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Where is the death penalty in force in the US?
There are 27 states, including Utah, that have the death penalty on the books, according to the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center. In four of those states — California, Pennsylvania, Oregon and Ohio — executions have been halted under orders issued by the governor.
The 23 other states and the District of Columbia have abolished capital punishment.
The federal government can pursue the death penalty in any state, regardless of local rules, but only in limited circumstances.
The US military has a separate court system with distinct laws and punishments, including the death penalty. However, the military hasn’t carried out any executions since 1961.
What crimes qualify for the death penalty in the US?
The US Justice Department defines capital offenses as including “murder, treason, genocide, or the killing or kidnapping of a Congressman, the President, or a Supreme Court justice.” In practice, those executed in recent years in the US have been found guilty of murder.
In the past, rape was sometimes punished by execution in the US. But the Supreme Court ruled in 1977that its use in the case of the rape of an adult violated the Constitution’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. In a case involving the rape of a child, the court in 2008 ruled executionunconstitutional for any offense other than homicide or crimes against the state.
State lawmakers can pass legislation clarifying what circumstances must be met in order for prosecutors to pursue the death penalty. Those circumstances, known as “aggravating factors,” include raping the victim as well as murdering them and committing murder during a kidnapping or robbery. These factors vary by state. In Utah, it’s considered an aggravating factor when “the actor knowingly created a great risk of death to a person other than the victim and the actor.”
How often is the death penalty used in the US?
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, there have been 1,637 executions across the country since 1976, when the US Supreme Court issued a landmark decision affirming the legality of capital punishment. The court had suspended its use four years earlier, ruling that it had been applied arbitrarily.
Texas, Oklahoma and Florida reported the highest number of executions since 1976: 595, 128 and 117, respectively.
Utah has executed 8 people since 1976.
The use of the death penalty in the US puts the country in a small minority among democracies. More than 70% of countries around the world have abolished capital punishment. Other democracies that retain it are Singapore, Japan and Taiwan. In 2024, the US ranked fifth in the world in the number of known executions, behind Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and North Korea. China is thought to rank first, but execution data from there is not available.
How is the death penalty carried out in the US?
Lethal injection is the most prevalent method used to administer the death penalty in the US. It’s authorized for use in every state that uses capital punishment, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Which specific drug or drugs are used for the injection varies by state.
Nine states allow the use of electrocution or lethal gas. Five states allow the use of a firing squad. Utah is one of them, but the method is only permissible there if the state can’t acquire the drugs required for lethal injection. Utah’s firing squad was last deployed in an execution in 2010.
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Misyrlena Egkolfopoulou
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