U.S. Department of Justice
Oce of Justice Programs
Bureau of Justice Statistics
Bureau of Justice Statistics · Statistical Tables
December 2021, NCJ 302729
Capital Punishment, 2020 –
Statistical Tables
Tracy L. Snell, BJS Statistician
A
t yearend 2020, a total of 28 states and
the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) held
2,469 prisoners under sentence of death,
which was 94 (4%) fewer than at yearend 2019.
During 2020, the number of prisoners under
sentence of death declined for the twentieth
consecutive year. California (28%), Florida (14%),
and Texas (8%) held half of the prisoners
under sentence of death in the United States on
December 31, 2020. e BOP held 51 prisoners
under sentence of death at yearend.
Five states and the BOP executed a total of
17 prisoners in 2020. e BOP executed
10 prisoners, which accounted for 59% of the
executions carried out in 2020.
is report presents statistics on persons who
were under sentence of death in 2020, state and
federal death penalty laws in 2020, and historical
trends in executions. At yearend 2020, a total of
31 states and the federal government authorized
the death penalty (map 1).
MAP 1
States with and without death penalty statutes, yearend 2020
Had the death penalty as of
December 31, 2020 but did not carry
out an execution in 2020
Had no death penalty as of
December 31, 2020
Had the death penalty as of
December 31, 2020 and carried out
an execution in 2020*
Note: See table 2 for details on states that authorized the death penalty.
*Not shown: Federal Bureau of Prisons, which carried out 10 executions in 2020. See table 1 for executions by jurisdiction.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 2
Highlights
Colorado repealed the death penalty provision of
its rst-degree murder statute in July 2020, and the
governor commuted the death sentences of the three
prisoners under previously imposed sentences of death
to life without the possibility of parole.
Seven states received a total of 14 prisoners under
sentence of death in 2020, the smallest annual number
reported since the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated
capital punishment statutes in several states in 1972
(see Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972)).
Nineteen states removed a total of 91 prisoners
from under sentence of death by means other than
execution in 2020.
During 2020, 17 states and the BOP reported a decrease
in the number of prisoners held under sentence of
death, 16 states reported no change, and no states
reported an increase in the number of prisoners held
under sentence of death.
The largest declines in the number of prisoners under
sentence of death in 2020 occurred in California (down
24 prisoners) and Pennsylvania (down 14).
The majority (98%) of prisoners under sentence of
death were male.
At yearend 2020, about 56% of prisoners under
sentence of death were white and 41% were black.
Among prisoners under sentence of death at yearend
2020 with a known ethnicity, 15% were Hispanic.
Prisoners under sentence of death on December 31, 2020
had been on death row for an average of 19.4 years.
Prisoners executed during 2020 had been on death row
for an average of 18.9 years.
FIGURE 1
Number of persons under sentence of death,
1953–2020
Number
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
4,000
20202010200019901980197019601953
Note: Data on the number of prisoners under sentence of death at
yearend have been collected since 1953. See appendix table 2 for counts.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program
(NPS-8), 1953–2020.
FIGURE 2
Admissions to and removals from under sentence of
death, 1973–2020
Number
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
202020102000199019801973
Removals
Admissions
Note: Removals can be due to any cause, including execution, other
death, or appeal. See appendix table 3 for counts.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program
(NPS-8), 1973–2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 3
FIGURE 3
Number of persons executed in the United States,
1930–2020
Executions
0
50
100
150
200
2020201020001990198019701960195019401930
Note: Excludes 160 executions carried out by military authorities from
1930 to 1961. See appendix table 4 for counts.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program
(NPS-8), 1930–2020.
FIGURE 4
Number of prisoners under sentence of death, by race,
1968–2020
Number
0
500
1
,000
1
,500
2
,000
2020201020001990198019701968
All other races
a,b
Black
a
White
a
Note: Data on Hispanic origin was not collected prior to 1977. See
appendix table 5 for counts.
a
Includes persons of Hispanic origin.
b
Includes American Indians or Alaska Natives; Asians, Native Hawaiians,
or Other Pacic Islanders; and persons for whom only ethnicity
was identied.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program
(NPS-8), 1968–2020.
Terms and denitions
Aggravating factor—Specic elements of a crime
dened by statute. When present, these factors may
allow a jury to impose a death sentence for a person
convicted of a capital oense. Sometimes these are also
called aggravating circumstances.
Capital conviction—A formal declaration that a
defendant is guilty of a capital oense, made by the
verdict of a jury, the decision of a judge or a panel of
judges, or a guilty plea by the defendant in a court
of law.
Capital oense—A criminal oense punishable by
death. Oenses that are eligible for a death sentence
are dened by statute in each jurisdiction that
authorizes capital punishment. The most common
is rst-degree murder accompanied by at least one
aggravating factor.
Capital punishment—The process of sentencing
convicted oenders to death for the most serious
crimes and carrying out that sentence. The specic
oenses and circumstances that determine whether
a crime is eligible for a death sentence are dened by
statute and are prescribed by the U.S. Congress or a
state legislature.
Capital statute—State or federal laws dictating
specic crimes that are eligible for a death sentence
and specic procedures to be followed in carrying out
such sentences.
Civil authority—The state or federal entity responsible
for implementing and enforcing capital punishment
laws, excluding military authorities.
Commutation—Reduction of a death sentence by
the president (federal) or by a governor or a board of
advisors empaneled to review sentences (state). Criteria
for granting a commutation vary by state. The new
sentence can be a life sentence or a term of years.
Death row—A slang term that originally referred to
the area of a prison in which prisoners under sentence
of death were housed. Usage of the term “death row”
continues despite the fact that many states do not
maintain a separate unit or facility for prisoners under
sentence of death.
Received under sentence of death—The admission
of a person to prison after being sentenced to death by
a court.
Removal from under sentence of death—The
removal of a prisoner from the count of persons under
sentence of death because the sentence is no longer in
eect. A prisoner can be relieved of a death sentence
by several methods: execution, death by causes other
than execution, commutation, or an overturned capital
conviction or sentence.
