A Florida man who confessed to murdering his girlfriend’s young daughter and dumping her body in a pond three decades ago was executed Tuesday night.
Andrew Richard Lukehartfifty-three years old, was pronounced dead at 6:19 pm after receiving a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke.
He had been sentenced to death in 1997 for first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse, for the death of Gabrielle Hanshaw5 months, which occurred a year earlier, as reported by the AP.
Before the execution, a guard asked Lukehart if he had a final statement, to which he raised his head to look at a group of people in the front row of the waiting room and said, “I’m sorry.”
Lukehart then recited the Bible verse Luke 23:34, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do,” which Scripture says Jesus Christ spoke during his crucifixion.
Lukehart lost consciousness almost immediately after being administered the lethal drugs. Several minutes into the execution, the mayor shook him and shouted his name, but there was no reaction.
Lukehart refused a last meal and received no visitors before the executionalthough he did meet with a spiritual advisor, according to Jordan Kirkland, spokesperson for the Department of Corrections, in a press conference.
This was the eighth execution in Florida so far this yearfollowing a record 19 executions in 2025. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis oversaw more executions in a single year in 2025 than any other Florida governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. The previous record was set in 2014 with eight executions.
According to court records, Lukehart was babysitting his girlfriend’s baby in February 1996 while she tended to her older daughter, who was sick. At some point, the girlfriend testified that Lukehart left her home in Jacksonville and could not find the baby.
Lukehart called his girlfriend about 30 minutes later and told him to call the police because the baby had been kidnapped and he was chasing the kidnapper.
That same night, Lukehart was found in a neighboring county after driving his car off the road. During questioning the next day, Lukehart told investigators that Gabrielle died after he dropped her on his head and then shook her.
He told the police that he panicked and threw the baby into a pond.. Officers searched the pond and found the girl’s body.
The Florida Supreme Court rejected Lukehart’s appeals last week. His attorneys argued that medication he was taking for kidney disease could have an adverse reaction to lethal injection drugs.
They also argued that the fact that only one month passed between the signing of Lukehart’s death warrant and his execution deprived him of due process. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Lukehart’s latest appeal on Monday.
Keep reading:
– Florida stopped the execution of a police officer convicted of raping and killing a girl.
– Florida executed Michael King, the rapist and murderer of a woman who called 911 asking for help.
