Florida executes man for 1996 infant killing

A Florida man who confessed to killing his girlfriend’s infant daughter three decades ago was executed by lethal injection Tuesday evening at Florida State Prison near Starke. Andrew Richard Lukehart, 53, was pronounced dead at 6:19 p.m., according to prison officials.

Lukehart was convicted in 1997 of first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse for the death of five-month-old Gabrielle Hanshaw the previous year. The execution proceeded after the U.S. Supreme Court denied his final appeal on Monday.

When the curtain to the execution chamber opened at 6 p.m., Lukehart was already strapped to a table with an intravenous line in his arm. A priest was present to pray over him. Asked by a warden if he had a final statement, Lukehart raised his head to look at witnesses in the front row of the viewing area and said, “I’m sorry.” He then recited a Bible verse from the Book of Luke: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

Lukehart lost consciousness shortly after the administration of the three-drug combination began. Several minutes later, the warden shook him and called his name with no response. A medic checked his vital signs and he was declared dead. A Department...