Publications & Testimony

The Death Penalty Information Center’s new report on race and the death penalty in Louisiana examines the state’s capital punishment system within the broader history of racial and state-sanctioned violence, documenting how these historical patterns continue to shape the administration of the death penalty today. Released in November 2026, Examining Louisiana’s History of Racial Violence and Capital Punishment details nearly 146 years of documented state-sanctioned violence that has…

On November 12, 2026, former Oklahoma death-sentenced prisoner Richard Glossip entered a plea agreement, pleading guilty to accessory after the fact in exchange for the prosecution dropping its first-degree murder charges against him for his alleged role in the 1997 “murder-for-hire” of Barry Van Trese, his boss at an Oklahoma City motel. Mr. Glossip was released in May 2026 after Judge Natalie Mai set his bail for $500,000 and “determined that [the court] cannot deny bail to [Mr.] Glossip…

An Army private introduced to heroin in Vietnam, who became addicted after a close friend died in his arms. A 21-year Air Force Master Sergeant who oversaw 5000 troops and their families. A Marine who led search and rescue missions for prisoners of war in the Philippines. An elite sniper who took a bullet to the brain and won a Purple Heart in Iraq. These are some of the military veterans who faced the law’s harshest punishment this year. Many of their juries never learned about the true nature…

According to October 2026 polling from Gallup, support for capital punishment has reached a fifty-five year low in the United States. Overall, Gallup found 49% of U.S. adults are in favor of the death penalty for people convicted of murder, while 45% oppose it, the highest opposition since 1966. This is Gallup’s first poll since 1971 that has found support for the death penalty below the majority level. That number masks considerable differences between older and younger Americans, a trend…

California Governor Gavin Newsom announced today, November 5, 2026, that he is commuting the death sentences of all 548 people on the state’s death row, granting the largest mass clemency in American history. In his statement announcing the decision, Gov. Newsom said, “I take this action because I firmly believe that state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California’s values, undermines the foundations of our legal system, and diminishes all of us.” Governor Newsom announced a moratorium…

Attorneys for death row prisoner Jeffrey Weisheit and a group of state lawmakers urged Indiana Governor Mike Braun to grant a temporary reprieve ahead of Mr. Weisheit’s November 5 execution date, arguing the state should not proceed until questions about its lethal injection drug supply were answered. After Gov. Braun rejected those calls, Mr. Weisheit was executed by lethal injection before sunrise on the 5^th at Indiana State Prison. He was convicted of killing two children, Alyssa and Caleb…

On October 29, 2026, five groups filed amicus briefs asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review Brenda Andrew’s death sentence, which they say was shaped by pervasive gender bias at her trial. Her petition, which was filed on September 25, argues that the prosecution’s reliance on prejudicial evidence denied her the due process guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. At trial, prosecutors portrayed her as a bad wife and mother and dwelled on intimate details of her sex life. In their arguments to the…

NOVEMBER 6, 2026 UPDATE: All three scheduled executions took place on November 5, 2026. On November 5, three people will be put to death in a single day across the United States, all by lethal injection. Indiana officials will execute Jeffrey Weisheit; Florida officials will execute Jesse Guardado; and Alabama officials will execute Michael Taylor. All three cases raise serious questions regarding the fairness of their trials and the constitutionality of their executions. This is the second…

One month after the state of Tennessee attempted to execute her, Christa Pike issued a statement, sharing in her own words how the experience has affected her. Ms. Pike says she was “prepared to die” and had “made [her] peace” as she entered the execution chamber on September 30. She describes waking up in a hospital “confused and in pain,” and says she has been in pain constantly. “My body hurts. My arms hurt. My hands hurt. My throat hurts. I still struggle to speak. And the pain isn’t just…