Chadwick Banks who killed wife and stepdaughter to be executed Chadwick Banks shot his wife, Cassandra Banks, while she slept in their Gadsden County trailer in the early hours of September 24, 1992 He then raped his 10-year-old stepdaughter, Melody Cooper, for 20 minutes before shooting her in the head He was 21 at the time Banks, 43, was put to death by lethal injection at Florida State Prison on Thursday He was pronounced dead at 7.27 pm It is the 20th execution carried out in the state since Gov. Rick Scott took office in 2011 For his last meal Banks requested fried fish, slush puppies, three different desserts and ice water A Florida Panhandle charged with raping and murdering his 10-year-old stepdaughter just minutes after he killed the girl's mother 22 years ago was executed this evening via lethal injection. Chadwick Banks, 43, was scheduled to die at 6pm Thursday at Florida State Prison in Starke for the 1992 slaying of Melody Cooper, who was found on her knees naked from the waist down and her body slumped on her bed at their Gadsden County trailer home. The body of her mother, Cassandra Banks, was found nearby. Both had been shot in the head. Banks was pronounced dead at 7.27 pm, the office of Gov. Rick Scott said. For his last words, Banks apologized to the 19 people who witnessed his execution, among them the family of the two victims. 'I am very sorry for the pain I have caused all these years,' he said, according to WPTV. Year after year I have tried to come up with a reasonable answer for my actions. But how could such acts be reasonable? Executed: Chadwick Banks, 43, was pronounced dead at 7.27pm at Florida State Prison for the 1992 slaying of Melody Cooper, 10, who was found on her knees naked from the waist down, and her mother, Cassandra Banks, at their Gadsden County trailer home. He was killed by lethal injection Victims' family: Rutherford Black, Jr. (left), and his sister, Gail Black (center) hold photos of their sister, Cassandra Banks, and niece, Melody Cooper, with Gadsden County Sheriff Morris Young (right) outside Florida State Prison after the execution of Chadwick Banks Bereaved: Annette Black (center) mother of victim Cassandra Banks, speaks to the media outside the Florida State Prison after the execution of her former son-in-law on Thursday night Protesters: Death penalty opposers stand outside the Florida State Prison holding candles and singing songs during the execution of Chadwick Banks Exonerated death row inmate Seth Penalver hugs his fiancee during the execution of his friend Chadwick Banks. Penalver spent 18 years on death row before being found not guilty of all charges relating to a 1994 home invasion that resulted in three murders during a third trial in 2012 Banks was served his last meal at 10 am, for which he requested fried fish, homemade French fries, hush puppies, old-fashioned dinner rolls and three desserts - homemade banana pudding, red velvet cake and butter pecan ice cream, according toThe Tallahassee Democrat. To drink he asked for a glass of ice water. Banks, who was 21 at the time of the murders, was serving a life sentence. Outside the prison, The mother and grandmother of the two victims, Annette Black, who was among the 19 people who witnessed the execution, said she hoped what happened to Banks could be taken as a lesson for other people. 'Once you take a precious life, nothing can bring that back again,' she said. It was the 20th execution carried out in Florida since Gov. Rick Scott took office in 2011, one fewer than under Jeb Bush, who presided over the most executions since capital punishment was reinstated in the state in 1979. It is believed to be the eighth execution in Florida this year. Bush was governor for two terms, while Scott, who was re-elected last week, is finishing his first. Maybe the most solemn duty is capital punishment. I take it very seriously,' Scott said. I think about the victims. I think about their families. It's what I think about. I'm going to continue to do the job that I committed to do.' Most of the other 19 people executed have been the perpetrators of some of the most horrific cases Florida's seen, and many of them left no doubt that the condemned committed the crime. That includes David Alan Gore, a serial killer who raped and dismembered his victims and was caught with the body of a teenage girl in his car trunk and a live girl bound in his parents' attic. Like Gore, Banks admitted to his crime. Banks' attorneys have asked the federal courts to intervene, arguing Florida's lethal injection process violates the ban on cruel and unusual punishment and that he received ineffective legal counsel. Scene: Banks was scheduled to be put to death at 6pm Thursday and was pronounced dead at 7.27pm Injection: The 43-year-old was executed in this chamber at Florida State Prison in Starke Dinner: The convicted murderer and rapist wanted only fried foods for his last proper meal, including hush puppies (left) and fried fish (right) His lawyer, Terri Backhus, didn't return a phone message and email seeking comment Wednesday. Gadsden County Sheriff Morris Young was an officer with the Quincy Police Department in 1992 when he got word of a double murder just a few blocks outside of the city line. He and others responded to the trailer where the bodies of Cassandra Banks and Melody were found, both killed by gunshot wounds to the head. It was one of those gruesome things that happened in the community that had everyone in shock. It was a small town and a huge case,' Young said this week. 'They just couldn't believe such a thing could happen in a small town.' Banks was drinking and playing pool at a neighborhood bar called Dut's the night of the slayings. His wife left the bar and went to their home late that night. Banks left less than an hour later and went into their trailer and found his wife asleep. Without waking her, he shot her point-blank in the head then went to his stepdaughter's room. After his arrest, he told investigators he had 'spanked' Melody and molested her for about 20 minutes, but she didn't resist or try to get away. Evidence showed the assault was much more violent. Banks was executed by lethal injection at Florida State Prison (pictured) in Starke on Thursday night. It is the 20th execution carried out in Florida since Gov. Rick Scott took office in 2011 Banks' blood was found under Melody's fingernails and on her pillow, and she had a bruise and cut on her face. She had also been sodomized and Banks' DNA was found inside her. Forensic experts testified that given the position of her body, and that it had not moved after the shot was fired, Banks had to pull her head far back in order to fire the gun through the top of her skull. Young spoke with Chadwick Banks' father, Dennis, and Cassandra Banks' mother on Monday. He said both families accept the execution. 'As sheriff, now I stand with both sides of the family,' said Young, who added he has known Banks' parents for years. Dennis Banks was a longtime corrections officer and ran a security company. 'He and his wife are true believers in God and they've turned this over to him,' Young said, adding that the Banks have visited their son in prison and have prayed with him. 'Their son turned his life over to God and they are content with everything that's going on.'