Lucious Boyd was born on March 22, 1959, in Broward County, Florida. He grew up in a family that owned a funeral home in Fort Lauderdale. Boyd was married twice and had at least eight children. He struggled with financial issues and sometimes lived with his family.

In 1996, Boyd experienced a significant loss when his father, James C. Boyd, died. This event seemed to deepen the challenges he faced. By 1998, Boyd was working as a handyman for Hope Outreach Ministries. His family reported that he had a problem with cocaine.

In 1993, Lucious Boyd stabbed Roderick Bullard to death during an argument. This incident occurred on a street in Fort Lauderdale. Boyd claimed that Bullard hit him first, which made him lose control. Bullard was unarmed and did not threaten Boyd. During the trial, Boyd's lawyers argued that Bullard had cocaine in his system, and the jury found Boyd not guilty by claiming self-defense.

On December 4, 1998, Boyd murdered 21-year-old Dawnia Dacosta. After leaving work, Dacosta ran out of gas and walked to a nearby gas station. Witnesses saw her looking scared. She got into a church van driven by Boyd. Later, Boyd attacked her. He raped, beat, and stabbed her with a screwdriver 36 times. Boyd wrapped her body in sheets and dumped it behind a warehouse. Her body was found three days later.

Boyd was arrested on March 26, 1999, after DNA evidence linked him to Dacosta’s murder. He had used a work van belonging to a church which was last seen with him around the time Dacosta was killed. Investigators discovered blood in his apartment that matched Dacosta's.

In 2023, Boyd was also connected to the unsolved murder of Eileen Truppner, which took place on December 18, 1998. Boyd abducted, raped, and strangled her, then disposed of her body in a remote area. For many years, Truppner's identity was unknown, listed as a Jane Doe, until she was identified in 2023. Boyd was indicted for her murder in December 2023.

Boyd remains on death row for the murder of Dawnia Dacosta.