Sentence of death—A sentence imposed by a court for
a capital oense that authorizes the state to execute a
convicted oender.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 4
List of tables
TABLE 1. Status of the death penalty,
December 31, 2020
TABLE 2. Capital oenses, by state, 2020
TABLE 3. Federal capital oenses, 2020
TABLE 4. Authorized method of execution, by
state, 2020
TABLE 5. Prisoners under sentence of death, by
region, jurisdiction, and race, 2019 and 2020
TABLE 6. Demographic characteristics of prisoners
under sentence of death, 2020
TABLE 7. Female prisoners under sentence of death,
by region, jurisdiction, and race, 2019 and 2020
TABLE 8. Hispanic prisoners under sentence of
death, by region and jurisdiction, 2019 and 2020
TABLE 9. Criminal history of prisoners under
sentence of death, by race or ethnicity, 2020
TABLE 10. Prisoners under sentence of death
on December 31, 2020, by year of sentencing
and jurisdiction
TABLE 11. Prisoners removed from under sentence
of death, by region, jurisdiction, and method of
removal, 2020
TABLE 12. Average elapsed time between
sentencing and execution, 1977–2020
TABLE 13. Number of prisoners executed, by race
or ethnicity, 1977–2020
TABLE 14. Number of executions, by method and
jurisdiction, 1977–2020
TABLE 15. Number of executions, by jurisdiction,
1930–2020 and 1977–2020
List of figures
MAP 1. States with and without death penalty
statutes, yearend 2020
FIGURE 1. Number of persons under sentence of
death, 1953–2020
FIGURE 2. Admissions to and removals from under
sentence of death, 1973–2020
FIGURE 3. Number of persons executed in the
United States, 1930–2020
FIGURE 4. Number of prisoners under sentence of
death, by race, 1968–2020
FIGURE 5. Advance count of executions, January 1,
2021–December 9, 2021
List of appendix tables
APPENDIX TABLE 1. Demographic characteristics
for prisoners under sentence of death, 2020
APPENDIX TABLE 2. Counts for gure 1: Number
of persons under sentence of death, 1953–2020
APPENDIX TABLE 3. Counts for gure 2:
Admissions to and removals from under sentence
of death, 1973–2020
APPENDIX TABLE 4. Counts for gure 3: Number of
persons executed in the United States, 1930–2020
APPENDIX TABLE 5. Counts for gure 4: Number
of prisoners under sentence of death, by race,
1968–2020
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 5
Status of the death penalty in 2020
As of December 31, 2020, a total of 31 states and the
federal government authorized the death penalty
(tables 1, 2, and 3). While the Washington Supreme
Court declared the state death penalty statute
unconstitutional, as applied, on October 11, 2018 (State
v. Gregory, 192 Wash. 2d 1, 427 P.3d 621 (2018)), the
Washington state legislature has neither revised nor
repealed the statute.
In 2019, New Hampshire repealed the death penalty
(HB 455), eective May 30, 2019. e repeal did not
aect previously imposed death sentences, and as of
December 31, 2020, New Hampshire held one male
prisoner under sentence of death.
In 2020, the Colorado legislature repealed the death
penalty for rst-degree murder charged on or aer July
1, 2020 (Senate Bill 20-100). e bill, which was signed
into law on March 23, 2020, specied that the repeal
was prospective and did not aect the sentences of the
three male prisoners under previously imposed death
sentences. However, the death sentences for the three
prisoners were commuted to life without the possibility
of parole by the governor on the same date the repeal
bill was enacted.
TABLE 1
Status of the death penalty, December 31, 2020
Executions in 2020 Number of prisoners under sentence of death Jurisdictions with no death penalty (20)
Federal Bureau of Prisons 10 California 703 Alaska
Texas 3 Florida 337 Colorado
Missouri 1 Texas 206 Connecticut
Alabama 1 Alabama 170 District of Columbia
Georgia 1 Ohio 137 Hawaii
Tennessee 1 North Carolina 137 Illinois
Pennsylvania 118 Iowa
Arizona 116 Maine
Nevada 67 Maryland
Louisiana 66 Massachusetts
Federal Bureau of Prisons 51 Michigan
Tennessee 50 Minnesota
Oklahoma 45 New Hampshire
Georgia 40 New Jersey
Mississippi 40 New Mexico
South Carolina 36 North Dakota
Arkansas 29 Rhode Island
Kentucky 26 Vermont
Oregon 24 West Virginia
Missouri 20 Wisconsin
Nebraska 12
Kansas 10
Idaho 8
Indiana 8
Utah 7
Virginia 2
Montana 2
New Hampshire
a
1
South Dakota 1
New York 0
Delaware 0
Washington 0
Wyoming 0
Total 17 Total
b
2,469
Note: While the Washington Supreme Court has declared the state's death penalty statute unconstitutional as applied (State v. Gregory, 192 Wash.
2d 1, 427 P.3d 621 (2018)), no legislative action has been taken to revise or repeal the statute. The state continues to report that the death penalty is
authorized. See table 2 for information on statutes.
a
New Hampshire repealed its death penalty statute, eective May 30, 2019. As of December 31, 2020, one male prisoner remained under a previously
imposed sentence of death.
b
New York, Delaware, Washington, and Wyoming held no inmates under sentence of death on December 31, 2020.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 6
TABLE 2
Capital oenses, by state, 2020
State Oense
Alabama Intentional murder (Ala. Stat. Ann. § 13A-5-40(a)(1)-(21)) with 14 aggravating factors (Ala. Stat. Ann. § 13A-5-49).
Arizona First-degree murder, including premeditated murder and felony murder, accompanied by at least 1 of 10 aggravating
factors (A.R.S. § 13-703(F)).
Arkansas Capital murder (Ark. Code Ann. § 5-10-101) with a nding of at least 1 of 10 aggravating circumstances; and treason
(Ark. Code Ann. § 5-51-201).
California First-degree murder with special circumstances; military sabotage; train wreck causing death; treason; perjury resulting in
the execution of an innocent person; and fatal assault by a prisoner serving a life sentence.
Delaware
a
First-degree murder (11 Del. C. § 636) with at least 1 statutory aggravating circumstance (11 Del. C. § 4209).
Florida First-degree murder with aggravating factors; felony murder; and capital drug-tracking felonies.
Georgia Murder with aggravating circumstances; rape, armed robbery, or kidnapping with bodily injury or ransom when the victim
dies; aircraft hijacking; and treason (O.C.G.A. § 17-10-30).
Idaho First-degree murder with aggravating factors; rst-degree kidnapping; and perjury resulting in the execution of an
innocent person.
Indiana Murder with 1 or more of 18 aggravating circumstances (I.C. 35-50-2-9).
Kansas Intentional and premeditated killing of a person in 1 or more of 7 dierent circumstances (K.S.A. 21-5401).
Kentucky Capital murder with the presence of at least 1 statutory aggravating circumstance; and capital kidnapping (K.R.S. 532.025).
Louisiana First-degree murder (La. R.S. 14:30) with aggravating circumstances (La. C.Cr.P. 905.4); and treason (La. R.S. 14:113).
Mississippi Capital murder with aggravating circumstances (Miss. Code Ann. § 97-3-19(2)); and aircraft piracy (Miss. Code Ann.
§ 97-25-55(1)).
Missouri First-degree murder with at least 1 statutory aggravating circumstance (565.020 R.S.M.O. 2000).
Montana Deliberate homicide, including felony murder, with 1 of 9 aggravating circumstances (Mont. Code Ann. § 46-18-303);
aggravated kidnapping resulting in death of victim or rescuer; attempted deliberate homicide; aggravated assault or
kidnapping while in detention; and capital sexual intercourse without consent (Mont. Code Ann. § 45-5-503).
Nebraska First-degree murder with a nding of 1 or more statutory aggravating circumstances.
Nevada First-degree murder with at least 1 of 15 aggravating circumstances (N.R.S. 200.030, 200.033, 200.035).
New York
b
First-degree murder with 1 of 13 aggravating factors (NY Penal Law § 125.27).
North Carolina First-degree murder (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-17) with the nding of at least 1 of 11 statutory aggravating circumstances
(N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-2000).
