Florida Schedules Execution for 1990 Murder Convict

Florida authorities are preparing to execute Chadwick Scott Willacy, a 58-year-old man convicted in the 1990 murder of his neighbor Marlys Sather, whom he set ablaze after she interrupted a burglary at her home. The lethal injection is scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday at Florida State Prison near Starke.

Willacy's execution stems from events on September 19, 1990, in Palm Bay, a coastal city about 70 miles southeast of Orlando. Court records show that Sather, then 37, returned home during her lunch break from work and discovered Willacy rummaging through her residence. Investigators said he struck her in the head with a blunt object, fracturing her skull, then bound her hands and ankles with wire and tape. When an attempt to strangle her with a telephone cord failed, Willacy doused her with gasoline and ignited it, according to the records. An autopsy confirmed Sather died from smoke inhalation, indicating she remained conscious during the fire.

Willacy fled the scene in Sather's car, taking additional items from the home and using her ATM card to withdraw cash, officials reported. When Sather did not return to work, her employer contacted her family. Her son-in-law arrived at the...