Death penalty: quick answers

There have been 32 executions in the United States so far in 2026, according to the Death Penalty Information Center's records, which this site checks every day. See the full statistics for 2026, broken down by state, method and month.

Source: Death Penalty Information Center: executions in 2026

The next scheduled execution is Jeffrey Weisheit in Indiana on 5 November 2026 (read the case file). Execution dates often change because of court stays and reprieves, so see the full list of scheduled executions for the latest.

1,686 people have been executed in the United States since executions resumed in 1977, following the Supreme Court's decision in Gregg v. Georgia (1976). Texas has carried out the most, with 609. See the chart of executions every year.

Source: Death Penalty Information Center: execution database

There were 1,973 people on death row in the United States on 1 July 2026, including 45 women (2.3%). The number has fallen steadily for more than two decades. California has the largest death row, with 572 people, although it has not carried out an execution since 2006. The federal government has 3 people on death row and the US military 4.

Source: Death Penalty Information Center: fact sheet (July 2026)

27 states have the death penalty, along with the federal government and the US military: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Wyoming. 23 states have abolished it.

In four of those states, California, Ohio, Oregon and Pennsylvania, the governor has halted executions. Several others have the death penalty but have not carried out an execution in many years.

Source: Death Penalty Information Center: fact sheet (July 2026)

Most executions are carried out by lethal injection, using either a single drug (pentobarbital) or a three-drug combination (beginning with etomidate in Florida, or with midazolam in Oklahoma and Alabama). Other methods in current use are nitrogen hypoxia and the firing squad; electrocution is still authorised in nine states. See all execution methods.

It depends on the state. Texas and Florida usually begin at 6:00 pm local time, Oklahoma and Tennessee at 10:00 am, and Indiana before sunrise. Alabama sets a 30-hour window rather than a fixed time. Executions often start later than scheduled because of last-minute appeals. On this site, scheduled times are shown in your own time zone.

It varies by state. In Florida, the governor signs a death warrant setting the date. In Texas, the trial court judge sets it. In Alabama, the state Supreme Court authorises the execution and the governor sets the time frame. In Oklahoma, Tennessee and Indiana, the state's highest court sets the date. For military executions, the President must approve the death sentence before the Army sets a date.

A stay is an order that temporarily stops an execution from going ahead. Courts usually grant one so that a legal issue can be considered properly, for example a new appeal, a question about whether the prisoner is mentally competent, or a challenge to the execution method. Governors in some states can also grant a short reprieve. A stay does not cancel the death sentence; a new date may be set later.

Clemency is a decision to show mercy, usually by commuting (reducing) a death sentence to life in prison. Who decides depends on the state. In some, the governor decides alone. In others, such as Texas and Oklahoma, the governor can only grant clemency if a board recommends it. In Georgia, a board decides on its own. Clemency in death penalty cases is rare.

Usually decades. Appeals in state and federal courts take many years, and states also face delays obtaining execution drugs. Most people executed in 2026 had spent more than 20 years on death row, and several more than 35. William Reaves Jr., executed in Florida in October 2026, had been on death row for almost 40 years.

Source: Death Penalty Information Center: executions in 2026

Rarely, but it has happened. In September 2026, Christa Pike survived Tennessee's attempt to execute her with lethal injection, after two doses failed. Other execution attempts have been halted before the prisoner died, including in Ohio in 2009 and in Alabama in 2018 and 2022, usually because the execution team could not place the intravenous lines.

Source: CNN: Christa Pike discharged from hospital

The US Supreme Court has ruled that the death penalty cannot be used for people who were under 18 at the time of the crime (Roper v. Simmons, 2005), or for people with an intellectual disability (Atkins v. Virginia, 2002). A prisoner also cannot be executed if they are not mentally competent to understand why they are being executed (Ford v. Wainwright, 1986), which is why competency hearings sometimes take place shortly before an execution.

Since 1973, 203 people who were sentenced to death have later been exonerated, meaning their convictions were overturned and they were acquitted, had all charges dismissed, or were pardoned based on evidence of innocence. Florida has had the most exonerations, with 30.

Source: Death Penalty Information Center: fact sheet (July 2026)

Executions are not open to the public. Witnesses usually include members of the victim's family, people chosen by the prisoner, a spiritual adviser, journalists, lawyers and state officials. The number and rules vary by state. In 2026 the Pentagon planned to livestream the military execution of Nidal Hasan, but President Trump cancelled the livestream.

This is one of the most debated questions about the death penalty, and there is no agreement. Supporters argue that the threat of execution deters some murders, and that the death penalty delivers justice for the worst crimes regardless of deterrence. Opponents point out that research has not shown a clear deterrent effect; in 2012 the National Research Council concluded that existing studies could not determine whether the death penalty increases, decreases or has no effect on homicide rates.

Source: National Research Council: Deterrence and the Death Penalty (2012)

Studies in a number of states have found that death penalty cases cost more overall than cases where prosecutors seek life imprisonment, mainly because of longer trials, specialised lawyers and many years of appeals. Execution drugs have also become expensive: Indiana has spent at least $1.275 million on pentobarbital since 2024. See how pentobarbital executions work.

Source: Indiana Capital Chronicle: Indiana's spending on execution drugs