Ohio Aggravated murder with at least 1 of 10 aggravating circumstances (O.R.C. 2903.01, 2929.02, 2929.04).
Oklahoma First-degree murder (21 O.S. § 701.7) in conjunction with a nding of at least 1 of 8 statutorily dened aggravating
circumstances (21 O.S. § 701.12).
Oregon Aggravated murder (O.R.S. 163.095).
Pennsylvania First-degree murder (18 Pa.C.S.A. § 2502(a)) with 18 aggravating circumstances (42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9711).
South Carolina Murder with at least 1 of 12 aggravating circumstances (S.C. Code § 16-3-20(C)(a)).
South Dakota First-degree murder (S.D.C.L. 22-16-4) with 1 of 10 aggravating circumstances (S.D.C.L. 23A-27A-1).
Tennessee First-degree murder (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-202) with 1 of 18 aggravating circumstances (Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-204).
Texas Capital murder, dened as criminal homicide with 1 of 9 statutory aggravators (Tex. Penal Code § 19.03).
Utah Aggravated murder (Utah Code Ann. § 76-5-202).
Virginia Capital murder, dened as the willful, deliberate, and premeditated murder accompanied by 1 of 15 aggravating
circumstances (VA Code § 18.2-31(A)(1-15)).
Washington
c
Aggravated rst-degree murder.
Wyoming First-degree murder, including premeditated murder and murder during the commission of sexual assault, sexual abuse
of a minor, arson, robbery, burglary, escape, resisting arrest, kidnapping, or abuse of a minor younger than age 16
(W.S.A. § 6-2-101(a)).
Note: New Hampshire repealed its death penalty eective May 30, 2019. One man remains under a previously imposed sentence of death.
a
The Delaware Supreme Court held that a portion of Delaware’s death penalty sentencing statute (11 Del. C. § 4209) was unconstitutional (Rauf v.
State, 145 A.3d 430 (Del. 2016)). No legislative action has been taken to amend the statute. As a result, capital cases are no longer pursued in Delaware.
b
The New York Court of Appeals held that a portion of New York’s death penalty sentencing statute (C.P.L. 400.27) was unconstitutional (People v.
Taylor, 9 N.Y.3d 129 (2007)). No legislative action has been taken to amend the statute. As a result, capital cases are no longer pursued in New York.
c
The Washington Supreme Court has declared the state’s death penalty statute unconstitutional as applied (State v. Gregory, 192 Wash. 2d 1, 427 P.3d
621 (2018)). No legislative action has been taken to revise or repeal the statute.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 7
TABLE 3
Federal capital oenses, 2020
Federal statute Oense
8 U.S.C. § 1342 Murder related to the smuggling of aliens.
18 U.S.C. §§ 32–34 Destruction of aircraft, motor vehicles, or related facilities resulting in death.
18 U.S.C. § 36 Murder committed during a drug-related drive-by shooting.
18 U.S.C. § 37 Murder committed at an airport serving international civil aviation.
18 U.S.C. § 115(b)(3) [by cross-reference to
18 U.S.C. § 1111]
Retaliatory murder of a member of the immediate family of law enforcement ocials.
18 U.S.C. §§ 241, 242, 245, 247 Civil rights oenses resulting in death.
18 U.S.C. § 351 [by cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. § 1111] Murder of a member of Congress, an important executive ocial, or a U.S. Supreme
Courtjustice.
18 U.S.C. § 794 Espionage.
18 U.S.C. §§ 844(d), (f), (i) Death resulting from oenses involving transportation of explosives, destruction of
government property, or destruction of property related to foreign or interstate commerce.
18 U.S.C. § 924(i) Murder committed by the use of a rearm during a crime of violence or a drug-
trackingcrime.
18 U.S.C. § 930 Murder committed in a federal government facility.
18 U.S.C. § 1091 Genocide.
18 U.S.C. § 1111 First-degree murder.
18 U.S.C. § 1114 Murder of a federal judge or law enforcement ocial.
18 U.S.C. § 1116 Murder of a foreign ocial.
18 U.S.C. § 1118 Murder by a federal prisoner.
18 U.S.C. § 1119 Murder of a U.S. national in a foreign country.
18 U.S.C. § 1120 Murder by an escaped federal prisoner already sentenced to life imprisonment.
18 U.S.C. § 1121 Murder of a state or local law enforcement ocial or other person aiding in a federal
investigation; or murder of a state correctional ocer.
18 U.S.C. § 1201 Murder during a kidnapping.
18 U.S.C. § 1203 Murder during a hostage taking.
18 U.S.C. § 1503 Murder of a court ocer or juror.
18 U.S.C. § 1512 Murder with the intent of preventing testimony by a witness, a victim, or an informant.
18 U.S.C. § 1513 Retaliatory murder of a witness, a victim, or an informant.
18 U.S.C. § 1716 Mailing of injurious articles with intent to kill or resulting in death.
18 U.S.C. § 1751 [by cross-reference to
18 U.S.C. §1111]
Assassination or kidnapping resulting in the death of the U.S. president or U.S. vice president.
18 U.S.C. § 1958 Murder for hire.
18 U.S.C. § 1959 Murder involved in a racketeering oense.
18 U.S.C. § 1992 Willful wrecking of a train resulting in death.
18 U.S.C. § 2113 Murder or kidnapping related to bank robbery.
18 U.S.C. § 2119 Murder related to a carjacking.
18 U.S.C. § 2245 Murder related to rape or child molestation.
18 U.S.C. § 2251 Murder related to sexual exploitation of children.
18 U.S.C. § 2280 Murder committed during an oense against maritime navigation.
18 U.S.C. § 2281 Murder committed during an oense against a maritime xed platform.
18 U.S.C. § 2332 Terrorist murder of a U.S. national in another country.
18 U.S.C. § 2332a Murder by the use of a weapon of mass destruction.
18 U.S.C. § 2340 Murder involving torture.
18 U.S.C. § 2381 Treason.
21 U.S.C. § 848(e) Murder related to a continuing criminal enterprise or related murder of a federal, state, or local
law enforcement ocer.
49 U.S.C. §§ 1472–1473 Death resulting from aircraft hijacking.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 8
Authorized methods of execution in 2020
Methods of execution are dened by statute and vary
by jurisdiction. In 2020, all 31 states with a death
penalty statute authorized lethal injection as a method
of execution (table 4). Fieen states also authorized
an alternative method of execution: electrocution
(9 states), lethal gas (3), ring squad (3), nitrogen
hypoxia (3), and hanging (2). In states that authorized
multiple methods of execution, the condemned
prisoner usually selected the method. Five states
(Arizona, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Utah)
stipulated which method must be used depending on
the date of either the oense or sentencing. Six states
authorized alternative methods if lethal injection was
ruled to be unconstitutional: Arkansas authorized
electrocution; Delaware authorized hanging;
Mississippi and Oklahoma authorized electrocution,
ring squad, or nitrogen hypoxia; Utah authorized
ring squad; and Wyoming authorized lethal gas.
