STARKE, Fla. (AP) — Florida carried out its 18th execution of the year on Tuesday under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis ’ aggressive use of the death penalty in his final term.

William Reaves, 77, was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. following a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. He was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1986 shooting death of Indian River County Deputy Richard Raczkowski.

The death chamber curtain went up promptly at the 6 p.m. execution time, and Reaves was already strapped to a gurney with an IV in his arm. Asked if he had any last statement, he replied ”No, I do not.”

The injection began immediately after that. About 30 seconds later, Reaves took several big breaths and then stopped moving. After a few minutes, the team warden shook Reaves’ shoulders and yelled his name, but there was no response.

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — A weekend attack by militants affiliated to the Islamic State group killed 48 people in the Ménaka region of eastern Mali, a lawmaker told The Associated Press Tuesday.

Fighters from the Islamic State in Sahel Province, or ISSP, attacked on Sunday night into Monday morning and casualties included children and elderly, Moussa Ag Acharatoumane, a Tuareg leader and member of the National Transitional Council, said.

According to Moussa Ag Acharatoumane, the armed group attacked civilians, accusing them of revealing ISSP positions to the Malian army who had been conducting a drone strike on the group.

ISSP operates mostly in the Ménaka region of Mali, where it faces stiff competition from another militant group, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), and in the neighboring countries of Burkina Faso and Niger. It has not claimed responsibility for the attack.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Police on Tuesday charged a driver with intentionally causing serious injury to an Australian federal lawmaker who is a critical condition after being struck by a car in an apparent escalation in political violence that has shocked the nation.

Helen Haines, a 65-year-old independent politician, was in hospital in critical but stable condition after being struck by a car outside her office in the city of Wangaratta, in Victoria state, on Monday in what police alleged was a “targeted” incident.

Brendan Nugent, from nearby Tarrawingee, was charged with intentionally causing serious injury, dangerous driving causing serious injury and causing harm to a federal official, police said in a statement on Tuesday.

Suspect to face court on Wednesday

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A jury convicted a Canadian man of animal cruelty charges on Monday afternoon for snatching a flamingo named Peachy from its enclosure at an iconic Las Vegas hotel in what prosecutors called a drunken and malicious act.

Prosecutors said tourist Mitchell Fairbarn harmed the bird at the Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino when he took it to his room on March 3. The man’s defense attorney had told jurors at trial in a Nevada court that the man committed a foolish act while intoxicated but he intended no harm to the bird.

Jurors returned convictions on felony and misdemeanor animal cruelty counts against the tourist from Ontario, Canada. Fairbarn remained in custody pending a Dec. 1 sentencing hearing. He faces up to four years in prison for the felony plus six months of jail time for the misdemeanor conviction.

Since then the incident, the 27-year-old Chilean flamingo has been doing all right physically but is more anxious and nervous when being evaluated, said Peachy’s veterinarian, Tiffany Moore, medical director of Lone Mountain Animal Hospital.