WFCN –
On Monday, Governor Ron DeSantis authorized the execution of the individual found guilty of the 1994 killing of a student at Florida State University.
The office of DeSantis revealed that the scheduled time for the execution of Loran Kenstley Cole, aged 57, was established for 6 p.m. on August 29th.
Since last August, the governor had refrained from authorizing any death penalties. The last time he did so was for Michael Duane Zack, 54, who was sentenced to death for the 1996 killings of two women in Northwest Florida.
Prior to Zack, five Florida inmates who had been incarcerated for a long time passed away through lethal injection in the months of February, April, May, June, and August.
On Monday night, the Florida Supreme Court ordered that all future steps in this case be accelerated due to the imminent execution date in just a month. According to a court-issued “warrant schedule,” the deadline to submit an appeal is 9 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 12.
Part of the document specifies that the defense must submit their initial brief by 9 a.m. on Wednesday, August 14, while the state’s response brief is required to be filed by 3 p.m. on Friday, August 16. The defendant must submit their response by 11 a.m. on Monday, August 19th, and any oral debate will be arranged for a future time if needed.
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The Ocala-Star Banner, a newspaper related to the Tallahassee Democrat, has covered the Cole case in great detail.
On the 18th of February in 1994, Cole, aged 27 at the time, and William Paul, who was 20, made friends with Pam and John Edwards, a pair of siblings who intended to go camping in the Ocala National Forest for the weekend.
John, an 18-year-old student at FSU, had a sister named Pam who was 21 years old and attended Eckerd College in St. Petersburg.
During the Edwardses’ camp setup, Cole made a brief acquaintance with them. He presented himself as “Kevin” and assisted in arranging the remainder of their camping area. Following their dinner, Cole and Paul made their way back to the siblings’ camping spot.
The quartet then agreed to venture towards a nearby pond at approximately 10:45 p.m. to capture images of the alligators.
The pond remained undiscovered by them. Cole pounced on Pam Edwards, swiftly restraining her with handcuffs before forcefully placing her on the ground.
Following the incident, John Edwards launched an assault on Paul, but Cole came to Paul’s aid and together they managed to overpower John, eventually throwing him to the ground beside his sister.
Paul guided Pam Edwards along the trail as Cole remained with John Edwards, who tragically passed away that evening after suffering a slit throat and three powerful blows to the head that resulted in a fractured skull.
Upon their arrival at the campsite, Cole, Paul, and Pam Edwards found themselves in a tense situation as Cole menacingly demanded sexual relations from Pam under the threat of harm. The following day, he assaulted her once more, then silenced her and bound her to a tree. Cole and Paul embarked on a journey in one of their vehicles.
By the time Sunday arrived, Pam Edwards managed to liberate herself by gnawing through the rope. She searched high and low for her brother, but he remained elusive. After that, she signaled a passing driver who gave her a ride to a place where she could call 911. Law enforcement officers discovered John Edwards’ remains later that same day.
At that moment, the former Sheriff of Marion County, Ken Ergle, described the individuals responsible for these crimes as despicable beasts.
Back in 1995, Cole and Paul were found guilty of committing first-degree murder, as well as two instances of kidnapping and two instances of robbery using a dangerous weapon. Cole was also convicted of two charges of sexual assault. Paul received a life-long prison term, while Cole was condemned to face the death penalty.
Throughout the years, Cole has challenged his conviction on numerous occasions, submitting requests to annul his sentence or petitions for habeas corpus (illegal detention), as reported in a 2018 piece in the Star-Banner. Every attempt was rejected, whether it was at the initial court hearing or at the highest court in Florida.
In 2007, Cole attempted to bring his case before the U.S. Supreme Court, yet his plea was ultimately rejected.
According to documents, when he was young, he was placed in the now-defunct Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, a place known for its history of physical, psychological, and sexual mistreatment. When Cole came across newspaper articles about other victims, his own “suppressed memories of abuse resurfaced,” which he attempted to present as a mitigating circumstance.
According to correctional records, Paul, who did not contest multiple charges in the case, is currently serving a life sentence at Cross City Correctional Institution.
Edwards belonged to the fraternity Phi Gamma Delta.
An article published in the Tallahassee Democrat on February 21, 1994, depicted the response of Edwards’ companions and fraternal siblings during that period.
The youngest fraternity brother of Phi Gamma Delta was clearly not himself, as the members sensed a change in him.
The six o’clock news caught them all off guard, leaving them unprepared. It was at that moment when they discovered that Edwards had been fatally assaulted while camping with his sister.
“Several hours later, Chris Spires, surrounded by approximately a dozen sorrowful fraternity brothers, expressed their astonishment,” recounted. A few of them sported dark armbands, while tears streamed down the face of another. “We remain fundamentally the same.”
Edwards, who had attended high school in Japan, resided not in the fraternity house but in a cozy room on the third floor of the adjacent Landis Hall.
The students at that place were also unaware of the murder until they watched the news in the evening. In the dormitory, resident-hall coordinators and counselors from Florida State University gathered within thirty minutes to discuss the recent events and provide support to those in need of counseling.
As per the students living in the dorms and the members of the fraternity, Edwards was a charming individual with a passion for sports, a member of the prestigious honor society, and aspiring to become a chemical engineer in the future.
Kevin McCord, a roommate in the dormitory, mentioned that he never heard any negative comments from him. He was the type of man you would hope your sister would choose to go out with.
The fraternity found little solace in the news of the arrests.
“At this moment, we are satisfied that they have been apprehended, yet we desire for them to face the ultimate punishment,” expressed Tal Heath, who serves as the president of the FSU chapter of the fraternity. I have no desire to continue detaining those prisoners. The implementation of capital punishment would prevent them from causing harm to another individual in the future.