COURT FAST-TRACKS APPEALS AS FLORIDA PREPS TO EXECUTE MAN WHO SHOT WIFE AT COOKOUT

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a death warrant earlier this month, setting an execution date for death row inmate William Frances Silvia, Jr. Silvia is scheduled to die by lethal injection at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, at Florida State Prison in Raiford.

The signing prompted the Florida Supreme Court to place all related court proceedings and appeals on a fast-track schedule. Attorneys representing Silvia filed a notice of appeal Friday in the 18th Judicial Circuit Court in Seminole County, challenging a lower court ruling that denied Silvia’s successive motion to vacate his death sentence and rejected his request to stay the execution.

In a court order, the state Supreme Court instructed trial judges and attorneys to expedite all remaining legal matters.

“Because the Governor has signed a death warrant for the execution of William Frances Silvia at 6:00 p.m., Tuesday, August 18, 2026, we direct that all further proceedings in this case be expedited,” the court wrote.

Under the expedited order, all trial court proceedings were required to conclude today, July 31, 2026, by 11:00 a.m., with the official trial record delivered to the high court that afternoon.

Silvia’s initial brief on the merits is due by 2:00 p.m. on Monday, August 3. State prosecutors with the Florida Attorney General’s Office must submit their answer brief by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 4, and any final reply from the defense is due by 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5. Oral arguments will be scheduled if the justices decide they are necessary.

Silvia is represented by Assistant Capital Collateral Regional Counsel attorneys Ali Andrew Shakoor, Debra Roganne Bell, and Mahham Syed.

Silvia was convicted of first-degree murder for the September 22, 2006, fatal shooting of his estranged wife, Patricia Silvia, and the attempted first-degree murder of her mother, Betty Woodard.

According to a case summary from Attorney General James Uthmeier, Silvia purchased a 12-gauge shotgun and ammunition on the afternoon of the shooting. Later that evening, he went to his mother-in-law’s home in Seminole County, where his wife was living and where the family was hosting a cookout. After an attempt to reconcile failed, Silvia retrieved the shotgun from his truck. He shot Woodard in the face, causing severe injuries, and shot Patricia Silvia in the head, killing her.

During a 2008 trial, a Seminole County jury recommended a death sentence by an 11-to-1 vote. Circuit Judge Donna L. McIntosh sentenced Silvia to death for the murder on January 28, 2009, and to a concurrent life sentence for the attempted murder.

Following his arrest, Silvia spoke to a transporting officer about his marriage, stating, “That’s the reason I’m in this situation. My wife spent all my money. I placed the checking account in her name. She started re-dating her ex-husband. That is the reason I shot her.”

Prior to the current appeals, the Florida Supreme Court affirmed the conviction and sentence on direct appeal in 2011. Although a postconviction court temporarily vacated the death sentence in 2017 based on state and federal court rulings regarding jury unanimity rules, the Florida Supreme Court reversed that order and reinstated Silvia’s death sentence in 2018.

Subsequent appeals, including a federal motion dismissed in March 2024, have been denied, and executive clemency was deemed inappropriate.

READ: Florida Sets Sept. 1 Execution Date For Man Convicted In 1976 Shooting Death Of Teen

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