Gov. Scott Signs First Death Warrant For Coral Gables Cop Killer
TALLAHASSEE (CBS4) - Six months after his swearing in, Governor Rick Scott has signed his first death warrant for a man who killed a Coral Gables police officer 33 years ago.
Scott signed the warrant Thursday night for Manuel Valle. He was convicted of fatally shooting officer Luis Pena in the neck during a traffic stop in April 1978.
Valle's execution by lethal injection is set for 6 p.m. Aug. 2 at Florida State Prison in Starke.
The governor signed the warrant exactly a week after a federal judge in Miami declared Florida's method of imposing the death penalty is unconstitutional.
The attorney general's office has asked for a rehearing in that case and plans to appeal if U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez doesn't change his mind.
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