The death penalty has fallen out of favor in the United States. Last year, just 28 prisoners were executed nationwide, continuing a six-year decline. That was the lowest number in nearly a quarter-century. The number of death sentences is also down significantly.
The political tide seems to be turning against the death penalty. Whereas it used to be invoked regularly by candidates as proof that they were tough on crime, today it is largely ignored on the campaign trail (although not by Donald Trump). It’s no wonder why. According to Gallup, public support for the death penalty has dropped over the last two decades, from 80 percent to 61 percent, while opposition has risen from 16 percent to 37 percent.
Only a handful of states execute prisoners. At least 12 have moratoria against it and another 19 states have repealed it.
There are many reasons for this reversal. Perhaps foremost is the growing number of death row exonerees, whose stories help shed light on a flawed system. Also, there’s the absurdly high cost of capital trials, the availability of alternatives to death and the growing acknowledgement of the role that mental illness can play in capital crimes.
Also, there’s increasing recognition of inequality in the justice system that results in the poor and racial minorities being at higher risk of a death sentence than other offenders who commit similar crimes. Finally, there’s the difficulty of obtaining the drugs needed to conduct a lethal injection.
Internationally, the number of countries that execute prisoners is on the wane. One hundred and five countries have now abolished the death penalty. In another 60 it is legal but an execution hasn’t occurred in a decade or more, according to the United Nations. That leaves just 28 that have used it over the last decade.
Yet, despite the decline of the death penalty by many measures, the total number of global executions is on the rise.
In 2014, nearly 2,500 people were sentenced to death around the world, an estimated 28 percent increase from the year before, according to Amnesty International.
China, Iran and Saudi Arabia (the top three countries that use the death penalty) executed the most prisoners (the U.S. ranks fourth). What’s more, some countries, including Jordan and Pakistan, are now reinstating or lifting moratoriums on the death penalty.
The crimes most likely to elicit the death penalty are related to terrorism and drug trafficking. These are crimes that aren’t likely to go away any time soon, which probably means the death penalty will be saved from the gallows, at least for the foreseeable future.
Daniel Allott is deputy commentary editor for the Washington Examiner
