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Jesse Guardado Executed: His Final Words

By the Undercurrent desk · Published

Video · 3:40 · Watch on YouTube

Florida executed Jesse Guardado on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. He was pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m. after a three-drug injection at the state prison in Starke, the Associated Press reports. Asked for a final statement, he said: “I would like to once again apologize for the pain and suffering I've caused to the victim's family and my own family as well.” (AP)

Earlier that day the U.S. Supreme Court denied his last appeal without comment. It was Florida's 19th execution of 2026, matching the state record set in 2025; two more are scheduled before the year ends. (AP)

Jesse Guardado was executed for the Sept. 13, 2004 killing of Jackie Malone, 75, outside DeFuniak Springs in Walton County. He confessed, waived a lawyer and pleaded guilty with no plea deal. His lawyers argued his jury never heard about his time at the Dozier School for Boys, and that Florida's clemency process is meaningless. The Florida Supreme Court rejected both claims on Oct. 29.

What's confirmed

  1. After his release, Jackie Malone helped him: he rented from her, stayed as a guest in her home and received her help on multiple occasions. (Fla. Supreme Court; 11th Circuit No. 22-10957; AP)
  2. Sept. 13, 2004Court records say he went to her home to rob her, struck her with a metal bar and stabbed her, and took her jewelry box, her purse and about $80. (Fla. Supreme Court; 11th Circuit; AP)
  3. Oct. 19, 2004He waived counsel and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and robbery with a weapon, with no plea agreement. (Walton County Circuit Court; Fla. Supreme Court)
  4. 2005A jury recommended death 12-0. The sentence became final in 2008. (Fla. Supreme Court; 11th Circuit)
  5. Oct. 5, 2026Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the death warrant. (Fla. Supreme Court, quoting the warrant)
  6. Oct. 29, 2026The Florida Supreme Court denied relief: "Guardado's claims are untimely." (SC2026-1605)
  7. Nov. 5, 2026The U.S. Supreme Court denied his last appeal (No. 26-6013 / 26A623). He was pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m. (U.S. Supreme Court docket; AP)

What we don't know

  • Ms. Malone's son spoke briefly to media witnesses after the execution, the AP reports. We do not speak for her family.

Chapters

  1. 0:00Jesse Guardado's final words
  2. 0:32Jackie Malone, 75: DeFuniak Springs, 2004
  3. 1:12Jesse Guardado's confession and guilty plea
  4. 1:33Guardado appeal: the Dozier and clemency claims
  5. 2:41Jesse Guardado execution: what happened

Sources

  1. The Associated Press, Nov. 5, 2026 (execution and final statement; via WAFB and CBS Miami)
  2. U.S. Supreme Court Docket 26-6013 Primary recordsupremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/26-6013.html
  3. Florida Supreme Court, Guardado v. State, SC2026-1605 (Oct. 29, 2026)
  4. U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit, No. 22-10957 (Aug. 12, 2024) Primary recordmedia.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/files/202210957.pdf
  5. Florida Department of Corrections, offender record DC# 324342 (photo)

The record · as of Nov. 7, 2026

How we know

Primary records are court and agency documents; reporting is news coverage we checked against them. How we report.

