Capital Punishment
The Latest
Federal executions to resume after Supreme Court denies appeal
Federal executions are set to resume in the next two weeks after the Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge to... Read more
Supreme Court stays Texas execution over chaplain dispute
The Supreme Court stayed the execution of a man in Texas after the state’s Department of Corrections refused to allow... Read more
Catholics protest Missouri execution of death row prisoner
Despite objections from Catholic groups, a Missouri death row inmate died by lethal injection May 19, in the first execution... Read more
Colorado becomes latest state to repeal death penalty
The Catholic bishops of Colorado have welcomed the repeal of the death penalty, as the state becomes the 22nd to... Read more
Colorado's Catholic bishops back death penalty repeal
The Catholic bishops of Colorado have backed a bipartisan bill to repeal the death penalty that appears set to become... Read more
Drop in support for the death penalty matches decline in its use
As support for the death penalty decreases in the U.S., so does the number of inmates executed by the states,... Read more
Federal executions put on hold while court case moves forward
A federal judge on Wednesday issued a preliminary injunction halting federal executions in the U.S., saying that a challenge to... Read more
Indiana bishops say death penalty does not help convicts or victims
Ahead of a scheduled reinstatement of the death penalty for federal inmates, the bishops of Indiana are calling on U.S.... Read more
Bishops lament return of federal executions
Catholic leaders have condemned the federal government’s announcement last week that it will resume of executions after an almost two... Read more
Church in Philippines rejects president's call to revive death penalty
Catholic leaders in the Philippines are calling on Catholics and lawmakers to resist President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to revive the... Read more
After nearly 20 years, federal government will resume executions
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) will resume executions after an almost two-decade lapse, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced... Read more
Manchester bishop welcomes repeal of death penalty in NH
Bishop Peter Libasci of Manchester welcomed Thursday the New Hampshire legislature's override of a veto by the governor on capital... Read more
Florida Catholic Conference asks governor to halt execution of serial killer
The Catholic bishops of Florida are calling on the state’s governor to spare the life of Bobby Joe Long, a... Read more
Tenn. bishops urge governor to stop executions
The bishops of Tennessee have requested that the new governor halt four executions planned for this year, reiterating the Church’s... Read more
After Supreme Court ruling, Texas bans all chaplains from execution rooms
The state of Texas has banned all prison chaplains from its execution chamber, following a Supreme Court decision that halted... Read more
Brunei implements law punishing adultery, sodomy with death penalty
Brunei implemented Wednesday a sharia penal code that punishes such crimes as adultery, sodomy, rape, and blasphemy of Muhammad with... Read more
Colorado's death penalty repeal failure means 'unneeded violence', critic says
A death penalty repeal effort has failed in the Colorado legislature after failing to win enough votes in the Democratic-controlled... Read more
Texas bishops praise delayed execution of prisoner denied Buddhist chaplain
The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops praised the Supreme Court’s decision to delay the execution of Patrick Murphy, a Buddhist... Read more
Colorado Catholic Conference supports bill to repeal death penalty
As a measure to repeal Colorado’s death penalty passed a Senate committee this week, the Colorado Catholic Conference has expressed... Read more
Pope encourages group working to end use of death penalty
In a video message sent Wednesday to an international anti-death penalty group Pope Francis encouraged them in their work and... Read more
