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February 7, 2025The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops (FCCB) has implored Gov. Ron DeSantis to stay the execution of James Ford and commute his death sentence. Ford is scheduled to be executed on February 13 for the 1997 murders of Gregory Malnory and his wife, Kimberly Malnory, in Charlotte County.
In a letter to DeSantis, Michael Sheedy, FCCB executive director, recognized the duty of the state to protect the lives and safety of its citizens and to impose appropriate punishment for crimes. Sheedy noted that commuting Ford’s sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole “enables the state of Florida to serve the requirements of justice without vengeance.”
“The intrinsic dignity and unalienable rights of every human being are not annihilated by even gravely evil acts. Mr. Ford still deserves to be treated in accordance with that dignity,” urged Sheedy.
Ford was the victim of childhood neglect and trauma. The court found him to be learning disabled, brain impaired, and having a developmental age of fourteen. The court also found him to be a chronic alcoholic, raised amid a family history of alcoholism.
“While these factors do not change the terrible nature of his crimes or the need for his removal from society, they urge upon those governing on behalf of the people of Florida a spirit of mercy,” wrote Sheedy.
The Catholic Church teaches that all human life is sacred. Even people who have committed terrible acts and caused great harm possess a human dignity instilled by God, our Creator. The death penalty attacks the inviolability of the human person and perpetuates the cycle of violence that is prevalent in our culture. Given our modern penal system, executions are unnecessary. Life-long incarceration without the possibility of parole is a severe yet more humane punishment that ensures societal safety, allows the guilty the possibility of redemption, and offers closure for victims of crime and their families.
Before Ford’s scheduled execution, Floridians will gather across the state to pray for him and his victims, for DeSantis as he considers the request to stay the execution, and for an end to the death penalty and the cycle of violence in society.
Full text of letter to DeSantis; List of prayer vigils across the state# # #The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops is an agency of the Catholic Bishops of Florida. It speaks for the Church in matters of public policy and serves as liaison to the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. The archbishop and bishops of the seven (arch)dioceses in Florida constitute its board of directors.