Florida is preparing to carry out another execution as 58-year-old Mark Allen Geralds faces lethal injection Tuesday evening at Florida State Prison in Starke. Geralds was convicted of murdering 29-year-old Tressa Pettibone during a violent home invasion in Panama City more than three decades ago. His case dates back to 1989, when he was found guilty of murder, armed robbery, burglary, and car theft. Although his original death sentence was briefly overturned, it was reinstated in 1992. If carried out, this execution will mark Florida’s 18th of 2025 — a record number for the state in a single year.

Court documents detail the brutality of Pettibone’s killing, which was discovered by her 8-year-old son, who found his mother beaten and stabbed on the kitchen floor. Investigators linked Geralds to the crime through pawned jewelry stained with Pettibone’s blood and plastic ties matching those used to bind her. Geralds had previously worked at the home as a carpenter, and witnesses recalled that he questioned Pettibone’s son about the family’s schedule shortly before the murder, indicating premeditation.

After the governor signed Geralds’ death warrant last month, he informed the court that he did not intend to file any further appeals. A judge approved his decision, clearing the way for the execution to proceed. His case adds to a growing list of executions nationwide, with 44 inmates put to death in the United States so far this year and several more scheduled before year’s end.

Florida continues to lead the country in executions in 2025, with another one already planned for next week. Frank Athen Walls, also 58, is scheduled to die on December 18 for a separate double homicide committed during a home invasion. The state administers lethal injections using a three-drug protocol consisting of a sedative, a paralytic, and a heart-stopping agent.