CrimeDeath PenaltyU.S. NewsLegal Issues

Death Sentences Decline In U.S. As Public Attitudes Shift

The number of new death sentences in 2016 is expected to hit 30, a low not seen since the U.S. Supreme Court declared existing death penalty statutes unconstitutional in 1972.
By Jon Herskovitz
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Kiichiro Sato/AP

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - The number of U.S. executions fell to a quarter-century low in 2016 as new death sentences plummeted, indicating capital punishment is on the decline, a study released on Wednesday showed.

The number of U.S. executions in 2016 was 20, the lowest since 1991, according to the study from the Death Penalty Information Center, which monitors capital punishment.

While 31 states have the death penalty, only five held executions in 2016. Georgia carried out the most at nine while Texas was next at seven, it said.

The number of new death sentences in 2016 is expected to hit 30, a low not seen since the U.S. Supreme Court declared existing death penalty statutes unconstitutional in 1972, it said. That figure is down by more than 90 percent from a recent high of 315 in 1996.

Legal battles and a sales ban on execution drugs will likely hold down the number of executions next year while the high costs of death penalty cases is set to keep capital punishment prosecutions down as district attorneys instead seek sentences of life in prison without parole, legal experts said.

“America is in the midst of a major climate change concerning capital punishment,” said Robert Dunham, the center’s executive director and the report author.

States have been scrambling to find drugs since European drug makers imposed a sales ban about five years ago due to ethical concerns. The problem was exacerbated when pharmaceutical giant Pfizer <PFE.N> imposed a sales ban this year, cutting off the last major U.S. source of the drugs.

Ohio, which has executed 53 inmates since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, had a U.S. judge this week delay plans to end its nearly 3-year execution hiatus in 2017 to examine its drug procurement secrecy.

Capital punishment advocates have said expenses or drug shortages should not be a factor, arguing the death penalty is an instrument of justice and must used for those who deserve it.

Jordan Steiker, a University of Texas Law School professor and director of its Capital Punishment Center, said states looking to resume executions are going to face stiff legal challenges.

“We are on a path toward constitutional abolition. The length of that path will be dictated by uncertainties concerning the Supreme Court’s composition and how much the withering of the death penalty continues,” he said.

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Before You Go

Famous Death Row Last Meals
Robert Dale Conklin(01 of10)
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Robert Dale Conklin was executed July 12, 2005 in Georgia for the murder of his ex-boyfriend. For his last meal he requested: Filet mignon wrapped in bacon, de-veined shrimp sauteed in garlic butter with lemon; a baked potato with butter, sour cream, chives and real bacon bits; corn on the cob, asparagus with hollandaise sauce; French bread with butter; goat cheese; cantaloupe; apple pie with vanilla bean ice cream; and an iced tea. (credit:Rick Gayle Studio/Fuse via Getty Images)
Hastings Arthur Wise (02 of10)
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Hastings Arthur Wise was executed Nov. 4, 2005, in South Carolina via lethal injection for the murder of four of his ex-coworkers. For his last meal he requested: a lobster tail, French fries, coleslaw, banana pudding and milk. (credit:MikeyGen73 via Getty Images)
Ted Bundy (03 of10)
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Serial killer Ted Bundy confessed to 30 murders and was executed by the state of Florida on Jan. 24, 1989, by way of the electric chair. He made no special requests and was offered the traditional meal of steak and eggs, which he didn't eat. (credit:Stockbyte via Getty Images)
John Wayne Gacy(04 of10)
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John Wayne Gacy received a lethal injection from the state of Illinois on May 10, 1994, for the rape and murder of 33 young men and boys from 1972 to 1978. Dubbed the "Killer Clown" by the media, his last meal included a dozen deep-fried shrimp, a bucket of original recipe chicken from KFC, French fries and a pound of strawberries. (credit:KAREN BLEIER via Getty Images)
Dennis Wayne Bagwell(05 of10)
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Convicted of murdering his half sister, her 4-year-old daughter and two other women, Dennis Wayne Bagwell was executed in Texas on Feb. 17, 2005, by lethal injection. He asked for a last meal larger than most, requesting: A beef steak, medium rare with A1 Sauce, three fried chicken breast, three fried chicken thighs, BBQ ribs, a large order of french fries, a large order of onion rings, a pound of fried bacon, a dozen scrambled eggs with onions, fried tatters with onions, sliced tomatoes, a salad with ranch dressing, two hamburgers with everything, peach pie or cobbler, ketchup, salt and pepper, milk and coffee, ice tea with real sugar. (Actual meal not pictured) (credit:Jupiterimages via Getty Images)
Timothy McVeigh(06 of10)
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Timothy McVeigh was responsible for the Oklahoma City Bombing in 1995 that killed 168 people and injured hundreds more. McVeigh was executed via lethal injection in Indiana on June 11, 2001, and had another unusual request: two pints of mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Correction: This slide originally misstated the year of the Oklahoma City bombing as 1996. (credit:Robert Byron via Getty Images)
Philip Workman (07 of10)
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Philip Workman was convicted of murdering a police officer during a failed robbery of a Wendy's in Tennessee. He was executed on May 9, 2007, via lethal injection. Workman actually declined a special last meal for himself, but rather asked that a large vegetarian pizza be given to a homeless person in Nashville. Prison officials denied his request, but homeless shelters across the state received pizzas from all over the country honoring his last request. (credit:Jupiterimages via Getty Images)
Ronnie Lee Gardner(08 of10)
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Ronnie Lee Gardner was already on trial for the murder of one man, when he fatally shot an attorney during a failed escape attempt. He was executed June 18, 2010, by firing squad in Utah. Not only did Gardner request steak, lobster tail, apple pie, vanilla ice cream and 7-Up for his last meal, he also spent his last hours watching the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. (credit:Sarah Bossert via Getty Images)
Velma Barfield(09 of10)
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Convicted of five murders, Velma Barfield was the first woman in the U.S. to be executed after the 1977 return of capital punishment and the first woman to receive her sentence by lethal injection in 1984. Like Eddie Duval Powell, she made no special last meal, but rather a can of Coca-cola and a bag of Cheez Doodles. (credit:Zoonar RF via Getty Images)
James Edward Smith (10 of10)
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James Edwards Smith was convicted of robbery and murder in Texas and was executed on June 26, 1990. With perhaps the strangest request, Smith did not ask for a meal, but for a lump of dirt, which was reportedly for a Voodoo ritual. As dirt was not on the list of approved prison foods, his request was denied and he settled for a small cup of yogurt instead. (credit:Francesca Yorke via Getty Images)
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