A 74-year-old man was executed on Tuesday in Florida, marking him as the oldest individual to face execution in the state since the onset of Florida’s modern execution history.
Authorities confirmed that Dennis Sochor was declared dead at 6:16 p.m. following the administration of a three-drug protocol at the Florida State Prison located near Starke. Sochor’s conviction stemmed from the first-degree murder and abduction of 18-year-old Patricia Gifford, after she rebuffed his sexual advances on January 1, 1982.
Earlier that day, the U.S. Supreme Court declined without comment to delay Sochor’s execution, dismissing his appeal, thus clearing the path for the scheduled lethal injection.
As execution time arrived, Sochor lay restrained on a gurney, an IV inserted into his arm, as witnesses watched through the death chamber’s glass partition.
Dennis Sochor, then 74, was convicted for the tragic 1980s murder of an 18-year-old woman. (Image from Florida Department of Corrections.)
He apologized several times to the Gifford family, saying he was “deeply sorry” for his crime, a spokesman for Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office said, according to The Associated Press. He also thanked his loved ones for their support over the years and commended his spirit to Jesus Christ.
Sochor declined a last meal and met with one visitor and a spiritual advisor before his execution, according to the outlet.
Sochor was with his brother when he met Gifford as she was celebrating on New Year’s Day at a bar in the Fort Lauderdale area, according to Fox 13.
The group talked through the night, but Gifford left with Sochor and his brother to get breakfast. Sochor drove his truck to a secluded area and asked Gifford if she wanted to have sex, and she refused. Sochor then attacked the teenager, according to investigators.
Clouds hover over the entrance of the Florida State Prison in Starke, Fla., Aug. 3, 2023. (AP)
Sochor was arrested in 1986 on unrelated charges and extradited to Florida, where he confessed to choking Gifford and disposing of her body.
His brother told authorities Sochor was responsible for Gifford’s disappearance, and her body was never found.
In 1987, a jury convicted Sochor of first-degree murder and kidnapping, and he was sentenced to death.
The view from outside an execution chamber in Florida (Florida Department of Corrections)
While Sochor was the oldest inmate in Florida’s modern history to be executed, an 80-year-old prisoner is scheduled to be executed later in July. Another 74-year-old inmate only a week younger than Sochor at the time of execution was put to death last month.
Sochor’s execution was the 10th in Florida so far this year.
In 2025, 19 people were put to death in Florida, setting a record for the most executions in one year in the Sunshine State. Before last year, Florida’s record for executions in a year since the death penalty was restored in 1976 was eight in 1984 and 2014.
Florida also executed more people last year than any other state, with Alabama, Texas and South Carolina tied for the second-most with five each. Across the U.S., 47 people were executed in 2025.