The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops (FCCB) has requested that Gov. Ron DeSantis stay the execution of Duane Owen and commute his sentence to life without parole. Owen is scheduled to be executed on June 15, 2023, at 6:00 p.m. He was sentenced to death for the 1984 murders of Karen Slattery and Georgianna Worden in Palm Beach County, Florida.
The 2023 Regular Session of the Florida Legislature came to a close (sine die) at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, May 5. The motion to adjourn sine die, Latin for 'without day,' is the last action of a session of the Florida legislature. Our final summary of the legislative session provides the status of budget priorities and concerns and bills actively engaged by the FCCB.
SB 1580 (Trumbull) was approved by the full Senate on Friday by a 28-11 vote. "Nothing in this bill allows a medical professional to decline to serve a patient because of who they are," said bill sponsor Senator Jay Trumbull in his closing statement. "Rather, it specifically focuses on what procedure the doctor or nurse is asked to perform and protects them from performing anything that violates their religious, moral or ethical beliefs."