Norman Mearle Grim Jr. set for Oct. 28 lethal injection for the brutal sexual battery and murder of his neighbor, Cynthia Campbell; state’s 13th execution this year.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a death warrant for Norman Mearle Grim Jr., 65, setting his execution date for October 28. Grim was convicted in 1998 of the sexual battery and first-degree murder of his next-door neighbor, Cynthia Campbell.
Grim is scheduled to die by lethal injection for the brutal killing. Campbell was reported missing before her body was discovered by a fisherman off the Pensacola Bay Bridge.
Brutal Details of the Crime
According to prosecutors, Campbell suffered horrific injuries, including multiple blunt-force trauma to her face and head consistent with being struck by a hammer.
She also sustained eleven stab wounds to the chest, seven of which penetrated her heart. Physical evidence, including DNA, definitively tied Grim to her death, leading to his conviction in December 2000.
Florida’s Escalating Execution Rate
The scheduling of Grim’s execution marks the third slated for Florida this fall and highlights the state’s position as the nation’s leader in carrying out the death sentence in 2025.
On September 17, Florida executed its 12th inmate of the year, David Pittman, surpassing the state’s previous annual high of eight executions in 2014—the highest since the death penalty was restored in 1976.
Two other executions are already scheduled: Victor Tony Jones on September 30 and Samuel Lee Smithers on October 14.
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