DeSantis Signs Warrant for 1992 Cop Killer Scheduled for Dec. 1 Execution
Governor Ron DeSantis authorized the lethal injection of Ricardo Gonzalez, who fatally shot a North Miami Beach officer during a bank robbery 34 years ago.
By Benjamin Bernard ·
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a death warrant on Friday for Ricardo Gonzalez, the 56-year-old inmate responsible for the 1992 murder of a North Miami Beach police officer.
Gonzalez is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Dec. 1 at Florida State Prison. He is currently the 21st prisoner slated for execution in the state this year, following scheduled dates on Thursday and Nov. 19.
The Florida Department of Corrections conducted 19 executions last year. That total marked the highest annual count for the state since the U.S. Supreme Court ended the moratorium on capital punishment in 1976.
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, 32 prisoners have been executed across six states this year. Florida leads the nation in executions, with Texas following at seven.
Court records indicate Gonzalez fired the gun that killed Officer Steven Bauer on Jan. 3, 1992. Bauer was escorting bank tellers to the drive-thru windows of Kislak National Bank when Gonzalez and three codefendants approached. Gonzalez claimed in confessions made at his residence two weeks later that he shot low and believed he only wounded the officer in the leg. Forensic evidence later confirmed his bullet struck Bauer in the chest.
A clinical neuropsychologist testified on Gonzalez' behalf, arguing he acted under extreme mental and emotional disturbance. The expert cited his developmental history, language deficiencies, brain damage from boxing, and impulse control issues. Despite this testimony, a jury convicted him of first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer, armed robbery, aggravated assault, grand theft, and burglary.
Circuit Court Judge Robert Scola Jr. sentenced Gonzalez to death on Sept. 19, 1998. The sentencing order noted that Gonzalez picked up the money tray immediately after shooting the officer. He received $1,500 as his share of the robbery proceeds. Two of his codefendants, Leonardo Franqui and Pablo San Martin, also remain on Florida's death row, which holds 235 inmates as of Monday.
Source: WLRN