Federal prisoners are executed by lethal injection,
pursuant to 28 C.F.R. Part 26. For oenses prosecuted
under the federal Violent Crime Control and Law
Enforcement Act of 1994, the law of the state in which
the conviction took place determines the method used
(18 U.S.C. § 3596).
Advance count of executions in 2021
The Bureau of Justice Statistics gathers information
following each execution to provide the most recent
data on capital punishment in advance of the annual
data collection. The data include the date, jurisdiction,
and method of execution and the race and ethnicity
(Hispanic origin) of each person executed.
From January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021, ve states
and the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) executed
11 prisoners (gure 5), which was 6 fewer than the
number executed in 2020. The BOP and Texas executed
the largest number of prisoners (three each) during
this period.
All of the executions in 2021 were by lethal injection.
Six of the prisoners executed were black, and ve were
white. One female was executed (by the BOP) during
this period.
Complete data for 2021 will appear in Capital
Punishment, 2021. This annual report will consist of data
collected from state and federal correctional agencies.
The report will cover all persons under sentence of
death on December 31, 2021, as well as those removed
from under sentence of death during the year.
FIGURE 5
Advance count of executions, January 1, 2021–
December 31, 2021
Jurisdiction
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Mississippi
Alabama
Missouri
Oklahoma
Texas
Federal
Total
Number of executions
(11)
(3)
(3)
(2)
(1)
(1)
(1)
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics
program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 9
TABLE 4
Authorized method of execution, by state, 2020
Jurisdiction Lethal injection
a
Electrocution Lethal gas Hanging
a
Firing squad Nitrogen hypoxia
Total 31 9 3 2 3 3
Alabama
Arizona
b
Arkansas
c
California
d
Delaware
e
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Indiana
Kansas
Kentucky
f
Louisiana
Mississippi
g
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Oklahoma
g
Oregon
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
South Dakota
h
Tennessee
i
Texas
Utah
j
Virginia
Washington
Wyoming
k
Note: The method of execution of federal prisoners is lethal injection, pursuant to 28 C.F.R. Part 26. For oenses prosecuted under the Violent Crime
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, the execution method is that of the state in which the conviction took place (18 U.S.C. § 3596).
a
Counts exclude New Hampshire, which repealed the death penalty eective May 30, 2019. The one male prisoner remaining under sentence of death
is subject to execution by lethal injection or by hanging if lethal injection cannot be given.
b
Authorizes lethal injection for persons sentenced after November 23, 1992. Prisoners sentenced before that date may select lethal injection or gas.
c
Authorizes lethal injection for persons whose oense occurred on or after July 4, 1983 (Act 774 of 1983). Prisoners whose oense occurred before
that date may select lethal injection or electrocution. Electrocution is the authorized method if lethal injection is invalidated by an unappealable court
order (Ark. Code Ann. § 5-4-617).
d
Both lethal injection and lethal gas are authorized by statute (Cal. Pen. Code 3604). However, use of lethal gas was invalided by a federal court
(Fierro v. Terhune, 147 F.3d 1158, 1160 (9th Cir. 1998)).
e
Authorizes hanging if lethal injection is held to be unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction.
f
Authorizes lethal injection for persons sentenced on or after March 31, 1998. Prisoners sentenced before that date may select lethal injection
orelectrocution.
g
Authorizes nitrogen hypoxia if lethal injection is held to be unconstitutional, electrocution if both lethal injection and nitrogen hypoxia are held to
be unconstitutional, and ring squad if all other methods are held to be unconstitutional.
h
Any person convicted of a capital oense or sentenced to death prior to July 1, 2017 may choose to be executed by lethal injection or in the manner
provided by South Dakota law at the time of the person’s conviction or sentence.
i
Authorizes lethal injection for persons whose capital oense occurred after December 31, 1998. Prisoners whose oense occurred before that date
may select electrocution by written waiver. Electrocution is the authorized method if a court or the commissioner of corrections determines that lethal
injection cannot be given. If both methods are ruled unconstitutional, state law allows for the use of any method that is constitutional.
j
Authorizes ring squad if lethal injection is held unconstitutional. Prisoners who selected execution by ring squad prior to May 3, 2004 may still be
entitled to execution by that method.
k
Authorizes lethal gas if lethal injection is held to be unconstitutional.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 10
TABLE 5
Prisoners under sentence of death, by region, jurisdiction, and race, 2019 and 2020
Region and
jurisdiction
Prisoners under sentence
of death, 12/31/19
Received under sentence
of death, 2020
Removed from death
row (excluding
executions), 2020
a
Executed, 2020
Prisoners under sentence
of death, 12/31/20
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
U.S. total 2,563 1,443 1,057 14 8 6 91 46 43 17 11 5 2,469 1,394 1,015
Federal
d
61 35 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 5 4 51 30 21
State 2,502 1,408 1,032 14 8 6 91 46 43 7 6 1 2,418 1,364 994
Northeast 133 64 67 1 0 1 15 5 10 0 0 0 119 59 58
New Hampshire 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
New York 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Pennsylvania 132 64 66 1 0 1 15 5 10 0 0 0 118 59 57
Midwest 194 99 94 0 0 0 5 1 4 1 1 0 188 97 90
Indiana 8 6 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 6 2
Kansas 10 7 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 7 3
Missouri 22 15 7 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 20 13 7
Nebraska 12 9 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 9 3
Ohio 141 61 79 0 0 0 4 0 4 0 0 0 137 61 75
South Dakota 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
South 1,217 642 558 11 6 5 38 18 18 6 5 1 1,184 625 544
Alabama 175 88 87 0 0 0 4 1 3 1 0 1 170 87 83
Arkansas 30 15 15 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 29 14 15
Delaware 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Florida 338 212 126 7 4 3 8 5 3 0 0 0 337 211 126
Georgia 44 23 21 0 0 0 3 2 1 1 1 0 40 20 20
Kentucky 27 24 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 26 23 3
Louisiana 68 23 45 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 0 0 66 22 44
Mississippi 40 17 22 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 40 17 22
North Carolina 143 58 78 0 0 0 6 0 5 0 0 0 137 58 73
Oklahoma 46 22 20 1 1 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 45 23 19
South Carolina 36 17 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 36 17 19
Tennessee 52 25 26 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 50 23 26
Texas 216 118 94 2 1 1 9 6 3 3 3 0 206 110 92
Virginia 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2
West 958 603 313 2 2 0 33 22 11 0 0 0 927 583 302
Arizona 116 89 20 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 116 89 20
California 727 432 264 1 1 0 25 17 8 0 0 0 703 416 256
Colorado 3 0 3 0 0 0 3 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Idaho 8 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 8 0
Montana 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0
Nevada 69 44 23 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 67 42 23
Oregon 26 23 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 24 21 2
Utah 7 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 5 1
Washington 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Wyoming 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Note: Some counts for yearend 2019 are revised from those reported in Capital Punishment, 2019 – Statistical Tables (NCJ 300381, BJS, June 2021). The revised
counts include 5 prisoners who were either reported late to the National Prisoner Statistics program or were not in the custody of state correctional authorities
on December 31, 2019 (4 in California and 1 in Ohio). The revised counts exclude 13 prisoners who were relieved of a death sentence before December 31, 2019
(3 in Oregon; 2 each in Pennsylvania, Florida, Georgia, and Nevada; and 1 each in California and Idaho). Data for December 31, 2019 also include 1 prisoner in
Ohio who was erroneously reported as being removed from under sentence of death in a previous year.
