James Ernest Hitchcock

James Ernest Hitchcock was an American convicted child murderer. On July 31, 1976, Hitchcock raped and murdered his 13-year-old stepniece, Cynthia Driggers, at her home in Winter Garden, Florida. Hitchcock was found guilty of Driggers's murder and sentenced to death in 1977, although his death sentence was overturned thrice before it was reinstated after each re-sentencing trial. Hitchcock's death sentence was ultimately upheld and finalized, and he was executed at the Florida State Prison on April 30, 2026, nearly 50 years after he had killed Driggers.