The state of Florida executed 63-year-old James Robertson at 12:32 p.m. Tuesday by three-way lethal injection. He was convicted of the 2008 murder of Frank Hart.
When asked if he had any last words, he said, “Nah, I’m straight,” according to witnesses of the execution.
Robertson’s execution is the 17th in Florida this year and the 45th carried out under Gov. Ron DeSantis. Florida has now executed 142 people since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
The crime
On Dec. 10, 2008, 46-year-old Robertson reportedly strangled Hart, his cellmate at the Charlotte Correctional Institution.
Robertson had been in prison since he was 16.
The Netflix documentary “I am a Killer,” featured Robertson in the first episode. In the episode he said he was first arrested for breaking into a business near his house. He stole a speaker, got caught by security and attempted to fight them off.
Ahead of the murder, Robertson was charged with fighting inmates, attacking guards and trying to escape. He was put into solitary confinement, where he was kept separate from other incarcerated people. Robertson was in solitary confinement for up to 23 hours a day.
In the documentary, he said he faced inhumane conditions, like not seeing sunlight and being left alone with his thoughts. The near-constant time in solitary confinement made death row sound appealing to him, he said.
In 2008, Robertson was moved into a shared cell away from the other inmates with Hart.
Hart told officers at the Department of Corrections he should be moved to a different cell because he was worried about his safety, according to court records.
On the day of the murder, Robertson tied socks together, shook Hart awake and strangled him to death.
Robertson said the Department of Corrections was responsible for Hart’s death because it knew he felt unsafe. He said officers wanted him to attack Hart, according to court documents.
Robertson was charged with second-degree murder. At the first appearance hearing the following June, Robertson said he should receive a first-degree murder charge — which requires premeditation — instead. If he wasn’t charged with first-degree murder, he said, he threatened to murder someone else to get the death penalty.
In December 2011, while awaiting trial, Robertson attempted another attack. He tried to assault a correctional officer to get the keys to another inmate's cell so he could kill him.
He was charged with attempted murder and attempted robbery.
The punishment
On Oct. 19, 2012, Robertson wrote a sworn statement saying Hart’s murder was premeditated. He also wrote the attempted murder of the officer was carefully planned so he could get the death penalty. He said he would kill someone else if he didn’t receive the death penalty.
A week later, a grand jury indicted Robertson for first-degree murder and sentenced him to death.
He waived postconviction proceedings, which allow a person to challenge a criminal conviction, and did not appeal his execution.
Day of the execution
Members of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church traveled from Daytona Beach to protest outside Florida State Prison Tuesday. Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty and Florida residents joined them.
They set up lawn chairs, applied bug spray and prepared for prayer. In the hour leading up to the execution, they sang and worshipped together.
While most executions are in the evenings, Robertson’s was scheduled for noon, so protesters brought hats, umbrellas and sunglasses to block the sun.
Tuesday was initially scheduled to be a double execution, with Robertson’s at noon and 74-year-old William Lee Thompson’s scheduled six hours later. DeSantis withdrew Thomspon’s death warrant Oct. 8 because he is on hospice, has a lung disease and can’t walk. This is the first time DeSantis has withdrawn a death warrant in his seven-years as governor.
The Rev. Philip Egitto from Our Lady of Lordes Catholic Church led protesters in worship. He prayed for Robertson, Hart and their families.
“Help us to stand with victims without creating another victim, to demand accountability without surrendering to vengeance," he said.
In addition to worship, Maria DeLiberato, the legal and policy director of Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, made a speech.
The public has been paying more attention to the death penalty because of Christa Pike’s failed execution in Tennessee Sept. 30, she said, and the upcoming livestreamed execution of Nidal Hasan by firing squad in December.
“It’s a turning point in our country,” DeLiberato said. “I mean, people are talking about the death penalty more than ever.”
She said it’s important for people to continue to protest the executions.
“We’re not changing the minds of DeSantis; that’s done,” she said. “But you know what else is done? Him.”
DeSantis’ last day in office is Jan. 5, 2027. Republican candidate Bryon Donalds, a supporter of the death penalty, will face Democratic candidate David Jolly, who his senior adviser said he would want to halt rapid-fire death warrants, though he hasn’t made a comment himself, in the polls Nov. 3, according to the Miami-Herald.
Bill Campbell, a supporter of the death penalty, frequently attends the executions to counterprotest. He plays music from speakers and rings a cowbell to disrupt the protest.
He said he’s upset with the Tennessee execution results and doesn’t agree with livestreaming the December execution in Texas.
“Man, those idiots in Tennessee,” he said. “They make this whole process look bad.”
Florida’s executions represent how they should be done, he added.
“This is done right here,” he said. “Just keep it lowkey. You only got this group of people protesting.”
After the execution, Hart’s family members had the opportunity to speak at a press conference.
His daughter, Rebecca Hart, made a speech after witnessing the execution.
“The man convicted of killing my father, James Robertson, was featured on Netflix as ‘I am a Killer’ and ‘World’s Most Evil Prisoners.’ For viewers, my father’s death may be an episode they can watch and turn off,” she said. “For my family, there is no remote control.”
Contact Teia Williams at twilliams@alligator.org. Follow her on X @teia_williams.
Teia Williams is a journalism senior at UF and the Fall 2026 criminal justice reporter. This is her fourth semester with The Alligator. If she isn't writing an article, you can find her at a concert, reading a book or somewhere soaking up the sun.
