Truthout
Death Penalty
A Decade After the Execution of Troy Davis, 24 States Still Use Death Penalty
11 of the 13 states in the South still have the death penalty on the books despite declining national support.
DOJ Suspends Federal Executions — But Activists Say Biden Should Go Further
The moratorium on federal executions doesn't end the death penalty, which Biden campaigned on doing in 2020.
Ayanna Pressley Calls Out Biden’s DOJ for Moving to Reinstate the Death Penalty
The representative sharply criticized the death penalty, calling it “state-sanctioned murder.”
South Carolina Can Now Execute People on Death Row by Firing Squad
Opponents of the new law decried it, saying the death penalty should be banned outright given its racist history.
South Carolina Poised to Be Fourth State to Allow Death Penalty by Firing Squad
The state has 37 people on death row. Three are out of appeals and in line to be executed.
Virginia Governor Signs Bill Abolishing Death Penalty in the State
“We can’t give out the ultimate punishment without being 100 percent sure that we’re right,” Gov. Ralph Northam said.
Virginia Poised to Become First State in the South to Abolish the Death Penalty
Since 1976, Virginia has executed 113 individuals, second only to Texas.
If Biden Wants to End Death Penalty, He Must Also End Death by Incarceration
More people are serving death-by-incarceration sentences today than the total number of people in prison in the 1970s.
Cori Bush and Ayanna Pressley Lead Call for Biden to Oppose Death Penalty
Representatives Cori Bush and Ayanna Pressley are leading an effort urging President Biden to end capital punishment.
Upon His Inauguration, Biden Should Commute All Federal Death Sentences
In the immediate term, Biden can place a moratorium on federal executions for at least the next decade.