Seven months into 2021, executions in the United States are near historic lows. As of the end of July, only the former federal administration and the state of Texas had carried out any executions, and the five prisoners put to death placed the country on pace for the fewest executions since five states carried out a total of five executions in 1983.
The three federal executions carried out in the waning days of the Trump administration ended an historically aberrant six months and two days in which the federal government conducted more civilian executions than any prior presidential administration in the 20th or 21st centuries. The last time any state other than Texas carried out an execution was May 19, 2020, when Missouri executed Walter Barton.
As of August 1, 2021, seven execution dates were pending across the United States. Six were in Texas and one was in Missouri. Twenty-seven execution dates for 2021 have been halted by stays of execution, reprieves, rescheduling, or the death of the prisoner on death row. If all seven currently scheduled executions take place, the 12 executions would be the fewest since six states carried out 11 executions in 1988. Additional execution dates are expected to be scheduled for later in the year.
