Florida schedules execution of 77-year-old Vietnam veteran convicted of 1986 police shooting
William Reaves Jr., a Vietnam veteran sentenced to death for the 1986 murder of Deputy Richard Raczkowski, is set to be executed by lethal injection on Oct. 20, amid appeals from veterans and death-penalty opponents.
Florida will carry out the lethal injection of 77-year-old William Reaves Jr. on Oct. 20 at the state prison in Raiford. Reaves was convicted of pre-meditated first-degree murder for shooting Indian River Sheriff's Deputy Richard Raczkowski in Vero Beach in 1986. The execution follows a recent surge in death-penalty warrants issued by Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has signed 19 warrants this year, nearly half of all U.S. executions in 2025.
More than 100 military veterans wrote to DeSantis on Oct. 19 urging clemency, arguing that Reaves returned from Vietnam with untreated psychological trauma. The letter said the nation “assumes a solemn duty not to abandon (service members) when they come home carrying wounds we cannot see.”
During the 1986 incident, Raczkowski responded to a silent 911 call at a convenience store. After a brief exchange, Reaves drew a .38 pistol and fired seven shots, striking the deputy four times. Reaves later told a friend he had “just shot a cop,” and he was arrested in Georgia two days later. He claimed he was under the influence of cocaine at the time.
Raczkowski’s family has repeatedly expressed that the execution fulfills long-standing justice. His brother, Marc Raczkowski, said the execution provides closure after four decades of loss. Sheriff Eric Flowers said he wants Reaves to see an Indian River County sheriff’s uniform before his death, emphasizing that “we never forget.”
Reaves’ former attorney, Chance Meyer, has argued that the veteran’s PTSD and wartime conditioning were not presented to the jury, describing Reaves as a “psychological ruin” who believed he was still in combat. A Veterans Affairs hospital had denied Reaves assistance, and he reportedly self-medicated with drugs after returning from Vietnam.
The execution will be carried out with Florida’s three-drug protocol, differing from the pentobarbital protocol used in Tennessee’s recent botched execution. DeSantis’ office did not respond to requests for comment.