---
title: 'Juries Choosing Death Penalty Less Often in Federal Cases'
description: 'The percentage of federal death penalty cases resulting in death sentences has declined from the 1990s to the present. Since 1991, juries chose a death…'
canonical: 'https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/juries-choosing-death-penalty-less-often-in-federal-cases'
section: news
date: '2006-04-26T18:14:32-04:00'
updated: '2025-03-14T14:54:11-04:00'
source: 'Death Penalty Information Center'
---

The percentage of federal death penalty cases resulting in death sentences has declined from the 1990s to the present. Since 1991, juries chose a death sentence in 51 cases compared with 93 cases that ended with a sentence of life in prison, according to Federal Death Penalty Resource Counsel, a rate of 35% for death sentences. Since 2000, juries have returned 29 death sentences and 69 life sentences, a rate of 30%.

(Washington Post, April 25, 2006).