a
Includes 38 deaths from natural causes (17 in California; 4 in Florida; 3 in Ohio; 2 each Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas; and 1 each in Pennsylvania, Missouri,
Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arizona, Nevada, and Oregon), 3 deaths by suicide (1 each in Alabama, Florida, and California), and 1 death from an
undetermined cause (California).
b
Includes American Indians or Alaska Natives and Asians, Native Hawaiians, or Other Pacic Islanders.
c
Includes persons of Hispanic origin.
d
Excludes persons held under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Armed Forces with a military death sentence for murder.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 11
TABLE 6
Demographic characteristics of prisoners under sentence of death, 2020
Demographic characteristic Total, 12/31/20 Admissions Removals
Total 2,469 14 108
Sex
Male 97.9% 100% 98.1%
Female 2.1 0 1.9
Race
White
a
56.5% 57.1% 52.8%
Black
a
41.1 42.9 44.4
American Indian/
Alaska Native
a
0.7 0 2.8
Asian/Native Hawaiian/
Other Pacic Islander
a,b
1.7 0 0
Ethnicity
c
Hispanic 15.3% 0% 15.2%
Non-Hispanic 84.7 100 84.8
Age
18–19 0% 0% 0%
20–24 0 0 0.9
25–29 1.2 14.3 0.9
30–34 4.4 7.1 0.9
35–39 7.5 21.4 4.6
40–44 12.8 14.3 13.9
45–49 16.3 14.3 15.7
50–54 17.7 14.3 9.3
55–59 15.9 7.1 15.7
60–64 11.9 7.1 13.9
65 or older 12.2 0 24.1
Average age
Mean 52 yrs. 43 yrs. 55 yrs.
Median 52 41 56
Education
d
8th grade or less 11.6% 0% 14.8%
9th–11th grade 34.9 66.7 35.2
High school graduate/GED 44.4 33.3 40.9
Any college 9.2 0 9.1
Median education level 12th grade : 12th grade
Marital status
e
Married 21.1% 18.2% 27.2%
Divorced/separated 20.0 18.2 14.1
Widowed 3.5 9.1 6.5
Never married 55.4 54.5 52.2
Note: Percentages are based on prisoners for whom data were reported. Details may not sum to totals due to
rounding. See appendix table 1 for counts.
:Not calculated.
a
Includes persons of Hispanic origin.
b
Includes 36 Asians and 6 Native Hawaiians or Other Pacic Islanders at yearend 2020.
c
Excludes 221 prisoners from total yearend and 9 removals because ethnicity was unknown.
d
Excludes 535 prisoners from total yearend, 11 admissions, and 20 removals because education level was unknown.
e
Excludes 365 prisoners from total yearend, 3 admissions, and 16 removals because marital status was unknown.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 12
TABLE 7
Female prisoners under sentence of death, by region, jurisdiction, and race, 2019 and 2020
Region and jurisdiction
Female prisoners under
sentence of death,
12/31/19
a
Received under
sentence of death, 2020
Removed from
death row, 2020
Female prisoners under
sentence of death,
12/31/20
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
Total
b
White
c
Black
c
U.S. total 53 39 11 0 0 0 2 1 0 51 38 11
Federal 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
State 52 38 11 0 0 0 2 1 0 50 37 11
Midwest 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Ohio 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
South 23 14 8 0 0 0 1 0 0 22 14 8
Alabama 5 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 4 1
Florida 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 1 2
Georgia 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
Kentucky 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Louisiana 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
Mississippi 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
North Carolina 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 1 1
Oklahoma 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Tennessee 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Texas 6 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 4 2
West 28 23 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 27 22 3
Arizona 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 0
California 23 18 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 23 18 3
Idaho 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Oregon 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
a
Counts of female prisoners under sentence of death at yearend 2019 have been revised from those reported in Capital Punishment, 2019 – Statistical
Tables (NCJ 300381, BJS, June 2021). The revised counts include one prisoner in California who was originally reported as a male prisoner. Following
sex reassignment surgery, she is now housed in a female facility and included in the count of female prisoners.
b
Includes American Indians or Alaska Natives and Asians, Native Hawaiians, or Other Pacic Islanders.
c
Includes persons of Hispanic origin.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 13
TABLE 8
Hispanic prisoners under sentence of death, by region and jurisdiction, 2019 and 2020
Region and jurisdiction
Hispanic prisoners
under sentence
of death, 12/31/19
Received under
sentence
of death, 2020
Removed from death
row (excluding
executions), 2020 Executed, 2020
Hispanic prisoners
under sentence
of death, 12/31/20
U.S. total 358 0 14 1 343
Federal 7 0 0 0 7
State 351 0 14 1 336
Northeast 14 0 0 0 14
Pennsylvania 14 0 0 0 14
Midwest 10 0 0 0 10
Nebraska 6 0 0 0 6
Ohio 4 0 0 0 4
South 95 0 6 1 88
Alabama 1 0 0 0 1
Florida 22 0 0 0 22
Georgia 2 0 0 0 2
Louisiana 2 0 0 0 2
Mississippi 1 0 0 0 1
North Carolina 3 0 0 0 3
Oklahoma 1 0 0 0 1
South Carolina 1 0 0 0 1
Tennessee 1 0 0 0 1
Texas 61 0 6 1 54
West 232 0 8 0 224
Arizona 24 0 1 0 23
California 196 0 7 0 189
Idaho 1 0 0 0 1
Nevada 6 0 0 0 6
Oregon 3 0 0 0 3
Utah 2 0 0 0 2
Note: Counts of Hispanic prisoners under sentence of death at yearend 2019 have been revised from those reported in Capital Punishment, 2019 –
Statistical Tables (NCJ 300381, BJS, June 2021). The revised counts include four prisoners in California who were not included in the counts for
December 31, 2019.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 14
TABLE 9
Criminal history of prisoners under sentence of death, by race or ethnicity, 2020
All prisoners White
a
Black
a
Hispanic
American Indian/
Alaska Native
a
Asian/Native
Hawaiian/Other
Pacic Islander
a
U.S. total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
Prior felony convictions
b
Yes 67.6% 63.8% 72.8% 65.4% 68.8% 56.8%
No 32.4 36.2 27.2 34.6 31.3 43.2
Prior homicide
convictions
c
Yes 9.5% 9.8% 9.6% 9.1% 5.6% 5.0%
No 90.5 90.2 90.4 90.9 94.4 95.0
Legal status at time of
capital oense
d
Charges pending 7.9% 9.6% 7.0% 5.8% 6.3% 5.6%
On probation 11.4 9.9 11.5 14.8 18.8 13.9
On parole 16.0 13.7 17.9 17.4 25.0 13.9
On escape 1.2 1.7 0.8 1.0 0 0
Incarcerated 4.6 5.9 3.7 3.5 12.5 0
Other status 0.1 0 0.1 0.3 0 0
None 58.8 59.2 58.9 57.2 37.5 66.7
Number of prisoners 2,469 1,062 1,006 343 18 40
Note: Percentages are based on prisoners for whom data were reported. Details may not sum to totals due to rounding.
