A death row prisoner who raped, beat and strangled his step-niece to death has been executed. James Ernest Hitchcock, 70, carried out the horrific crime 50 years ago after the 13-year-old threatened to tell her mother what he had done.

He was administered a three-drug lethal injection at Florida State Prison, where he was first sentenced to death in 1977 following his conviction for first-degree murder in the July 31, 1976 killing of Cynthia Driggers.

After a succession of appeals, he was resentenced to death in 1988, 1993 and 1996, according to NBC News.

Court records reveal that Hitchcock was out of work and had moved into his brother's Orlando home several weeks prior to murdering his brother's stepdaughter.

Following several hours of drinking beer and smoking marijuana with friends, Hitchcock returned to the family home, he told police after his arrest.

Hitchcock, who was 20-years-old at the time, entered the 13-year-old girl's bedroom and raped her, investigators said.

When the girl told Hitchcock she had been hurt and intended to inform her mother, Hitchcock attempted to prevent her from leaving the room before beginning to choke her, officials said, reports <a href="https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/us-news/death-row-rapist-executed-murdering-37094294">the Daily Star</a>.

Hitchcock dragged the girl outside, where he beat and strangled her until she stopped moving, before leaving her body concealed in nearby bushes.

He then returned inside, showered and went to bed.

He subsequently testified that his brother entered the girl's room shortly after she and Hitchcock had engaged in consensual sex.

Hitchcock alleged that his brother dragged the girl outside and proceeded to beat and choke her in a violent rage, claiming she was already dead by the time he managed to pull his brother away.

Hitchcock maintained that he had originally accepted responsibility in order to shield his brother.

The Florida Supreme Court rejected an appeal last week to suspend Hitchcock's execution.

His legal team had argued that he was innocent and that the state had unlawfully denied him access to public records pertaining to the death penalty.

Hitchcock's execution marks Florida's sixth this year, following a record 19 executions in 2025.

All executions carried out in Florida are administered via lethal injection, comprising a sedative, a paralytic agent and a drug to stop the heart, according to the Department of Corrections.