Latest News About Capital Punishment

Updated 2026-05-13 11:02

Here are some of the latest developments in capital punishment as of May 2026:

Illustration

Would you like a country-wide snapshot, a focus on the U.S. states, or a regional view (e.g., West Coast vs. Southeast)? I can also pull a short list of major recent court decisions or pending bills with links.

Citations

Sources

News & Updates - Death Penalty FOCUS

A Florida prosecutor announced late last month that he will seek the death penalty in a child sexual assault case. The indictment is a test of a new state law that allows a person convicted of the rape of a minor to be sentenced to death.

deathpenalty.org

Capital Punishment News & Videos - ABC News

Follow the latest Capital Punishment news stories and headlines. Get breaking news alerts when you download the ABC News App and subscribe to Capital Punishment notifications.

abcnews.go.com

Capital Punishment news - Today's latest updates

Oklahoma has carried out its first execution of the year on a man convicted of killing two men in a drive-by shooting. A Texas man became the first person executed in the U.S. this year. The man killed his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend. At one point, he escaped prison for three days. "To the people I harmed, I'm sorry," Harold Wayne Nichols said in his final statement. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a death warrant this week for Frank Athen Walls, whose execution is now scheduled for...

www.cbsnews.com

Capital Punishment - ABC News

8:08 Oct 22, 2024 Oklahoma Department of Corrections via AP, FILE Oct 9, 2024 Criminal Justice Reform Caucus via AP "Shaken baby syndrome” played a role in Roberson's 2003 murder conviction. Dec 20, 2024 Georgia Department of Corrections via AP Mar 19, 2024 Jeremy S. Weis/Federal Public Defender Office via AP, File Jan 3, 2023 Dec 6, 2022 Apr 25, 2022

abcnews.com

Latest News – Death Penalty News and Updates - People.SMU

The prison warden checked Trotter’s face and shouted his name, but there was no reaction. A medic was then called in at 6:14 p.m. to check the inmate’s vital signs and Trotter was declared dead a minute later. The execution and another earlier this month in Florida follow the unprecedented 19 executions carried out by the state last year. In 2025, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis oversaw more executions in a single year than any other Florida governor since the death penalty’s reinstatement in...

people.smu.edu