Verified timeline

  1. 2003-01-01Guardado conditionally released from Florida prison (prior robbery sentences); supervision set to expire Feb. 6, 2014. Malone later helped him: he rented from her, stayed as a guest in her home and received her help on multiple occasions, including finding work.FSC SC2026-1605 p.2 + fn.1 (release date); 11th Cir. 22-10957; NSF (NBC 6/News4Jax/WUSF): helped him find housing and employment after prison [carried over from story 428]
  2. 2004-09-13Jackie Malone, 75, killed at her home outside DeFuniak Springs, Walton County, during a robbery for crack-cocaine money. Court records: struck with a metal breaker bar and stabbed; her jewelry box, purse and other items taken. Same night, earlier: a failed attempted robbery at a grocery store (court records only).FSC SC2026-1605 pp.2-3 + fn.1; 11th Cir. 22-10957 pp.2-6; FL Legislature capital case summary (offense date 09/13/2004); NSF via WUSF/NBC 6/News4Jax [carried over from story 428]
  3. 2004-10-19At arraignment, Guardado waived counsel and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and robbery with a weapon, with no plea agreement. (Also pleaded guilty to the attempted grocery-store robbery: 40 years.)11th Cir. 22-10957 p.6 + fn.1; cert petition 26-6013 pp.4-5; FSC SC2026-1605 p.3 [carried over from story 428]
  4. 2005-09-15Penalty phase (set to begin Sept. 13, 2005, with appointed counsel): jury unanimously recommended death, 12-0. Exact day Sept. 15 appears only in the FL Legislature summary; month and 12-0 vote confirmed. (That summary mislabels it a 'guilty verdict': guilt was by plea.)FL Legislature capital case summary DC#324342 (09/15/05, 12-0); 11th Cir. 22-10957 p.7; cert petition p.4 ('September 2005', unanimous); FSC SC2026-1605 p.3 [carried over from story 428]
  5. 2005-10-13Sentenced to death for the murder; 30 years consecutive for robbery with a weapon. Trial court found 5 aggravators and 19 nonstatutory mitigators.FL Legislature summary (10/13/05); cert petition 26-6013 (Judgment Entered Oct. 13, 2005); FSC SC2026-1605 pp.3-4; NSF ('October 2005') [carried over from story 428]
  6. 2007-06-28Florida Supreme Court affirmed conviction and death sentence on direct appeal (Guardado v. State, 965 So. 2d 108, SC05-2035); rehearing denied Sept. 10, 2007; mandate Sept. 26, 2007.FL Legislature summary; cert petition 26-6013 related cases; FSC SC2026-1605 p.4; 11th Cir. p.28; NSF ('upheld in 2007') [carried over from story 428]
  7. 2008-02-19U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari (No. 07-8094, 552 U.S. 1197); sentence final.FL Legislature summary; cert petition 26-6013 related cases; 11th Cir. p.28; FSC SC2026-1605 p.5 [carried over from story 428]
  8. 2008-10-13Initial state postconviction (Rule 3.851) motion filed; amended June 1, 2010. Claims: ineffective penalty-phase counsel (mitigation investigation, jurors).FL Legislature summary (10/13/08, 06/01/10); FSC SC2026-1605 p.5 ('October 2008 ... June 2010') [carried over from story 428]
  9. 2017-05-11Florida Supreme Court denied his Hurst-based state habeas petition (Guardado v. Jones, 226 So. 3d 213, SC17-389); rehearing denied Sept. 19, 2017. U.S. Supreme Court denied cert April 2, 2018 (No. 17-7171, 584 U.S. 922).FSC SC2026-1605 p.6; cert petition 26-6013 related cases [carried over from story 428]
  10. 2018-03-08Florida Supreme Court affirmed summary denial of his Hurst successive motion (238 So. 3d 162, SC17-1903; circuit denial Sept. 27, 2017). U.S. Supreme Court denied cert Nov. 13, 2018 (No. 17-9284, 586 U.S. 1004).FSC SC2026-1605 pp.6-7; cert petition 26-6013 related cases [carried over from story 428]
  11. 2022-01-19U.S. District Court (N.D. Fla., No. 4:15-cv-256) denied the federal habeas petition and a certificate of appealability; reconsideration denied Feb. 22, 2022.FSC SC2026-1605 p.7; cert petition 26-6013 related cases; 11th Cir. 22-10957 caption [carried over from story 428]
  12. 2024-08-1211th Circuit affirmed denial of federal habeas (No. 22-10957, 112 F.4th 958); closing: 'After a full and fair penalty phase trial'.11th Cir. 22-10957 (filed 08/12/2024) p.76; FSC SC2026-1605 p.7; NSF via WUSF/NBC 6 ('rejected ... in 2024') [carried over from story 428]