a
Excludes persons of Hispanic origin (e.g., "white" refers to non-Hispanic whites and "black" refers to non-Hispanic blacks).
b
Excludes 191 prisoners because data were not reported.
c
Excludes 31 prisoners because data were not reported.
d
Excludes 285 prisoners because data were not reported.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 15
TABLE 10
Prisoners under sentence of death on December 31, 2020, by year of sentencing and jurisdiction
Jurisdiction
Year of sentence for prisoners under sentence of death, 12/31/20
Under sentence
of death,
12/31/20
Average years
under sentence of
death, 12/31/20
1976–
1980
1981–
1985
1986–
1990
1991–
1995
1996–
2000
2001–
2005
2006–
2010
2011–
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
U.S. total 20 106 208 398 513 360 421 293 30 34 39 33 14 2,469 19.4
Florida 8 18 35 66 58 30 50 47 3 3 7 5 7 337 20.2
California 5 46 88 125 156 76 106 72 10 9 4 5 1 703 21.2
Texas 3 1 7 21 42 43 33 35 4 4 6 5 2 206 16.6
Nevada 1 11 5 10 16 5 8 5 1 4 1 0 0 67 21.9
Arizona 1 4 8 18 10 16 34 16 1 4 2 1 1 116 17.2
Kentucky 1 3 4 4 7 2 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 26 24.9
Arkansas 1 0 0 7 5 5 4 5 0 0 2 0 0 29 18.0
Ohio 0 6 15 21 26 23 16 15 4 1 4 6 0 137 19.1
Tennessee 0 3 8 8 13 6 6 5 0 0 1 0 0 50 22.2
Pennsylvania 0 2 15 18 24 16 18 21 1 2 0 0 1 118 19.3
Louisiana 0 2 3 10 25 11 7 7 0 0 1 0 0 66 20.1
South Carolina 0 2 1 1 7 11 11 1 0 0 0 2 0 36 17.6
Missouri 0 2 1 0 0 4 8 4 0 0 1 0 0 20 15.6
Alabama 0 1 9 22 37 30 36 24 4 1 3 3 0 170 17.2
Mississippi 0 1 3 6 5 8 7 6 0 1 2 0 1 40 17.4
Utah 0 1 2 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 7 :
North Carolina 0 1 1 44 47 23 13 4 1 0 0 3 0 137 21.3
Oklahoma 0 1 0 1 6 13 13 6 0 2 1 1 1 45 14.2
Montana 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 :
Georgia 0 0 2 4 12 7 10 4 0 0 0 1 0 40 18.2
Idaho 0 0 1 3 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 :
Oregon 0 0 0 4 8 3 7 2 0 0 0 0 0 24 19.0
Federal 0 0 0 2 3 16 19 6 0 2 2 1 0 51 13.5
Indiana 0 0 0 1 2 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 8 :
Nebraska 0 0 0 0 1 5 3 0 0 1 2 0 0 12 12.5
Kansas 0 0 0 0 0 3 4 2 1 0 0 0 0 10 12.4
Virginia 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 :
South Dakota 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 :
New Hampshire 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 :
Note: For persons sentenced to death more than once, numbers are based on the year of the most recent death sentence.
:Not calculated. A reliable average could not be calculated from fewer than 10 cases.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 16
TABLE 11
Prisoners removed from under sentence of death, by region, jurisdiction, and method of removal, 2020
Region and jurisdiction Total Execution Other death*
Sentence
commuted
Appeals court or higher
court overturned—
Capital conviction Death sentence
U.S. total 108 17 42 4 11 34
Federal 10 10 0 0 0 0
State 98 7 42 4 11 34
Northeast 15 0 1 0 2 12
Pennsylvania 15 0 1 0 2 12
Midwest 6 1 4 0 0 1
Missouri 2 1 1 0 0 0
Ohio 4 0 3 0 0 1
South 44 6 15 1 6 16
Alabama 5 1 3 0 1 0
Arkansas 1 0 0 0 0 1
Florida 8 0 5 0 1 2
Georgia 4 1 1 1 1 0
Kentucky 1 0 1 0 0 0
Louisiana 2 0 2 0 0 0
Mississippi 1 0 0 0 1 0
North Carolina 6 0 0 0 1 5
Oklahoma 2 0 0 0 1 1
Tennessee 2 1 1 0 0 0
Texas 12 3 2 0 0 7
West 33 0 22 3 3 5
Arizona 1 0 1 0 0 0
California 25 0 19 0 3 3
Colorado 3 0 0 3 0 0
Nevada 2 0 1 0 0 1
Oregon 2 0 1 0 0 1
*In 2020, other deaths were due to natural causes, suicide, and unspecied causes.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 17
TABLE 12
Average elapsed time between sentencing and
execution, 1977–2020
Year
a
Executions
Average elapsed time from
sentence to execution
b
Total 1,529 147 mos.
1977 1 :
1979 2 :
1981 1 :
1982 2 :
1983 5 :
1984 21 74
1985 18 71
1986 18 87
1987 25 86
1988 11 80
1989 16 95
1990 23 95
1991 14 116
1992 31 114
1993 38 113
1994 31 122
1995 56 134
1996 45 125
1997 74 133
1998 68 130
1999 98 143
2000 85 137
2001 66 142
2002 71 127
2003 65 131
2004 59 132
2005 60 147
2006 53 145
2007 42 153
2008 37 139
2009 52 169
2010 46 178
2011 43 198
2012 43 190
2013 39 186
2014 35 218
2015 28 195
2016 20 204
2017 23 243
2018 25 238
2019 22 264
2020 17 227
Note: In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated capital punishment
statutes in several states (Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972)),
eecting a moratorium on executions. Executions resumed in 1977
when the court found that revisions to statutes in several states had
eectively addressed the issues previously held unconstitutional (Gregg
v. Georgia, 428 U.S. 153 (1976) and its companion cases).
