Florida's oldest death row inmate sends message to victim's family in final words as they remain silent

At the age of 74, Dusty Ray Spencer was executed at Florida State Prison near Starke on June 25.

Spencer spent more than three decades on death row after being convicted of his wife, Karen Spencer's murder in 1982.

According to court records, in 1991 Spencer had threatened to kill his wife and was arrested for choking her.

While he was in prison he reportedly told Karen that he 'finish what he had started' once he was released, Fox 35 reports.

As well as attacking Karen, Spencer is believed to have struck his step-son with a clothes iron when he tried to intervene during one of Spencer's assaults on his wife.

A week later he hit Karen with a brick before fatally stabbing her. Karen's son tried to stop him with a rifle, but the gun misfired.

Dusty Ray Spencer murdered Karen Spencer in 1992 (WESH 2 News)

Spencer went on to be convicted of first-degree murder in 1992 and was sentenced to death.

Now, after more than 30 years on death row, Spencer was executed yesterday. He was pronounced dead at 6:10pm, per AP News.

At the age of 74, Spencer was the oldest man in Florida to be put to death.

Before being administered with three fatal injections, Spencer used his final words to apologize to Karen's family.

With his spiritual adviser nearby, the convicted criminal said: "Sorry, sorry to the family. Into thy hands I commit my spirit and my soul. I’m on my way, Lord. I’m on my way. Amen."

There are said to have been 'no complications' during the execution, according to Alex Lanfranconi, a spokesman for the Govenor of Florida, Ron DeSantis.

Spencer's victim's family is yet to issue a statement following his execution.

Like most death row inmates, Spencer was able to pick his final meal and opted for pizza, french fries and a milkshake.

Dusty died by lethal injection on June 25 (Florida Department of Corrections)

Reportedly death row inmates in Florida get a budget of around 40 bucks for their last meal.

The same can't be said for criminals in Texas though. As of September 2011, death row inmates have not been able to request what they want their last meal to be following the actions of Lawrence Russell Brewer.

Brewer, a white supremacist, was convicted of murdering a Black man in 1998.

He'd ordered an array of foods for his final meal, including two chicken-fried steaks, three fajitas, a meat-lovers' pizza – but Brewer refused to eat any of it.

After this, Texan Senator John Whitmire decided to revoke the death row inmates' privileges and called it inappropriate.

"Enough is enough," he said at the time, per BBC News. "It is extremely inappropriate to give a person sentenced to death such a privilege. It's a privilege which the perpetrator did not provide to their victim."