Dennis Sochor was convicted of killing Patty Gifford in 1982. Photo courtesy of Florida Department of Corrections
July 14 (UPI) -- Florida on Tuesday is set to execute a man convicted of murdering a woman at a 1982 New Year's Eve party then disposing of her remains, which have yet to be found.
Dennis Sochor's lethal injection is scheduled to take place at 6 p.m. EDT. If executed, he will be oldest person in the state's history to be put to death at 74, The Palm Beach Post reported.
The Florida Supreme Court has denied Sochor's appeals to stop the planned execution. His lawyers have taken the case to the U.S Supreme Court, arguing that previously executed prisoners showed evidence of pulmonary edema as a result of the lethal injection.
Pulmonary edema causes fluid to build up in the lungs and creates the sensation of drowning. Sochor's lawyers argued the drug that's supposed to prevent a person from feeling the effects of the pulmonary edema wore off before they died.