:Not calculated. A reliable average cannot be calculated from fewer than
10 cases.
a
No executions were carried out in 1978 or 1980.
b
Average time was calculated from the most recent sentencing date.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program
(NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 18
TABLE 13
Number of prisoners executed, by race or ethnicity, 1977–2020
Year
a
All executions White
b
Black
b
Hispanic
American Indian/
Alaska Native
b
Asian/ Native
Hawaiian/Other
Pacic Islander
b
Total 1,529 860 520 134 9 6
1977 1 1 0 0 0 0
1979 2 2 0 0 0 0
1981 1 1 0 0 0 0
1982 2 1 1 0 0 0
1983 5 4 1 0 0 0
1984 21 13 8 0 0 0
1985 18 9 7 2 0 0
1986 18 9 7 2 0 0
1987 25 11 11 3 0 0
1988 11 6 5 0 0 0
1989 16 6 8 2 0 0
1990 23 16 7 0 0 0
1991 14 6 7 1 0 0
1992 31 17 11 2 1 0
1993 38 19 14 4 1 0
1994 31 19 11 1 0 0
1995 56 31 22 2 0 1
1996 45 29 14 2 0 0
1997 74 41 26 5 1 1
1998 68 40 18 8 1 1
1999 98 53 33 9 1 2
2000 85 43 35 6 1 0
2001 66 45 17 3 1 0
2002 71 47 18 6 0 0
2003 65 41 20 3 1 0
2004 59 36 19 3 0 1
2005 60 38 19 3 0 0
2006 53 25 20 8 0 0
2007 42 22 14 6 0 0
2008 37 17 17 3 0 0
2009 52 24 21 7 0 0
2010 46 28 13 5 0 0
2011 43 22 16 5 0 0
2012 43 25 11 7 0 0
2013 39 23 13 3 0 0
2014 35 12 18 5 0 0
2015 28 11 10 7 0 0
2016 20 16 2 2 0 0
2017 23 13 8 2 0 0
2018 25 14 6 5 0 0
2019 22 14 7 1 0 0
2020 17 10 5 1 1 0
Note: In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated capital punishment statutes in several states (Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972)), eecting a
moratorium on executions. Executions resumed in 1977 when the court found that revisions to statutes in several states had eectively addressed the
issues previously held unconstitutional (Gregg v. Georgia, 428 U.S. 153 (1976) and its companion cases).
a
No executions were carried out in 1978 or 1980.
b
Excludes persons of Hispanic origin (e.g. "white" refers to non-Hispanic whites and "black" refers to non-Hispanic blacks).
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 19
TABLE 14
Number of executions, by method and jurisdiction, 1977–2020
Jurisdiction All methods Lethal injection Electrocution Lethal gas Hanging Firing squad
U.S. total 1,529 1,349 163 11 3 3
Federal 13 13 0 0 0 0
Alabama 67 43 24 0 0 0
Arizona 37 35 0 2 0 0
Arkansas 31 30 1 0 0 0
California 13 11 0 2 0 0
Colorado 1 1 0 0 0 0
Connecticut 1 1 0 0 0 0
Delaware 16 15 0 0 1 0
Florida 99 55 44 0 0 0
Georgia 76 53 23 0 0 0
Idaho 3 3 0 0 0 0
Illinois 12 12 0 0 0 0
Indiana 20 17 3 0 0 0
Kentucky 3 2 1 0 0 0
Louisiana 28 8 20 0 0 0
Maryland 5 5 0 0 0 0
Mississippi 21 17 0 4 0 0
Missouri 90 90 0 0 0 0
Montana 3 3 0 0 0 0
Nebraska 4 1 3 0 0 0
Nevada 12 11 0 1 0 0
New Mexico 1 1 0 0 0 0
North Carolina 43 41 0 2 0 0
Ohio 56 56 0 0 0 0
Oklahoma 112 112 0 0 0 0
Oregon 2 2 0 0 0 0
Pennsylvania 3 3 0 0 0 0
South Carolina 43 36 7 0 0 0
South Dakota 5 5 0 0 0 0
Tennessee 13 7 6 0 0 0
Texas 570 570 0 0 0 0
Utah 7 4 0 0 0 3
Virginia 113 82 31 0 0 0
Washington 5 3 0 0 2 0
Wyoming 1 1 0 0 0 0
Note: In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated capital punishment statutes in several states (Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972)), eecting a
moratorium on executions. Executions resumed in 1977 when the court found that revisions to statutes in several states had eectively addressed the
issues previously held unconstitutional (Gregg v. Georgia, 428 U.S. 153 (1976) and its companion cases).
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 20
TABLE 15
Number of executions, by jurisdiction, 1930–2020 and
1977–2020
Jurisdiction Since 1930 Since 1977
U.S. total 5,388 1,529
Texas 867 570
Georgia 441 76
New York 329 0
North Carolina 306 43
California 305 13
Florida 270 99
Ohio 228 56
Virginia 205 113
South Carolina 205 43
Alabama 202 67
Mississippi 175 21
Oklahoma 172 112
Louisiana 161 28
Pennsylvania 155 3
Missouri 152 90
Arkansas 149 31
Tennessee 106 13
Kentucky 106 3
Illinois 102 12
Arizona 75 37
New Jersey 74 0
Maryland 73 5
Indiana 61 20
Washington 52 5
Colorado 48 1
Federal system 46 13
Nevada 41 12
District of Columbia 40 0
West Virginia 40 0
Delaware 28 16
Massachusetts 27 0
Connecticut 22 1
Oregon 21 2
Utah 20 7
Iowa 18 0
Kansas 15 0
Montana 9 3
New Mexico 9 1
Nebraska 8 4
Wyoming 8 1
South Dakota 6 5
Idaho 6 3
Vermont 4 0
New Hampshire 1 0
Note: Excludes 160 executions carried out by military authorities
between 1930 and 1961. The federal government has collected data on
executions under civil authority annually since 1930.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program
(NPS-8), 1930–2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 21
Methodology
e Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) collects
information about capital punishment each year
through the National Prisoner Statistics program
(NPS-8). BJS collects this data series in two parts:
Data on persons under sentence of death are
obtained from the department of corrections in each
jurisdiction that authorizes capital punishment.
e status of death penalty statutes is obtained
from the Oce of the Attorney General in each of
the 50 states, the Oce of the U.S. Attorney in the
District of Columbia, and the Federal Bureau of
Prisons for the federal government.
Data collection forms are available on the BJS website
at bjs.ojp.gov.
e NPS-8 covers all persons under sentence of
death at any time during the year who were held in a
state or federal nonmilitary correctional facility. is
includes capital oenders transferred from prison to
a mental institution and those who may have escaped
from custody. It excludes persons sentenced to death
under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and those
whose death sentences have been overturned by a
court or an executive action, regardless of their current
incarceration status. Statistics in this report may
dier from data collected by other organizations for
various reasons:
e NPS-8 adds prisoners to the population under
sentence of death at the time they are admitted to a
state or federal correctional facility, not at the time
they are sentenced.
If prisoners entered prison under a death sentence or
were reported as being relieved of a death sentence
in one year but the admission or removal occurred
in a previous year, counts are adjusted to reect the
actual date of sentence or removal.
