Bobby Joe Long, who was convicted of murdering at least nine women and in the 1980s, is scheduled to be executed on Thursday after the Florida Supreme Court declined his third appeal.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, the panel unanimously dismissed all seven claims Long, 65, brought forth, including a challenge to the state’s legal injection procedure.
Sentenced to death for the stabbing and beating of Michelle Denise Simms, 22, Long has been on death row for more than 30 years. While he was convicted of nine murders, reports indicated that he is believed to have killed at least 10 women in the Tampa Bay area and committed 50 rapes throughout Florida.
Long was arrested after releasing one of his victims, Lisa McVey Noland, 17, who he had kidnapped and sexually assaulted. Long had reportedly knocked the teen off her bicycle and forced her into his vehicle at gunpoint. He then took her into his home and repeatedly raped her during a harrowing ordeal that lasted 26 hours.
It’s unclear why Long decided to let this teen go, as he murdered another teen—18-year-old Chanel Devoun Williams—less than a month earlier. Despite this, Noland, now 52, told the Mirror that she’ll be at Florida State Prison with the nine victims’ families when Long takes his last breaths.
“My heart won’t miss a beat. I know it sounds cruel but it’s time justice is done,” she told the newspaper.
“There is forgiveness but there’s also a price to pay for that forgiveness.”
According to WTSP, Long argued that medical strides made since his brain damage was assessed at his 1989 sentencing should warrant a new hearing. They also claimed that the 30 years he’s spent on death row should be considered as punishment, meaning his execution would violate the Eighth and 14th Amendment.
The Tampa Bay Times reported that Long could appeal last week’s decision to the federal level.
[Featured image: Bobby Joe Long/Florida Department of Corrections]
