Donald Dillbeck's execution set for Feb. 25 in response to murder of woman killed as he served sentence for Lee County Deputy Dwight Lynn Hall's death.
Tomas RodriguezFort Myers News-Press
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Holding in tears and providing short answers, Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno on Thursday expressed his condolences for the family of a slain deputy after news quickly spread about the suspect's looming execution.
Donald David Dillbeck, now 59, confessed to fatally shooting Deputy Dwight Lynn Hall, 31, on April 11, 1979.
While serving his sentence in the slaying, he escaped and killed a woman during his attempted getaway. He received the death penalty in that case, with Gov. Ron Desantis this week setting his execution date.
"Our suspect will be put to sleep and could never kill again," Marceno said.
Donald Dillbeck will die for killing woman
In 1990, while working with an out-of-facility detail, Dillbeck walked away. He purchased a knife and attempted to hijack a car in Tallahassee. Faye Vann, who was waiting in her car while her family shopped, resisted, but Dillbeck killed her.
Attempting to flee police, Dillbeck crashed the car and was arrested shortly after.
Mourning Hall's death decades later.
At the time Hall was killed, Sheriff Frank Wanicka oversaw the county.
"I can't even imagine the pain Sheriff Wanicka had at the time to lose a loved one, a family member," Marceno said. "To lose anyone is very difficult, and I can't even ... Words can't express what that must have felt like."
Marceno said they continue to grieve with Hall's family.
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"He is part of our family and always will be," Marceno said.
Marceno said he's thankful the system worked.
"I think Justice has been served and closure can go to those family members," Marceno said, adding that he won't be in attendance.
Eight Lee County deputies, one canine died on duty
Marceno also touched on the nine losses the Sheriff's Office has had over the years in the line of duty.
"Each one is very specific, one being a canine," Marceno said. "It's so unfortunate ... As the sheriff of the county, you don't want to see someone lose their life. You don't want to lose a family member, it breaks your heart."
Marceno said it's a reminder of how dangerous the profession is.
"It's a reminder that when law enforcement officers kiss their husband or wife or their children goodbye, you never know what you're going to get into that day," Marceno said. "You come to work. You serve others before yourself. It's a tremendous risk and unfortunately, today we're talking about the wrong side of that risk."
'Losing the battle' means losing a life
Marceno said he's a "big believer" that how one trains is how they perform.
"We train seven times the mandated amount for how you perform under extreme circ*mstances ... How to deal with the mentally ill," Marceno said. "We train in real time ... We have a team that trains full time everywhere throughout our county every single day."
Marceno said "training is critical on success."
"Because we can never lose ... Losing the battle means I'm standing here talking about a loss of life," Marceno said. "We have to be on top of our A-plus-game. We have to train and perform at every level to survive."
'It's difficult to move forward'
Marceno said losing a family member like they did with Hall breaks their heart.
"It hurts so bad and it's very difficult to move forward," Marceno said. "But we do and we push forward every single day because that's what we do."
He said the circ*mstances around Hall's case are unique "as they are in every case."
"While we are not the immediate family, I think of us as family," Marceno said. "It's one law enforcement family always no matter where you are, no matter what patch you wear or what uniform ... So we all grieve together. And I pray and I hope that this brings closure to the family."
LCSO staff who have died during service
According to the Lee County Sheriff's Office's Fallen Deputy Memorial, eight deputies and one K-9 have died while serving the community.
- Deputy Richard Keith Eva (Jan. 1, 1944 — Feb. 12, 1972)
- Deputy Michael David Yahl (Dec. 30, 1951 — March 13, 1976)
- Deputy Dwight Lynn Hall (June 28, 1947 — April 11, 1979)
- Cpl. Ronnie Lee Fewell (March 30, 1958 — March 16, 1983)
- Cpl. Alfredo Banos (Nov. 8, 1948 — Jan. 20, 2001)
- Deputy Michael Joseph Shostak (Feb. 4, 1973 — Nov. 8, 2001)
- K-9 Alko (April 20, 2003)
- Cpl. Patrick Joseph Healey (Jan. 21, 1949 — May 13, 2004)
- Deputy Margena Silvia Nunez (Nov. 14, 1961 — Oct. 22, 2006)
- Sgt. Steven Mazzotta (May 7, 1969 — Aug. 16, 2021)
- Sgt. William Diaz (Oct. 31, 1991 — Aug. 31, 2021)
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter forthe Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Twitter@TomasFRoBeltran, Instagram@tomasfrobeltranand Facebook@tomasrodrigueznews.