NPS-8 counts are for the last day of the calendar year
and will dier from counts for more recent periods.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 22
APPENDIX TABLE 1
Demographic characteristics for prisoners under sentence of death, 2020
Demographic characteristic Total, 12/31/20 Admissions Removals
Total 2,469 14 108
Sex
Male 2,418 14 106
Female 51 0 2
Race
White 1,394 8 57
Black 1,015 6 48
American Indian/
Alaska Native 18 0 3
Asian/Native Hawaiian/
Other Pacic Islander 42 0 0
Ethnicity
Hispanic 343 0 15
Non-Hispanic 1,905 14 84
Unknown 221 0 9
Age
18–19 0 0 0
20–24 0 0 1
25–29 30 2 1
30–34 109 1 1
35–39 184 3 5
40–44 315 2 15
45–49 403 2 17
50–54 438 2 10
55–59 393 1 17
60–64 295 1 15
65 or older 302 0 26
Education
8th grade or less 225 0 13
9th–11th grade 674 2 31
High school graduate/GED 858 1 36
Any college 177 0 8
Unknown 535 11 20
Marital status
Married 443 2 25
Divorced/separated 421 2 13
Widowed 74 1 6
Never married 1,166 6 48
Unknown 365 3 16
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 23
APPENDIX TABLE 2
Counts for gure 1: Number of persons under sentence of death, 1953–2020
Year
Number of prisoners
under sentence of death
1953 131
1954 147
1955 125
1956 146
1957 151
1958 147
1959 164
1960 212
1961 257
1962 267
1963 297
1964 315
1965 331
1966 406
1967 435
1968 517
1969 575
1970 631
1971 642
1972 334
1973 134
1974 244
1975 488
Year
Number of prisoners
under sentence of death
1976 420
1977 423
1978 482
1979 593
1980 692
1981 860
1982 1,066
1983 1,209
1984 1,420
1985 1,575
1986 1,800
1987 1,967
1988 2,117
1989 2,243
1990 2,346
1991 2,465
1992 2,580
1993 2,727
1994 2,905
1995 3,064
1996 3,242
1997 3,328
1998 3,465
Year
Number of prisoners
under sentence of death
1999 3,540
2000 3,601
2001 3,577
2002 3,562
2003 3,377
2004 3,320
2005 3,245
2006 3,233
2007 3,215
2008 3,210
2009 3,173
2010 3,139
2011 3,065
2012 3,011
2013 2,983
2014 2,942
2015 2,872
2016 2,797
2017 2,703
2018 2,626
2019 2,563
2020 2,469
Note: Data on the number of prisoners under sentence of death at yearend have been collected since 1953.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 1953–2020.
APPENDIX TABLE 3
Counts for gure 2: Admissions to and removals from under sentence of death, 1973–2020
Year Admissions Removals
1973 44 240
1974 161 55
1975 318 67
1976 249 317
1977 159 156
1978 211 150
1979 172 61
1980 202 101
1981 249 84
1982 287 79
1983 266 123
1984 306 90
1985 292 130
1986 319 109
1987 311 142
1988 317 165
Year Admissions Removals
1989 275 149
1990 270 152
1991 284 159
1992 300 173
1993 299 162
1994 330 153
1995 325 171
1996 323 155
1997 282 187
1998 312 175
1999 287 220
2000 235 173
2001 164 194
2002 172 191
2003 157 348
2004 139 197
Year Admissions Removals
2005 143 216
2006 126 146
2007 129 140
2008 122 137
2009 118 167
2010 116 143
2011 84 156
2012 85 125
2013 85 118
2014 70 116
2015 54 123
2016 34 98
2017 37 133
2018 41 115
2019 35 98
2020 14 108
Note: Removals can be due to any cause, including execution, other death, or appeal.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 1973–2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 24
APPENDIX TABLE 4
Counts for gure 3: Number of persons executed in the United States, 1930–2020
Year Executions
1930 155
1931 153
1932 140
1933 160
1934 168
1935 199
1936 195
1937 147
1938 190
1939 160
1940 124
1941 123
1942 147
1943 131
1944 120
1945 117
1946 131
1947 153
1948 119
1949 119
1950 82
1951 105
1952 83
1953 62
1954 81
1955 76
1956 65
1957 65
1958 49
1959 49
1960 56
Year Executions
1961 42
1962 47
1963 21
1964 15
1965 7
1966 1
1967 2
1968 0
1969 0
1970 0
1971 0
1972 0
1973 0
1974 0
1975 0
1976 0
1977 1
1978 0
1979 2
1980 0
1981 1
1982 2
1983 5
1984 21
1985 18
1986 18
1987 25
1988 11
1989 16
1990 23
1991 14
Year Executions
1992 31
1993 38
1994 31
1995 56
1996 45
1997 74
1998 68
1999 98
2000 85
2001 66
2002 71
2003 65
2004 59
2005 60
2006 53
2007 42
2008 37
2009 52
2010 46
2011 43
2012 43
2013 39
2014 35
2015 28
2016 20
2017 23
2018 25
2019 22
2020 17
Note: Excludes 160 executions carried out by military authorities from 1930 to 1961.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 1930–2020.
Capital Punishment, 2020 – Statistical Tables | December 2021 25
APPENDIX TABLE 5
Counts for gure 4: Number of prisoners under sentence of death, by race, 1968–2020
Year White
a
Black
a
All other races
a,b
1968 243 271 3
1969 263 310 2
1970 293 335 3
1971 306 332 4
1972 167 166 1
1973 64 68 2
1974 110 128 6
1975 218 262 8
1976 225 195 0
1977 229 192 2
1978 281 197 4
1979 354 236 3
1980 424 264 4
1981 499 353 8
1982 613 441 12
1983 692 505 12
1984 806 598 16
1985 896 664 15
1986 1,013 762 25
1987 1,128 813 26
1988 1,235 848 34
1989 1,308 898 37
1990 1,368 940 38
1991 1,449 979 37
1992 1,511 1,031 38
1993 1,575 1,111 41
1994 1,653 1,203 49
Year White
a
Black
a
All other races
a,b
1995 1,732 1,284 48
1996 1,833 1,358 51
1997 1,864 1,408 56
1998 1,917 1,489 59
1999 1,960 1,515 65
2000 1,989 1,541 71
2001 1,968 1,538 71
2002 1,939 1,551 72
2003 1,882 1,417 78
2004 1,856 1,390 74
2005 1,802 1,366 77
2006 1,806 1,353 74
2007 1,806 1,338 71
2008 1,795 1,343 72
2009 1,779 1,318 76
2010 1,743 1,309 87
2011 1,721 1,274 70
2012 1,684 1,258 69
2013 1,670 1,251 62
2014 1,647 1,233 62
2015 1,606 1,202 64
2016 1,553 1,179 65
2017 1,508 1,129 66
2018 1,470 1,091 65
2019 1,443 1,057 63
2020 1,394 1,015 60
Note: Data on Hispanic origin was not collected prior to 1977.
a
Includes persons of Hispanic origin.
b
Includes American Indians or Alaska Natives; Asians, Native Hawaiians, or Other Pacic Islanders; and persons for whom only ethnicity was identied.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8), 1968–2020.
e Bureau of Justice Statistics of the U.S. Department of Justice is the
principal federal agency responsible for measuring crime, criminal
victimization, criminal oenders, victims of crime, correlates of crime,
and the operation of criminal and civil justice systems at the federal, state,
tribal, and local levels. BJS collects, analyzes, and disseminates reliable
statistics on crime and justice systems in the United States, supports
improvements to state and local criminal justice information systems, and
participates with national and international organizations to develop and
recommend national standards for justice statistics. Doris J. James is the
acting director.
is report was written by Tracy L. Snell. Emily D. Buehler and Todd D.
Minton veried the report.
David Fialko and Edrienne Su edited the report. Carrie Epps-Carey
produced the report.
December 2021, NCJ 302729
Oce of Justice Programs
Building Solutions • Supporting Communities • Advancing Justice
www.ojp.gov