  13. 2025-06-23U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari on the federal habeas case (Guardado v. Dixon, No. 24-6549, 145 S. Ct. 2822).SCOTUS docket 24-6549; cert petition 26-6013 related cases; FSC SC2026-1605 p.7 [carried over from story 428]
  14. 2026-10-05Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the death warrant (Monday), setting execution for Nov. 5, 2026. The warrant states executive clemency 'is not appropriate.'FSC SC2026-1605 p.7, p.11 (quotes warrant); cert petition p.4; NSF via WUSF ('Monday, October 5'); NBC 6; CBS12 [carried over from story 428]
  15. 2026-10-09DeSantis withdrew William Lee Thompson's warrant (his first withdrawal), so Guardado would be Florida's 19th execution of 2026 (matching 2025's record of 19), not the 20th reported when his warrant was signed.AP via ABC News; Florida Phoenix; News4Jax (Oct. 9); Tampa Free Press ('19th execution'); State Affairs ('record-tying') [carried over from story 428]
  16. 2026-10-19Walton County circuit court summarily denied the successive postconviction motion.FSC SC2026-1605 p.8; circuit order dated Oct. 19, 2026 (SCOTUS 26-6013 appendix B); Tracking Florida's Death Penalty substack [carried over from story 428]
  17. 2026-10-29Florida Supreme Court affirmed the denial and denied a stay (SC2026-1605): 'Guardado's claims are untimely'; clemency 'rests in the unfettered discretion of the Governor'; concurrence warned against frivolous claims even under an active warrant.FSC SC2026-1605; WMBB via Yahoo (Oct. 29); Tampa Free Press (Oct. 29); SCOTUS docket 26-6013 (lower-court decision date) [carried over from story 428]
  18. 2026-10-30Guardado's lawyers petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari (No. 26-6013) and applied for a stay (26A623, to Justice Thomas). They argue no death-row clemency in Florida since 1983 ('the executive has flipped a coin that says denied on both sides') and that his jury never heard about his time at the Dozier School for Boys (sent there at 17, per the petition).SCOTUS docket 26-6013; cert petition 26-6013 pp.6-7, 11-14 [carried over from story 428]
  19. 2026-11-05U.S. Supreme Court denied the stay application (26A623, presented to Justice Thomas and referred to the Court) and denied certiorari (No. 26-6013), with no noted dissent. AP: 'denied his last appeal without comment.'SCOTUS docket 26-6013 (primary); AP via CBS Miami + WSMV; Tracking Florida's Death Penalty (Nov. 5)
  20. 2026-11-05Jesse Guardado, 64, was executed by three-drug lethal injection at Florida State Prison in Starke and pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m.AP (Kim Chandler, David Fischer) via CBS Miami, WSMV, CBS12, WJHG; Tracking Florida's Death Penalty (6:13 p.m.); Tampa Free Press (Thursday evening, Starke, 64)
  21. 2026-11-05Final statement, asked by the warden: 'I would like to once again apologize for the pain and suffering I've caused to the victim's family and my own family as well.' (AP copies differ only by a comma before 'as well'.)AP via CBS Miami + WSMV; Tracking Florida's Death Penalty (same wording)
  22. 2026-11-05Florida's 19th execution of 2026, tying the state's single-year record (19, set in 2025). AP: two more executions are scheduled in Florida before the year ends.AP via WSMV + CBS12; Tracking Florida's Death Penalty (19th, record-tying); Tampa Free Press (19th); two-more-scheduled from AP only

Also in our research file

Updates and corrections

No corrections to this page. Spot an error? corrections@undercurrentdaily.com

Photos: Walton County Courthouse by Ebyabe (CC BY-SA 3.0); former Dozier School for Boys by Michael Rivera (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons. Map: U.S. Census TIGER.

Undercurrent takes no position on the death penalty or on clemency.

Spot an error? Email corrections@undercurrentdaily.com. See our corrections policy. Have information about this case? Contact the investigating agency first.

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