Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a death warrant for Richard Barry Randolph, 63, marking the 17th execution scheduled in the state for 2025—a single-year record since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
Randolph is scheduled to die by lethal injection on November 20 at Florida State Prison for the 1988 rape and fatal beating of his former manager, Minnie Ruth McCollum, at a convenience store in Patatka.
The pace of executions under DeSantis has far surpassed previous records. The previous high was set in 2014 with eight executions. Randolph’s scheduled execution follows closely on the heels of others; Norman Mearle Grim Jr. is scheduled for October 28, and Bryan Fredrick Jennings for November 13. The state’s most recent execution was that of Samuel Lee Smithers on October 14.
Randolph was convicted of murder, armed robbery, sexual battery, and grand theft, and was sentenced to death in 1989.
According to court records, the crime occurred in August 1988 when Randolph, a former employee, attempted to break into the safe at the Handy-Way convenience store. He was spotted by the manager, McCollum, leading to a struggle. Randolph subsequently beat, strangled, stabbed, and raped McCollum before fleeing in her car.
Three women witnessed Randolph leaving the store and alerted the sheriff’s office after seeing the store in disarray. A deputy arrived to find McCollum still alive. She was rushed to the hospital in a coma and died six days later from severe brain injuries.
Randolph was apprehended shortly after the attack at a grocery store in Jacksonville while trying to borrow money and cash in lottery tickets stolen from the convenience store. Investigators reported that Randolph admitted to the attack and directed them to bloody clothing he had discarded.
Attorneys for Randolph are expected to file appeals to both the Florida Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court in an attempt to halt the execution.
Florida leads the nation in executions this year amid a flurry of death warrants signed by Gov. DeSantis. So far in 2025, 39 people have been executed in the U.S.
READ: Florida Gov. DeSantis’ Record Execution Pace Continues As Norman Grim Waives All Appeals
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