Additional Coverage:
- Florida executes man convicted of 1994 killing of college student in national forest (newsbreak.com)
In Florida, a man named Loran Cole, aged 57, was executed this Thursday for a heinous crime committed 30 years ago. The incident involved the murder of an 18-year-old college freshman and the rape of his older sister.
The tragic events unfolded while the siblings were camping in a national forest. Cole, who received a lethal injection at Florida State Prison, was declared dead at 6:15 p.m.
Cole did not offer any final words before his execution, only responding with a “No sir,” when asked. Witnesses described that Cole looked briefly at a viewer before the execution procedure started around 6 p.m., and showed visible reactions like deep breathing and shivering for a brief period before being declared deceased.
The backstory is heart-wrenching; Cole, along with an accomplice, William Paul, had first acquainted themselves with the siblings in the Ocala National Forest. After spending time together, the duo attacked the siblings under the pretense of showing them a pond. The attack resulted in the young man’s brutal murder and his sister’s ordeal, who was taken back to the campsite, restrained, and assaulted.
The female victim endured further horror but eventually managed to escape and find help. Her brother’s body was later discovered abandoned in the forest. Both Cole and Paul faced convictions, with Paul receiving a life sentence.
The execution marks Florida’s return to capital punishment, the first since another inmate’s execution the previous year. Leading up to his execution, records show Cole was appeasing and visited by his son among others. His legal appeals, including one for clemency citing mental health issues and a traumatic childhood, were denied, clearing the way for his execution as ordered by Governor Ron DeSantis.