Zakrzewski was convicted and sentenced to death for brutally murdering his wife, Sylvia, his seven-year-old son, Edward, and his five-year-old daughter, Anna, in 1994. In a letter to DeSantis, Michael Sheedy, FCCB executive director, recognized the painful loss and suffering experienced by the victims’ relatives and offered the Church’s pastoral care and spiritual guidance.

In his letter, Sheedy addressed the view held by supporters of capital punishment that the death penalty is the only appropriate punishment for extremely horrific crimes. “We certainly agree that [Zakrzewski’s] crimes are especially heinous, and that civilized society cannot function if they can be committed with impunity,” wrote Sheedy. “But the alternative to the death penalty is not letting murderers go free, but life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.”

“In the context of this reality,” continued Sheedy, “even as we care for victims of violent crime, we urge you to spare Mr. Zakrzewski's life.”

The Catholic Church teaches that all human life, given by God, is sacred. The death penalty attacks the inviolability of the human person. Life-long incarceration without the possibility of parole is a severe yet more humane punishment that ensures societal safety, allows the guilty the possibility of redemption, and offers finality to court processes. Given our modern penal system, executions are unnecessary.

Before Zakrzewski’s scheduled execution, Catholics will gather in multiple locations across Florida to pray for him, for the family of his victims, and for DeSantis as he considers the request to stay the execution.

Full text of letter to DeSantis