Florida executes Mark James Asay, first inmate put to death by state in 19 months

A 53-year-old man convicted of killing two men in 1987 was executed by Florida on Thursday evening by a lethal injection that included a drug never before used in a U.S. execution, state officials said.

This undated photo provided by the Florida Department of Corrections shows Mark Asay. Source: Florida Department Of Corrections via AP

Mark James Asay was the first white man to be put to death in Florida for killing a black man since the state reinstituted the death penalty in 1979.

The controversial three-drug cocktail that ended the 53-year-old's life while he lay on a gurney at Florida State Prison in Raiford shortly after 6pm was experimental, the ingredients never having been tested together in the US.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, Asay’s death warrant death warrant was the 23rd signed by Scott in seven years, more than any other modern-day Florida governor.