound sense of peace and finality we feel today,\u201d it said. \u201cWhile this does not fill the empty space in our hearts, the closing of this long, painful chapter allows us to fully focus on honoring the beautiful lives of Odessia and Hanessia.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The entrance to Florida State Prison in Starke, where the state\u2019s execution chamber is located. <span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cRichard, may our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ grant you the mercy you failed to give our loved ones whom you so brutally took from us that night,\u201d the statement added.<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, the US Supreme Court rejected Knight\u2019s final appeal without comment.<\/p>\n<p>That came shortly after the planned\u00a0execution\u00a0of a Tennessee inmate,\u00a0Tony Carruthers, was called off.<\/p>\n<p>Tennessee officials said a team quickly established Carruthers\u2019 main IV line for a lethal injection but couldn\u2019t find a suitable vein for a backup line required under the state\u2019s execution protocol.<\/p>\n<p>Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee later announced the state would not try again for at least a year to execute Carruthers, who was convicted of killing three people.<\/p>\n<p>Also this week, an Arizona prisoner convicted of killing another man by\u00a0throwing gasoline at him and lighting a match\u00a0was\u00a0put to death\u00a0Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>Leroy Dean McGill, 63, received a lethal injection at the Arizona State Prison Complex in Florence for the death of Charles Perez, who was attacked at a north Phoenix apartment in 2002.<\/p>\n<p>Florida, meanwhile, is preparing to conduct another execution on June 2. Andrew Richard Lukehart, 53, was convicted of fatally beating of his girlfriend\u2019s infant daughter in 1996.<\/p>\n<p>All Florida executions are by lethal injection of a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that stops the heart, officials say.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><!-- \u603b\u5bb9\u5668\uff1a\u6700\u5927\u5bbd908px Grid\u7d27\u51d1\u5e03\u5c40 -->\r\n<div style=\"display: grid; grid-template-columns: 728px 160px; gap:2px; width:908px; background:#eee; padding:2px;\">\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u901a\u680f\u9876\u90e8\uff1a\u6700\u5927\u6a2a\u5e45 908x258 \u8de8\u6574\u884c -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column:1\/-1; height:258px; background:#ff6b6b; display:grid; place-items:center;\">\r\n    <!-- JuicyAds v3.0 -->\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async src=\"https:\/\/poweredby.jads.co\/js\/jads.js\"><\/script>\r\n<ins id=\"1114307\" data-width=\"908\" data-height=\"258\"><\/ins>\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" async>(adsbyjuicy = window.adsbyjuicy || []).push({'adzone':1114307});<\/script>\r\n<!--JuicyAds END-->\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u7b2c\u4e8c\u901a\u680f\uff1a728\u00d790 \u901a\u680f -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column:1\/-1; 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