A Florida man convicted of killing five people, including his wife and two young children, shared a final message before he was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday evening.
Michael Bernard Bell, 54, was pronounced dead at 6:25PM at Florida State Prison in Raiford, according to a statement from Governor Ron DeSantis’ office. Bell was sentenced to death for a 1993 double murder, and was later convicted of three additional homicides from 1989, The Guardian reports.
Witnesses said Bell appeared alert as he entered the execution chamber and was strapped to a gurney. Bell closed his eyes shortly after the injection began and was unresponsive within minutes. Medical personnel confirmed his death 10 minutes later.
Just before the drugs were administered, he reportedly said: “Thank you for not letting me spend the rest of my life in prison,” according to the prison’s team warden, via AP. It was unclear to whom the remark was directed.
According to state officials, Bell declined all visitors except for a spiritual adviser on the day of his execution. His final meal, consumed that morning, included home fries, an omelet, bacon, and orange juice.
Bell was initially sentenced to death in 1995 for the fatal shootings of Jimmy West and Tamecka Smith outside a bar in Orlando.
Prosecutors said Bell believed the vehicle parked outside the lounge belonged to the man who had shot his brother earlier that year. Armed with an AK-47 and accompanied by two others, Bell waited for the vehicle’s occupants to return before opening fire.
West died at the scene, Smith died en route to the hospital, and a third woman survived, ABC News detailed. Bell also fired at bystanders before fleeing. He was arrested in 1994.
While awaiting trial, Bell was also linked to an earlier triple homicide in 1989. In that case, prosecutors said he murdered his estranged wife during a domestic dispute.
Court records state he beat her with a machete and crowbar before strangling her. He then used the machete to kill their children, aged five and seven, per Metro.
The U.S. Supreme Court denied Bell’s final appeal on Tuesday morning, hours before the execution. His legal team had requested a stay, citing concerns over new witness-related evidence. Florida’s Supreme Court had already ruled against the motion last week, stating the evidence against Bell remained overwhelming.
Bell is the 26th person executed in the United States in 2025, surpassing the national total for 2024. His execution marks the eighth carried out in Florida this year; the most of any state so far.