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In the United States, capital punishment (also known as the death penalty) is a legal penalty in 27 states, throughout the country at the federal level, and in American Samoa. [b][1] It is also a legal penalty for some military offenses.
- Capital punishment by country
Capital punishment, also called the death penalty, is the...
- Capital punishment
The U.S. federal government, the U.S. military, and 27...
- Capital punishment by country
Capital punishment, also called the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as a punishment for a crime. It has historically been used in almost every part of the world. Since the mid-19th century many countries have abolished or discontinued the practice.
The U.S. federal government, the U.S. military, and 27 states have a valid death penalty statute, and over 1,400 executions have been carried in the United States since it reinstated the death penalty in 1976.
On average, in 2004, death penalty states had executed about 10% of the people on their "death rows." However, California had executed only 1% of its prisoners who are sentenced to death. Texas executed 40% of theirs.
24 kwi 2023 · View a US map that outlines current capital punishment legality by state, along with a table that details the history of each state's death penalty laws.
As of January 2023, the death penalty was legal in 27 states. In three of these states (California, Pennsylvania, and Oregon), the death penalty had been placed under a gubernatorial moratorium, though the laws providing for the death penalty in those states remained on the books.
State by State. The Death Penalty Information Center provides essential statistics like execution numbers, death row population, and murder rates for each state. We also provide historical background on the death penalty in each state, including abolitionist states.
